**8. Mechanism**

The process of hypnosis consists of a hypnotic induction, a deepening procedure, and symptom-specific suggestions. Hypnosis is a state of highly focused attention, with dissociation of thoughts and sensations toward awareness. It is comprised of three components: absorption, dissociation, and suggestibility. Absorption is full involvement in a perceptual, imaginative or ideational experience for self-altering attention. Dissociation is a mental segregation of components of behavior in a dream-like state of being both actor and observer when re-experiencing autobiographical memories in involuntary motor functions or discontinuities in the sensations of one part of the body compared with another. Suggestibility complies with hypnotic instructions. It is not a loss of will but rather a suspension of judgment due to the absorption and effortless self -loss in what is concentrating on. The hypnotized person does not have control over his/her thoughts

#### *Hypnotherapy and Hypnosis*

and actions and follows the suggestions without looking for alternatives and analyzing their context. The principle of hypnosis is to recall traumatic memories and manage their associated affect and physiological responses by reevaluating their meaning in a new perspective. Hypnosis is a set of techniques to fortify concentration, by decreasing the effect of distractions, and increase to change the subject's s thoughts, feelings, behavior, or physiological state. Hypnosis is not psychotherapy. Hypnotic perceptual and cognitive changes the equilibrium between suggestion, expectation, and task instructions [47–49].

A new non-pharmacological technique called virtual reality hypnosis (VRH), combines VR hardware/software and hypnotic induction. In hypnosis, the subject constitutes his own world by the hypnotist's suggestions through absorption and dissociation. Virtual reality hypnosis (VRH) does not depend upon the skill of hypnotist and the openness of the subject. The subjects need less imagination and absorption due to visual and auditory stimuli presented in virtual reality [50–52].

Five psychological factors are most important for the success of hypnosis: hypnotizability, expectancies, motivation, absorptive capacity/fantasy proneness, and attitudes toward hypnosis. The specific type and wording of suggestions influence outcome. Expectancies determine the extent how much the subject believes in the experience and response to the hypnotic intervention. Past experience, current context, and interaction influence expectancies. *The collaborative and affective bond between the hypnotist and the subject is the essential component in hypnosis. The subject's positive response to the contradictory suggestions to his/her previous perception is called countering.* Hypnosis is a change in baseline mental activity. Hypnosis like practices inducing trance states have been used throughout history. Medical hypnosis is applying hypnosis to alleviate somatic symptoms, reduce stress, and influence physiological/biochemical processes. The interactional behavioral and affective synchrony between the child and the parent is highly similar to the relationship between the subject and the hypnotist. Synchrony can occur in the behavioral, emotional, phenomenological, and psycho-physiological variables in both the subject and the hypnotist [53–59].

In psychoanalytic approach to hypnosis, the hypnotist is similar to an authority figure of the subject from his earlier life experience. Frequently punished children would try not to displease the hypnotist and would show high level of dissociation. Negative parental behavior (punishment and overprotection) is related to the phenomenological and emotional dimensions of hypnotic response leading to higher hypnotizability. Parental behavior of the subject influences hypnotic behavior, experiences, and emotional bond with the hypnotist. A warm- supportive parental style provokes more positive feelings toward the hypnotist, whereas cold-punishing parental behavior is correlated to negative feelings about the hypnotist and hypnosis itself. One consistent pattern in females is that maternal punishment predicts only negative affect in hypnosis, while punishing parental behavior in men, predicts both positive and negative responses to hypnosis. Alexithymia, the decreased ability to identify and verbalize someone's own emotions, mediates between parental punishment and fear in hypnosis. Therefore, hypnotherapist should search before the hypnotherapeutic intervention the subject's memories of their parents, which will influence his/her expectations about hypnosis and the hypnotist. Subjects remembering punishing, and/or emotionally unresponsive parents would stay away from the hypnotist even if they know that hypnotherapy would correct the source of the problem. They may feel stress and anxiety in the hypnotic state which can be regulated by the sense of security and mutual trust [60–63].

Mindfulness meditation and hypnosis remain in opposing ways to awareness of intentions. Hypnosis and meditation may be combined as a psychosomatic

**15**

**Author details**

wellness of people.

[67, 68].

Cengiz Mordeniz

Tekirdag Namik Kemal University, Turkey

provided the original work is properly cited.

\*Address all correspondence to: cengizmorster@gmail.com

*Hypnosis and Hypnotherapy: Emerging of Science-Based Hypnosis*

chology of hypnosis and meditation follow common features:

b.an intentional control of biologic-somatic activities

technique to control mind and body regulation. Phenomenology, and neuropsy-

c. activation/deactivation of the default modality network and pain

manifestations of individual adaptive self-regulating system) [66].

The "mirror neurons" in the human brain provide empathy to sense the intentions of others by observing their behavior and related brain activity. They function as a rapport zone mediating between observing consciousness, the gene expression/ protein synthesis cycle, and brain plasticity in hypnotherapy and psychosomatic medicine. (Emerging science recognizes human experience not as disease but as

Tandem hypnotherapy considers the unity of body and mind as a quantum process, since the embryonic period of life. Tandem has two meanings: (1) a multi-seater bicycle, (2) a mosaic word: Touch of Ancient and New generations with a Dialog Experiencing Oneness of Minds (TANDEM). Hypnotherapy, psychodrama, family therapy, Hellinger's systemic-phenomenological approach, and holding-therapy are united in Tandem theory. More than two persons in a physical closeness touching each other take part in therapy: (1) patient(s), (2) one or more co-therapists or antagonists in psychodrama. The therapist takes the responsibility of the tandem of patient(s) and co-therapist(s). Sensory-motor level of development is originated from fetal period of life. In uniting mode of experiencing, object and subject are not seen as different from each other. The most effective stimulus is the physical closeness and touching in intimate situation as a form of body psychotherapy. The psychological factors for hypnosis are hypnotizability, expectations, motivation, absorption/imaginative involvement/fantasy proneness, and attitudes toward hypnosis, and a rapport as social factors lead to "resonance" and "harmony"

Hypnosis and hypnotherapy, which have been experienced for centuries, emerged as new solitary or complementary approach based on science for the

© 2020 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium,

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.94089*

neuromatrix [64, 65].

a.focused attention is the base of induction

technique to control mind and body regulation. Phenomenology, and neuropsychology of hypnosis and meditation follow common features:

a.focused attention is the base of induction

*Hypnotherapy and Hypnosis*

and the hypnotist [53–59].

expectation, and task instructions [47–49].

and actions and follows the suggestions without looking for alternatives and analyzing their context. The principle of hypnosis is to recall traumatic memories and manage their associated affect and physiological responses by reevaluating their meaning in a new perspective. Hypnosis is a set of techniques to fortify concentration, by decreasing the effect of distractions, and increase to change the subject's s thoughts, feelings, behavior, or physiological state. Hypnosis is not psychotherapy. Hypnotic perceptual and cognitive changes the equilibrium between suggestion,

A new non-pharmacological technique called virtual reality hypnosis (VRH), combines VR hardware/software and hypnotic induction. In hypnosis, the subject constitutes his own world by the hypnotist's suggestions through absorption and dissociation. Virtual reality hypnosis (VRH) does not depend upon the skill of hypnotist and the openness of the subject. The subjects need less imagination and absorption due to visual and auditory stimuli presented in virtual reality [50–52]. Five psychological factors are most important for the success of hypnosis: hypnotizability, expectancies, motivation, absorptive capacity/fantasy proneness, and attitudes toward hypnosis. The specific type and wording of suggestions influence outcome. Expectancies determine the extent how much the subject believes in the experience and response to the hypnotic intervention. Past experience, current context, and interaction influence expectancies. *The collaborative and affective bond between the hypnotist and the subject is the essential component in hypnosis. The subject's positive response to the contradictory suggestions to his/her previous perception is called countering.* Hypnosis is a change in baseline mental activity. Hypnosis like practices inducing trance states have been used throughout history. Medical hypnosis is applying hypnosis to alleviate somatic symptoms, reduce stress, and influence physiological/biochemical processes. The interactional behavioral and affective synchrony between the child and the parent is highly similar to the relationship between the subject and the hypnotist. Synchrony can occur in the behavioral, emotional, phenomenological, and psycho-physiological variables in both the subject

In psychoanalytic approach to hypnosis, the hypnotist is similar to an authority figure of the subject from his earlier life experience. Frequently punished children would try not to displease the hypnotist and would show high level of dissociation. Negative parental behavior (punishment and overprotection) is related to the phenomenological and emotional dimensions of hypnotic response leading to higher hypnotizability. Parental behavior of the subject influences hypnotic behavior, experiences, and emotional bond with the hypnotist. A warm- supportive parental style provokes more positive feelings toward the hypnotist, whereas cold-punishing parental behavior is correlated to negative feelings about the hypnotist and hypnosis itself. One consistent pattern in females is that maternal punishment predicts only negative affect in hypnosis, while punishing parental behavior in men, predicts both positive and negative responses to hypnosis. Alexithymia, the decreased ability to identify and verbalize someone's own emotions, mediates between parental punishment and fear in hypnosis. Therefore, hypnotherapist should search before the hypnotherapeutic intervention the subject's memories of their parents, which will influence his/her expectations about hypnosis and the hypnotist. Subjects remembering punishing, and/or emotionally unresponsive parents would stay away from the hypnotist even if they know that hypnotherapy would correct the source of the problem. They may feel stress and anxiety in the hypnotic state which can be regulated by the sense of security and mutual trust [60–63]. Mindfulness meditation and hypnosis remain in opposing ways to awareness of intentions. Hypnosis and meditation may be combined as a psychosomatic

**14**


The "mirror neurons" in the human brain provide empathy to sense the intentions of others by observing their behavior and related brain activity. They function as a rapport zone mediating between observing consciousness, the gene expression/ protein synthesis cycle, and brain plasticity in hypnotherapy and psychosomatic medicine. (Emerging science recognizes human experience not as disease but as manifestations of individual adaptive self-regulating system) [66].

Tandem hypnotherapy considers the unity of body and mind as a quantum process, since the embryonic period of life. Tandem has two meanings: (1) a multi-seater bicycle, (2) a mosaic word: Touch of Ancient and New generations with a Dialog Experiencing Oneness of Minds (TANDEM). Hypnotherapy, psychodrama, family therapy, Hellinger's systemic-phenomenological approach, and holding-therapy are united in Tandem theory. More than two persons in a physical closeness touching each other take part in therapy: (1) patient(s), (2) one or more co-therapists or antagonists in psychodrama. The therapist takes the responsibility of the tandem of patient(s) and co-therapist(s). Sensory-motor level of development is originated from fetal period of life. In uniting mode of experiencing, object and subject are not seen as different from each other. The most effective stimulus is the physical closeness and touching in intimate situation as a form of body psychotherapy. The psychological factors for hypnosis are hypnotizability, expectations, motivation, absorption/imaginative involvement/fantasy proneness, and attitudes toward hypnosis, and a rapport as social factors lead to "resonance" and "harmony" [67, 68].

Hypnosis and hypnotherapy, which have been experienced for centuries, emerged as new solitary or complementary approach based on science for the wellness of people.
