Hypnosis has been widely documented and validated by science as a legitimate technique for breaking habits as well as effecting other positive behaviour changes.
What exactly is Hypnosis and how does it work? Well, our minds work on two levels; one is our conscious mind, which we are all quite aware of during our wakeful day going about our duties.
If you were asked to describe your mind, you would probably describe aspects of your conscious mind.
It is the home of your entire executive decision making, all the functions of the frontal lobe.
It is basically what is being employed when your thinking or in contemplation.
It has your concept of time; it is everything you're aware of right NOW! As much as we like to think THIS is the part of the mind that rules our habits, it really is not.
If it was, all smokers who wanted to quit would just wake up one morning and consciously decide to quit.
Since that can not happen for most people, it must mean that there is some 'other part of you', that is keeping you smoking; this is the unconscious part of your mind.
It has been said that our conscious mind is only responsible for 2-4% of all our automatic behaviours.
This leaves a lot to the unconscious mind.
What it also means is that if there was a way to access this part of the mind and give it helpful, mutually agreed upon constructive suggestions, it could greatly enhance your ability to engage in more helpful behaviours or quit habits once and for all.
The way to do this is via hypnosis.
It is basically the vehicle by which we can access a deep part of your mind, the part of the mind that runs your 'automatic pilot'.
Part of the function of your unconscious mind is to make your life easier by taking over things you do in your day that you no longer need to think about, so you can be elsewhere with your thoughts.
Believe it or not, you are actually in and out of a hypnotic trance often through your day, you just don't realize it.
You do not say 'I was in a hypnotic trance', but you say other things like, 'I was day dreaming', 'I was in the zone' or 'off with the fairies'.
These are all examples where you are in a state where you are 'there but you are not'.
These are all examples of a hypnotic state, a state where your brainwaves are behaving quite differently from your consciously active, engaged state of mind.
The beauty of hypnosis is that this state of mind can be easily induced by following a simple procedure called 'an induction'.
By following some simple instructions with a resistance free mindset, you can easily and safely experience this state of mind.
You are always in control, you are not asleep and will never do or say anything you don't want to do - despite what people may think hypnosis is based on the entertainment aspect of hypnosis.
What is Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP)? In simple terms, NLP is a process of exploring the ways we communicate, think and make changes in our life by replicating success to help make changes and improve performance in all areas of our life.
NLP has some specific techniques that are very powerful for breaking habits, and this is how NLP can be applied for breaking the smoking habit.
These processes have been shown to be very effective in a person's normal 'wakeful' state.
However, when applied to a person in the hypnotic state, it greatly enhances the effectiveness of the NLP techniques.
The effectiveness of hypnosis is largely due to the quality of the suggestions.
On its own, it can be very helpful and effective for lasting change, but you may require 3 to 6 sessions.
The combination of NLP with hypnosis is what enables people to Quit Cigarettes in as little as one 60 Minute consultation.
Like any therapy however, be informed.
Educate yourself on all modalities for change and treatment.
After all, your beliefs towards a treatment will impact your mindset, and your mindset has a very big role to play in the success of any treatment.