Hypnotherapy - the essence of the method, theory, training, books, techniques, how does the session go?

Hypnotherapy is one of the methods of psychological treatment. Even in ancient Egypt and Greece, priests practiced immersing people in hypnosis. This direction began to be intensively studied and developed only in the nineteenth century. The name “hypnosis” came into general use thanks to a doctor from England, James Brad, who was engaged in scientific research in this area.

What is hypnotherapy

Hypnosis is also called the “psychologist’s scalpel”; it is a tool that is capable of opening the depths of the human consciousness.

It makes it possible to open access to the unconscious, its depths and resources. Thanks to it, it is possible to unlock your health potential, change your emotional regime and behavioral motivation.

What is hypnotherapy? With its help, consciousness and many of its spheres are corrected, and resources are activated. This allows you to cope with stress and illness, reveal and activate mental capabilities. During hypnosis, a person is simultaneously in a relaxed position and in the process of concentration. This is not a dream, but a state close to it. At the same time, contact with the hypnotherapist is maintained.

Erickson and Elman - the great hypnotists of the twentieth century

When someone starts talking about hypnotists, the first names that come to mind are Dave Elman and Milton Erickson.

Erickson was born in 1901 in the USA. He studied to become a psychologist and was interested in psychiatry. He mastered classical hypnosis, thoroughly studied and experimented. All this is immortalized in his scientific works. NLP is its development.

Elman was born in 1900. He wrote the book “Finds in Hypnosis.” Invented the method of hypnotic induction. Conducted courses for doctors. The first heart surgery without anesthesia was performed using his hypnotic technique.

Elman is not as famous as Erickson, but his book Hypnotherapy is considered a classic in its field. He combined stage hypnosis and hypnotherapy and adapted the short, sharp techniques of hypnotists for therapeutic purposes.

Institute of Psychotherapy and Medical Psychology named after. B. D. Karvasarsky

• Website: https://ipmp-spb.ru/
• Address: St. Petersburg, 8th line of Vasilyevsky Island, 83, 6th floor
• Telephone:
• Email:
• License: № 0988

This reputable scientific and methodological center takes its origins from the NIPNI named after. V. M. Bekhterev is the oldest medical and scientific institution that made a significant contribution to the formation and development of domestic psychotherapy. Since 2014, doctors, psychologists and social workers have acquired postgraduate additional professional education and advanced training here.

Among the many educational programs in psychology and psychotherapy, there is also a course in hypnosis. His students study classical and Ericksonian hypnosis and clinical hypnotherapy. The 72-hour study takes place in the form of a training seminar. The list of course topics is quite broad, although theorizing is kept to a minimum: the emphasis is on practicing hypnotic skills in practice.

The composition of the teachers inspires respect: candidates and doctors of sciences, honored scientists and other scientists with titles. The hypnosis course is taught by a psychotherapist, hypnotherapist with 15 years of experience, Denis Andreevich Omelchenko. He is a member of the Russian Psychotherapeutic Association and the Association of Specialists in the Field of Clinical Hypnosis.

The site is somewhat old-fashioned, but convenient and friendly, with detailed schedules, prices, program descriptions and feedback. The institute’s groups on popular social networks are quite developed: on Vkontakte - almost 43 thousand, on Facebook - more than 9 thousand.

Despite the reputability of the institute, the price of hypnosis courses here is affordable: from 21 to 27 thousand rubles. The license for educational activities and samples of documents issued to graduates also do not raise any complaints. The only problem: for some reason the legal and actual addresses of the respected establishment do not match.

pros

• A large scientific and educational center with reputable teaching staff.
• The courses are taught by an experienced hypnologist.
• Reasonable price.

Minuses

• There are no distance hypnosis courses.
• The actual and legal addresses of the institute do not match.

Scores based on criteria

Types of hypnotherapy

Hypnosis is divided into three main types. Each of them has its own impact on the patient.

Directive

This hypnotherapy is also called classical. During the session, the specialist makes suggestions clearly and directly, in a commanding tone. If we consider such hypnotherapy, it is difficult to classify it as a soft technique. This method is quite tough, so when resorting to it, the psychotherapist must clearly understand its feasibility. In addition, for effective suggestion, the patient is put into a deep trance, which is only possible with very hypnotizable people, and there are not many of them.

Elmanovsky

This method of hypnotherapy, authored by D. Elman, works using the technique of immersion in a trance state with constant supervision and accompaniment of a psychotherapist. The master, as it were, goes through all stages of the journey together with the patient and helps him find the “key” in order to open the right door. The hypnotherapist in this case is a skilled guide who leads along unfamiliar paths to bring the problem to light and solve it. But what is important is that the patient is in control of the situation and decision-making remains with him. The method of hypnotherapy is considered quite gentle. It is also called “self-hypnosis.”

Ericksonian

Ericksonian hypnosis is one of the directions in hypnotherapy, the founder of which was psychotherapist Milton Erickson. He founded the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis and became its president.

This hypnosis is a type of non-directive. It differs from the classical one in the absence of direct suggestion, prohibition and permission in the work. Its basis is the indirect suggestion of an attitude, which enables a person to cope with his psychological problems.

ANO DPO Educational

• Website: https://bormentalkurs.ru/hypnosis2/
• Address: St. Petersburg, st. Varshavskaya, 23, building 2, room 25-N
• Telephone:
• Email:
• License: 78Л03 No. 002471

Medical - one of the elders of our review - began its activities more than 20 years ago. During this time, his name gained all-Russian popularity: branches of this clinic opened in many cities of the country. Since the leading direction of “Doctor Bormental” is the psychotherapy of excess weight, hypnotic technologies are actively used here, the effectiveness of which has been proven over two decades of practice. With their help, more than half a million Bormental patients have successfully lost weight: this figure is recorded by a certificate from an international rating agency. Hypnosis courses at Bormental have been regularly held since 2001, but initially they were intended only for psychotherapists of this company, and it was a great success for outsiders to attend them.

The reputation of the specialists here is at the highest level: classes are conducted by experienced hypnologists and psychotherapists with scientific and media fame, and the team of teachers is headed by the author of the “Doctor Bormental” method, candidate of medical sciences, psychotherapist Andrei Bobrovsky. His popular science books on psychotherapy, publications in top media outlets and expert speeches on federal TV programs speak of the recognized authority of this scientist. The hypnosis course program is detailed and interesting; trance techniques are practiced both with one person and with a group.

The educational website is distinguished by detailed information, transparent prices and feedback, and groups on popular social networks unite tens of thousands of subscribers (Odnoklassniki - more than 43 thousand, VKontakte - more than 45 thousand).

You can study hypnosis courses either face-to-face or remotely, and the online teaching platform ensures that the training is in no way inferior to the real format. The cost of courses, taking into account their quality, is very affordable - from 25 thousand rubles for face-to-face training and from 17,000 rubles online. Things are going well with the state teaching license (it is published on the website), and with the document issued upon completion of studies - just fine. is the clinical base of the medical faculty of St. Petersburg State University, and graduates of hypnosis courses receive a state-issued certificate from one of the most respected Russian universities.

pros

• The center and its specialists are widely known.
• Huge practical experience.
• Extensive and interesting training program.
• Affordable price.
• Certificate of St. Petersburg State University.

Minuses

• Hypnosis courses are conducted irregularly.

Scores based on criteria

Application of Ericksonian hypnosis

The impact and areas of application of Ericksonian hypnosis are quite wide, with the help of it the following problems are solved:

• prolonged stress;
• presence of nicotine addiction;
• getting rid of excess weight;
• eating disorders (bulimia, anorexia);
• phobias and obsessive states;
• poor sleep;
• helps to gain self-confidence and self-determination;
• dysfunction in sexual relationships;
• treatment of mental illnesses with hypnosis;
• consequences of depression and nervous exhaustion.

When exposed to this technique, it is possible to change your attitude towards various events that bother you and prevent you from finding peace of mind.

Ericksonian hypnotherapy in certain cases can relieve pain, and in combination with other techniques it can successfully combat diseases such as:

• migraines of various origins;
• colitis and gastritis;
• allergic conditions and asthma;
• post-infarction and post-stroke conditions;
• tics;
• unstable conditions during pregnancy;
• arrhythmias and tachycardia.

Features of treatment

Regressive hypnotherapy is often indicated. More often they resort to it if it is necessary to fight a phobia. The doctor’s task is to return the person in memories to the situation that caused the disorder. Over and over again, a person experiences frozen emotions, processing them with a greater degree of efficiency. When the doctor brings the patient out of trance, the person feels better. As some say, they generally felt calmer, more positive, and the feeling of pressure from problems and memories went away. Most often, this is how they work with trauma caused by childhood experiences.

Hypnotherapy for addictions is widely used. Correctly applied techniques make it easier to give up alcohol, tobacco products, and drugs. More often than not, such methods are experimental. The opinions of people who have received this treatment are quite varied. Some believe that this is perhaps the simplest and best way to rid yourself of addiction. In parallel, the risk of relapse mentioned above is high. Its likelihood is largely determined by the talent and experience of the doctor.

How to treat with hypnosis

The essence of the hypnotherapy method is to reprogram a specific pattern that translates ineffective behavior. Indications for the use of hypnosis are quite wide: from mild mental disorders to alcoholism and serious phobias.

A specialist conducts a hypnotherapy session using a special technique. A pendulum is often used. The patient is put into a state of hypnotic sleep, or rather, he is on the fine line between sleep and wakefulness. At this time, the hypnotherapist applies certain guidelines and suggestions. If, for example, a person suffers from alcohol addiction, then he is given the instruction that he will no longer drink. Guidance is given to the subconscious, and based on the stored information, it begins to act in the right direction.

A hypnologist, having entered the subconscious, is able to look into past life events, change thinking and destroy the existing stereotype. At the same time, make the correct adjustments and direct them in the right direction. After the session, the patient usually feels a surge of strength, high spirits and mental relief.

All-Russian Center for Hypnosis Training by Alexey Voskoboinikov

• Website: https://www.gipnoz.biz/
• Address: Moscow, st. metro station "Profsoyuznaya", Nakhimova Avenue, 57
• Telephone:

Moscow hypnotist Alexey Voskoboynikov is pleased to have an official diploma in psychology. However, this is where the joy ends: in the manner of many of his “colleagues,” he calls himself a hypnotherapist and psychotherapist, without having a medical education. Judging by the dossier, Voskoboynikov is famous for “successfully practicing hypnosis on foreigners, old people and children.” The “All-Russian Center” is presented as a small business card website with a bunch of spelling errors. This “splendor” is accompanied only by Alexey’s personal VKontakte account, where it turns out that he is also a folk healer. There is no team of teachers in the “all-Russian center”: hypnosis courses are taught by Voskoboynikov himself.

Training takes place face-to-face and remotely. There is no program for hypnosis courses on the website - only general phrases that after training “you can easily influence yourself and others, change your life” and even “earn money by practicing hypnosis.” True, it is not clear how to do this: the practical value of the suspicious certificate “on a full course of training in instant, classical and pop hypnosis” is negligible.

Full-time hypnosis courses last 4 days and cost as much as 45 thousand rubles. However, apparently realizing that this was too much, the “All-Russian Center” relented to the action “Hurry! 9,500 thousand!” And the price of distance learning, consisting of 8 lessons via Skype, is completely ungodly - 60 thousand rubles for a bright piece of paper “from Voskoboinikov”.

pros

• There is distance learning.

Minuses

• The presenter is a little-known specialist without a medical education.
• The website does not provide a course program.
• Distance learning courses are conducted only individually via Skype.
• High price.
• There is no teaching license or standard certificate.

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What are the known methods of hypnotherapy?

There are many techniques used in hypnotherapy. Here are the main ones:

1. Visualization method. The eyes are closed, the patient focuses on the internal sensation. Transition from the level of consciousness (highest level) to the level of deep sleep (low level).
2. Reframing. The technique is based on changing the client's opinion about his problems.
3. Yoga - nidra. The practice is taken from Vedic culture and provides techniques for combating bad habits and fear.
4. Induction. The psychotherapist transfers the client into a trance and concentrates him on internal emotions.
5. Relaxation. Trance to achieve a relaxing state and gain vitality.
6. Trance. The hypnologist puts the patient into a state of “switching off” consciousness and closely engages with the subconscious.
7. Safe place. The client concentrates on inhalation and exhalation and visualizes a safe place for him.

Transbegleitung and Elman's method

Transbegleitung is a clinical hypnotherapy that involves assisting in a trance. The idea of ​​the method is the continuous monitoring of the condition of the patient who needs the help of a hypnologist. The doctor accompanies the person while providing assistance. Together people are looking for how to solve the existing problem. The psychotherapist becomes like a guide to new places in the inner world for the person, so choosing a path becomes an easier task. The main advantage of the method is the person’s ability to maintain control over himself and make decisions based on his own will. The patient independently determines the decision and settles on it. The approach is considered relatively soft and is considered safe.

Elman developed his own version of hypnotherapy. Hypnosis through this method is effective because the trance appears almost instantly. It is explained by the dissociation of the rational, subconscious. Hypnosis, as many believe, is generally self-hypnosis. Elman was one of the first experts to formulate such a statement. He believed that the doctor could show the client a method of overcoming the boundary separating the habitual state from the hypnotic one. The idea of ​​his method is that the person puts himself into hypnosis, and the doctor, immersing the client in such a state, has no power over the client.

Hypnotherapist - what kind of specialist is this?

A hypnotherapist is a specialist whose activities are related to hypnosis treatment. Many try to compare him with a psychologist. But there is a significant difference - a hypnotherapist works with the unconscious, and a psychologist works with consciousness.

Finding a good hypnotherapist in Russia is not so easy. Hypnosis (quality and serious) has entered our lives only in the last decade. Known Chumak, Longo used only superficial hypnotic techniques in their practice.

We recommend you the famous hypnologist Nikita Valerievich Baturin, who has already established himself as an excellent specialist in getting rid of various psychological problems.

In order for hypnosis treatment to be effective and bring the desired result, you need to clearly understand that you must complete the tasks assigned by the hypnologist and do what he says, since the success of hypnotherapy depends on this. It is important for the patient to cooperate with the hypnologist and vice versa. In this case, you can achieve incredible results that will pleasantly surprise you.

Courses by Gennady Ivanov

• Website: https://classicalhypnosis.ru/
• Address: Moscow, st. Novoslobodskaya, 26
• Telephone:
• Email:

This school of hypnosis is headed by Moscow psychologist and hypnologist Gennady Ivanov, quite famous in his genre. At the same time, he offers hypnosis treatment, introducing himself as a hypnotherapist. However, this is an “artistic exaggeration”: he is not a doctor at all. Initially, Gennady was educated as a physicist, and then as a journalist. But later he became interested in hypnotic phenomena: as he writes about himself, “he began to often sit in the lotus position, eat light bulbs, walk on coals, and even graduated from the Kirov Institute of Practical Psychology.”

She has been working in the field of hypnosis since 2013. Actively publishes articles in the media and appears on Russian television channels. By the way, the TV presenters of the programs “Street Hypnosis” and “Stars under Hypnosis,” as well as a number of hypnotist-illusionists, were trained by him. One of them, the popular pop hypnotist Alexander Matyukhin, periodically acts as a co-host of courses. The rest of the teaching team consists of three more hypnologists.

In Ivanov’s courses you can learn hypnotherapy, hypnoanalysis and hypnosis itself, including street hypnosis: Gennady especially loves it and energetically promotes it. A special feature of hypnosis courses is the initial immersion of the student in the role of a “patient”, and then in the role of the hypnotist himself, which allows not only to study, but also to experience the hypnotic effects in all its beauty and completeness. Hypnosis courses last from four days to two months.

The site is detailed, even too much: it is clearly overloaded with information about the personality and biography of the media hypnologist, as well as lengthy discussions about hypnosis “in general.” The number of groups on social networks is quite decent: more than 20 thousand subscribers on VKontakte and more than 16 thousand on Facebook.

Hypnosis courses are conducted both remotely and face-to-face in mini-groups. The minimum price for training is 25 thousand rubles; online students are given a discount. Graduates are promised a certificate of advanced training under the program of additional professional education. True, on the voluminous website there was no place for an educational license: you just have to take my word for it!

pros

• The media personality of the presenter.
• Convenient and exciting form of learning.
• The site contains many interesting articles and videos about hypnosis.

Minuses

• Lack of a leading scientific title and medical education.
• Information about the license for educational activities has not been published.

Scores based on criteria

How does hypnotherapy work?

Many people are probably wondering how therapeutic hypnosis works. It is a popular belief that treatment through hypnosis is carried out by putting the patient into deep sleep. It is true that the client is immersed in a special state, but this is not exactly a dream. The patient is in a state of increased concentration on his internal processes.

Hypnotherapy can change consciousness so that the analytical part of the brain reduces its activity, and the right hemisphere, which is responsible for the unconscious process, becomes active. It turns out that consciousness is suppressed, but in turn, the subconscious becomes active. This is what changes behavior and physical condition.

At this time, the body is freed from excessive control of consciousness, breathing is deep, the pulse is slow. The hypnologist conducts the session, focusing on the client’s goals.

Treatment under hypnosis has nothing to do with somehow influencing a person with the intention of performing actions that are not characteristic of him in ordinary life. On the contrary, hypnosis helps to expand human capabilities and reveal resources.

Hypnotherapy is an area that is now, especially in the last decade, being intensively studied. A huge empirical base of clinical studies confirms its unconditional effectiveness. Therapeutic sessions with hypnosis are increasingly gaining popularity and for good reason, hypnotherapy is an effective addition to psychotherapy and helps to cope where a regular doctor cannot.

Indications and contraindications for hypnotherapy

Clinical hypnotherapy is used judiciously only if it is intended to produce a therapeutic effect and does not expose subjects to unnecessary risks. In order to use hypnotherapy techniques, the disease must first be diagnosed. It must be remembered that individuals may have different reactions to hypnosis for the same diseases.

Hypnotic techniques are successfully used in psychiatry. For example, hypnotherapy is effective for hysteria, neuroses, and persistent anxiety. In cases of anxiety, hypnotic techniques have a calming effect on the patient. Hypnotherapy also helps to discover the true cause of neurosis for its further successful elimination.

Our century can be called the century of phobias. Since every year an increasing number of different phobias or fears of an obsessive nature are discovered. Previously, phobias were successfully eliminated using psychoanalytic methods. Today, hypnoanalysis is still not widely used in the treatment of phobias of various etiologies. However, in some conditions where treatment through psychoanalysis is not possible, hypnotic techniques can provide temporary improvement.

Hypnotherapy for children with anorexia nervosa or mental illness is also quite effective.

In some cases, hypnosis therapy is used even for schizophrenia. It was noticed that improvement in the patient's condition occurred faster after combining drug treatment with hypnotherapy.

Hypnotherapy is also used in the treatment of various psychoses, alcoholism and drug addiction. Hypnotic suggestion in cases of chronic alcoholism is considered quite effective. Treating drug addicts using hypnotic techniques is much more difficult, since patients are easily suggestible only during the period of subordination to narcotic drugs, after which a relapse occurs.

Hypnotherapy indications and contraindications in psychosomatic medicine. Today there are many cases of cures of diseases of the cardiovascular and respiratory systems through hypnosis. Cardiovascular diseases that can be cured with hypnosis include hypertension, cardiac neuroses and heart rhythm disorders. Thanks to hypnotic techniques, individuals with angina pectoris or those who had suffered a myocardial infarction experienced an improvement in their general condition and a decrease in anxiety.

Respiratory diseases, especially asthmatic conditions, are also treated quite effectively by hypnosis. An asthma attack is usually complicated by the mental state of the individual. Hypnosis helps the patient return to normal breathing.

Also, hypnotherapy is used in the treatment of diseases of endocrine etiology or diseases associated with disorders of the gastrointestinal tract. The use of this method of psychotherapy in the treatment of patients suffering from excess body weight has a beneficial effect on stabilizing metabolism and reducing appetite. Hypnosis has proven itself to be effective in curing duodenal ulcers.

It should be noted that most ailments are associated with a disorder in the functioning of the nervous system. In addition, hypnotherapy methods have found their application in the treatment of gynecological and urological ailments. In obstetric practice, hypnotic suggestion is used for pain relief.

Clinical hypnotherapy also has a number of contraindications. One of the frequent complications observed in a client while in a hypnotic trance is the loss of contact between the therapist and the hypnotized person. This condition in medical practice is called loss of rapport. Patients with hysteria may be susceptible to hysterical attacks during hypnosis, since they may internally resist hypnosis. Some subjects are susceptible to so-called hypnomania. In other words, such patients, after improvement and cessation of hypnosis sessions, feel psychological discomfort. They are extremely sensitive to hypnosis, they like the trance state, so after stopping the sessions they again want to feel the euphoria that arises during hypnotherapy.

Hypnotherapy reviews of treatment through its techniques are quite varied: from sublimely admiring to downright negative. This is due to the fact that the effectiveness of therapy depends not so much on the disease itself, but on the personality of the patient.