How to hypnotize yourself into trance

Self hypnosis can reduce stress, increase your confidence, overcome anxiety and leave you feeling refreshed. It can increase your creativity and open up your mind. Self Hypnosis is easy, safe and fun.

The first thing you need to realize is that trance is not an all-or-nothing thing. In the same way that you cannot identify the exact moment when you go into sleep, you cannot identify exactly when you go into a trance. So it will take some practice before you can know when you have achieved trance.
Don't be disappointed if you don't feel as if you have got a result immediately: it will come. Similarly, when you are starting out, there will be some days that you just cannot get into trance, you can't relax, or you are too tired, or some other thing stops you. That is OK. Just try again later. The more you practice the easier it gets, and eventually you will be able to go into trance anywhere: on a noisy train, in a waiting room, while pedaling on an exercise machine.

When you are starting to learn hypnosis, it can be difficult to know when you are in trance and when you are just lying there relaxed with your eyes closed. There definitely is a difference. You will recognize it when you experience it, but it is not something that is easy to describe.

Similarly, when you are in a trance you do not stay at the same level all the time, you will tend to drift between light trance and deeper trance. With practice you will be able to go to any depth of trance you want to, but a light trance is usually better since you need to keep some self awareness so that you can guide your thoughts as you float along. The trance created by self hypnosis is usually not as deep as the trance you would go into when guided by a hypnotist. Doing self hypnosis you will seem more self aware and may doubt that you are actually in trance. It is best if you can get hypnotized by someone else before you attempt self hypnosis. But that gentle dreamy feeling is very enjoyable and even in a light trance you can make profound changes.

Self Induction Basic Techniques

You can choose what depth of trance you want to experience. The easiest way to deepen your trance is to start a process of visualizing or feeling an experience that involves the idea of progressively deepening something, always with some sort of way out at the end of the process. You can be as creative as you like.

Counting Down

One common way is to imagine yourself in an old house somewhere, finding yourself at the top of some stairs, with a door at the bottom. You then imagine yourself gently going down the stairs and you count down each step...10 going deeper and deeper....9 deeper and more relaxed.....8 deeper and deeper....7 deeper and more relaxed ... (the exact words aren't important)... and so on until you get to the final step and you are facing the door at the bottom. You can then let your imagination take you to anywhere when that door opens.

Or you find yourself walking along a beach, feel the sand shifting under your bare feet, the cold water hiss of the foam, feel the gentle rush and flow of the waves, and imagine drawing the number 9 in the sand, and watch it being washed away on the next breath out, and then... number eight... and so on... and when there are no numbers left you will find yourself being carried away like driftwood on a wave to....where?

Travelling Down

Another common deepener is to take an elevator down to the basement of a department store and count down each floor it passes as it takes you deeper, and eventually the doors open automatically on to.... what?

If you enjoy fishing you could imagine being out on a boat on warm day, comfortably rocked by gentle waves, and in your mind follow the fishing line down into the dark water. Imagine yourself floating in an endless blue space as you gently drift down into deeper and deeper water and as the light fades away you can become aware of vague shapes moving far below.... and as you slowly drift ever closer you realize they are.... what?

Or you can imagine yourself walking through a park or a forest and going deeper and deeper into it takes you more and more away from your old life and a path leads you downhill to.... a cave?.... a strange wooden building?.... a train that will carry you to?.... a deep valley that leads to a dark pool where you look in and see... what?

Trust your subconscious

Once you enter the trance state, the images or feelings you get might seem strange or inconsequential, but you can trust your subconscious. It will choose to work on the thing which is of most benefit to you right now. What you might think of as strange, disjointed images are actually a metaphor of your feelings, a symbolic representation of what your mind is actually thinking deep down.

Getting ready

All you need to get started is a place where you can sit or lie comfortably and where you will remain undisturbed for about twenty minutes. It is best to be sitting in a comfortable chair, or on the floor on a cushion, but it doesn't really matter as long as you are comfortable and can relax safely. It is best not to lie in bed to start with, otherwise you will probably go to sleep instead of going into trance. With practice you will find that you can go into trance almost anywhere, even in noisy environments. But remember: don't use self hypnosis when you are driving or doing anything else that requires your full attention. Only use it when it is safe to do so.