Eye Fixation Hypnosis Induction

Eye Fixation Hypnosis

The Eye Fixation Hypnosis Induction is one of the most commonly used hypnotic inductions. Eye Fixation hypnosis is probably the oldest hypnosis induction. It was developed by James Braid himself, the first clinical hypnotist. (He also invented the word 'hypnosis', from the Greek word for 'sleep').

Eye Fixation Hypnosis  works because if you make your eyes  stare at anything for long enough, your eyes will quickly get tired. Try it. You will find that your eyes start to drift, or your vision blurs, or starts watering. These are normal effects of not blinking. What you do as a hypnotist though, is to notice these changes, and comment on them.

You tell the person that all these changes are happening because you are making them happen. People don't often star fixedly at a point, so they don't realize that the effects are normal. If you suggest to someone that whatever is happening to them is because of what you are doing, most people will believe it.

The Eye fixation hypnosis induction is the source of the classic movie line for hypnotists 'your eyes are getting heavy, very heavy...'. It works well with most people. The eye fixation induction is taught in hypnosis classes for beginners learning hypnosis. This is because it can be done anywhere, without any special preparation, and can be done with other people watching.

It is basically very simple. It does not need any special words to memorize, and you can adapt it things other than staring at something. It is a special case of Pace and Lead induction.   It can be fun to use at a dinner party: get a friend to stare at a candle flame, and suggest that as the flame flickers their eyes are getting tired and want to close. Then tell them their eyes are locked shut and you have a great party stunt. Then tell someone else to hold up their hand and spread their fingers. Tell them that their fingers will start twitching and coming together because of the power of your mind. It will happen, and it will convince everyone that you have special powers.

But in fact the classic induction is easy to get wrong. It can go badly off if you don't keep control of the situation. You also need to be ready with another induction if your subject does not respond.

Eye fixation hypnosis does not work at all with people who are skeptical of hypnosis. Many people notice their eyes defocusing, or drifting off the point. They remember that they were told to stare at the point, and so actively start to control their eyes to keep them fixed on the point. Making a conscious effort to focus like that takes them right out of trance.

If you don't take charge, your client is left with their eyes wide open staring at nothing. They are trying to see non-existent changes and all the while their mind is actively disputing what the hypnotist is saying to them. By that point, all the hypnotist can do is keep going, and hope they will eventually get bored and shut their eyes. You can learn to recognize the signs, and avoid this happening.

The Eye Fixation hypnosis induction is interesting, and every hypnotist should learn it.