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The Unconscious Mind - Hypnosis

I believe that the Iceberg analogy is the best representation of the Unconscious
Mind. It allows us to understand that there is so much untapped potential, and so much
we dont understand about the brain. We typically only see whats on the surface, and
typically people are copasetic with the understanding of the surface part of the brain, and
whats seen. However the study of the mind that intrigues me, mostly due to my fathers
involvement in the field is Hypnosis. Hypnosis the induction of a state of consciousness
in which a person apparently loses the power of voluntary action, and is highly
responsive to suggestion or direction. Its use in therapy, typically to recover suppressed
memories or to allow modification of behavior by suggestion, has been revived but is still
controversial. I plan to demonstrate not only from a research stand point, but with
personal experience that Hypnosis is a phenomenal tool used to tap into the unconscious
mind.

In exploring the Iceberg analogy I believe it helps to put into perspective the mind
as a whole, both the conscious and unconscious mind. As we see icebergs floating on the
surface of the ocean we assume that its floating along on the surface of the water simply
what you see is what you get. However to the knowledgeable person, the tip or the
iceberg or so the quote goes, is all we see. There is a massive and in every case, a larger
portion of the iceberg that we cannot see below the surface. In comparison, we as humans
only use the conscious mind, what we notice above the surface while the unconscious
mind, the most powerful part, remains below the surface. "The conscious mind
determines the actions, the unconscious mind determines the reactions; and the reactions

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are just as important as the actions." ~E. Stanley Jones. Theories about the unconscious
vary widely within psychological circles, from the Freudian view that its a storehouse of
socially unacceptable desires, traumatic memories, and painful emotions to cognitive
psychologys perspective that the unconscious mind is simply a bundle of cognitive
processes that were not aware of, not an entity in itself.
The truth is that its hard to prove any of these theories. Just as we know that the
universe is vast, we know the unconscious mind is powerful. And like our research into
space, our knowledge of the unconscious mind is limited by the scientific equipment we
have available to observe it. So we end up subscribing to theories we find most useful.
(Matthew B. James Ph.D. 2013). To me this tells the tale of hypnosis and its evolution
through the years. Those that believe do so with conviction, and those that oppose do so,
in my experience in fear of the unknown, with lack of personal experience.

You're growing tired. Your eyelids are getting heavy. You're feeling very sleepy...
Most of us recognize these words as the Hollywood script of a hypnosis session.
Typically portrayed as the tool of comics and hucksters ("At my command, you will crow
like a rooster...") or nefarious, mind-controlling villains, hypnosis has a serious typecasting problem to overcome. Beyond the stereotypes, is there any validity to hypnosis as
a therapeutic technique? Melissa Beattie-Moss (2014). Hypnosis is often explained and
thought of as a parlor trick or an act on a stage like Melissa mentions. You see people do
crazy things, and sometimes even superhuman feats. While these things are very real,
they can seem to be a bit unreal. Hypnosis is described as a sleep like trance state, and a
state characterized by focused attention, extreme suggestibility, and heightened

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imagination. Its most often compared to daydreaming, like youre fully conscious but
tuning out most of the stimuli around you. One theory suggests that hypnosis is a direct
route to the subconscious mind. Normally youre aware of the thought process in your
conscious mind, you consciously think over the problems right in front of you. For
example, where you left your wallet, or what outfit you should wear today. Thats the
process of solving problems with your conscious mind, by accessing the information you
need through your subconscious mind. The interesting part about the subconscious mind
is that its constantly gathering information and data without you being aware of it doing
so. This is how we get ideas from out of the blue. But thats not the extent of the
subconscious mind, its continuously taking care of things you do automatically;
breathing, reacting, walking, blinking, all the way to the way you check the rear view
mirrors in your car. So all the while your subconscious is thinking behind the scenes for
you! So during hypnosis, its said that the subconscious is exposed directly to the
hypnotherapist. This is why the trance is described as feeling free, and more expressive,
because the conscious mind is not filtering the suggestions coming in. Therefore it seems
that the suggestions from the hypnotist are coming straight for your subconscious rather
from another person. This theory is gaining wide acceptance in the psychiatric field due
to its explanation of the hypnotic state. However there are those that view this as a
placebo effect due to social pressure and hypnotics which can be strong enough
suggestion to act in a certain way. Although hypnosis has come a long way in the last
century, the phenomenon is still a mystery.

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As mentioned in the beginning of the work I personally have experience in being
hypnotized, more than a handful of times, and by more than one hypnotherapist or
hypnotist. My father was a licensed hypnotherapist, and had his Ph.D. in psychology.
Most of his work was done with adolescence and their deviant behaviors. There were
studies he did with patients that were astounding to me and really spoke to the power of
hypnosis. He would have the patients sit in a chair and across from them have a vacant
chair. He would then put them in a trance and have them describe themselves as a person
sitting across from them, now given that I was not privy to the actual interactions based
on patient confidentiality. But some of the descriptions my dad would use as examples
for me were astounding to put them lightly. There was one story I remember particularly
where the patient described themselves as a large black monster, with fangs, claws, and a
rather large need for feeding on fear of other people around him. The description went on
to really get nasty about the way this monster fed on the fears of others around him, and
about how it thrived on the power it felt in being in control of that fear. I was shocked by
this feat. On a much simpler note my dad was able to hypnotize myself and my mom on
multiple occasions. My oldest sister and younger sister were not able to be hypnotized.
My dad always stated that it was because they didnt want to be hypnotized, and therefore
not able to be put into a trance state. Its from my research that I found that one must feel
comfortable and that their safety and morality will remain intact. Therefore is someone
fears that something may happen to them, or that theyre in some way putting themselves
in harms way the can resist the suggestions by not focusing, and allowing themselves to
fall into the suggestive state. (Maybe they had something to hide, wink wink). To the
opposite of the ability to resist, we have the ability to allow ourselves to succumb to the

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suggestive state and participate in the session. On a few occasions I was taken back into
my childhood to review experiences, and explore memories. My dad also made my mom
bark like a dog on his command. He would say the name Alice and she would respond
with barking. It was one of the craziest things Ive witnessed. She would uncontrollably
bark like a dog. She was unable to control the sensation to do so. She even tried to hold it
back and was unable to. The power of suggestion can be an amazing feat if the participant
is willing to allow it.

In summation I would have to say that my research has drawn me in closer to the
power of suggestion, and drawn me closer to my fathers work. I lost my father 7 years
ago to cancer, and miss having my built in therapist, and counselor. He was an amazing
man, and I truly hope to have his abilities as a therapist and as a counselor. His patients
were truly touched by his work, and I saw that first hand. Im more intrigued now by
hypnosis, and can see why his work took him down this path. Im excited to follow in his
footsteps and see what I can come up with, and where my discoveries take me. Hypnosis
is truly an art that is not lost, and has much to discover. The iceberg that is the
subconscious mind leads me to believe there is much to explore, and so much to study! If
hypnosis is a door way into that world, Im excited to open that door and explore it!

Brendan Kercher The Unconscious Mind - PSY-1010-F15-Campbell

References

Mathew B. James Ph.D. (2013). Focus on Forgiveness. Conscious of the

Unconscious
Work with your unconscious, rather than trying to browbeat it into submission.
Posted Jul 30, 2013 Retrieved from www.psychologytoday.com/blog/focusforgiveness/201307/conscious-the-unconscious

Schacter, Gilbert, & Wegner (2014). Psychology 3rd Edition, Worth Publishers.

Chapter 5 The Unconscious Mind.

Melissa Beattie-Moss (2014). Probing Question: Does hypnosis work? Retrieved
from http://news.psu.edu/story/141251/2005/10/03/research/probing-questiondoes-hypnosis-work

Brendan Kercher The Unconscious Mind - PSY-1010-F15-Campbell