A Few Words About My Credentials and Background

A question just came up about my credentials. Here is my answer:

My academic background is in Communication and I have a Master’s Degree in Communication and Information Studies from Rutgers University, New Jersey, US. My interest at the time of my early studies was in Organizational Communication and that was also the subject of my dissertation. I eventually began to study interpersonal communication and relationships. At this time in my career and studies I am interested in intra-personal communication: how a person communicates with the self. How do we manage change? Why is it easy or difficult? What are the processes, how do we learn them, and why do we seek or avoid them?

I began my Hypnosis studies and my private hypnotism practice in 2008. I conduct private sessions, group sessions, and I also provide entertainment in a most respectful way. I am certified by two schools, with about 350 credit hours of training. I attend two international hypnosis conferences every year and this year I was honored to teach seminars and a workshop at both. I also have a school, the Open Mind Institute of Hypnosis where I certify professionals. My current project and quest is to have my school approved by the State of New Jersey.

To date, I have conducted more than 750 sessions and approximately 1,400 clinical hours. I am not a doctor, psychiatrist, or psychologist and I do not conduct psychotherapy sessions. I do not diagnose, treat, heal, or cure. My specialties are Stress & Anxiety Reduction, Smoking Cessation, Weight Loss, and Dealing with Chronic Pain. I refer to and consult other professionals all the time, such as doctors, psychiatrists, psychologists, attorneys, massage therapists, chiropractors, acupuncturists, registered dietitians, and law enforcement as a way to help my many clients. I work within the law at all times and I adhere to the Code of Ethics of my profession.

My clients include people from all walks of life including doctors, psychiatrists, psychologists, and just about every kind of holistic practitioner you can think of—and we refer clients to each other and I am always willing to exchange services. I am happy to say I have never turned down a client in need, although several times I have declined to work with medical and psychiatric issues, referring them to other professionals for more appropriate care.

If you would like to know more, just give me a call, I am always happy to talk about what I do. You are also welcome to schedule a free consultation with me, over the phone or in my office. Yes, FREE. I have 20-30 minutes on certain days. I will answer all of your questions and I will not pressure you to make an appointment. My most successful clients are intelligent people who want to improve, and they come forward when they are ready to begin.

My Facebook page is here: http://www.Facebook.com/TranceFormationHypnosis

What I Love About Being An Inspirationist

I first became interested in hypnotism as a child, thinking that the most valuable use for it would be to get people to do whatever I want them to do.  That seems to be a very appealing notion for a youngster—to have such power!

Later, as a teenager, I wanted to use it for myself in order to overcome shyness and become a fabulous success.

Some years after that, and after a few bumps in the road, I finally settled down to study Hypnotism and practice it as much as possible and really learn it for myself. The learning began when I was able to let go of wanting any material gain from hypnotism. Hypnotism is a fascinating natural gift that anyone can have.

Now that I am fully established in my practice, with much experience and strong ties to the community, I find that my self-hypnosis is stronger than ever, and it translates to the work I do with clients.

This year I had to get really honest with myself. I had gotten so busy in my practice that my personal habits were slipping. I do a lot of business networking—really, a lot of networking!—and everywhere I went there was another buffet, dessert, a bagel and some cookies. I put on about 20 pounds without noticing much, and I stopped working out.

Of course, there were many indications that my condition was changing, because I listen to my body.

At some point I realized that I stopped practicing the principles that I preach. No one is going to want to hire a fat hypnotist. And if I’m not willing to do the work to improve my Life, how could I ask anyone else to do it?  No. If I am to be a true Inspirationist, I must live the principles and have them alive in my Life.

These days I am practicing self-hypnosis every night, right before sleep. I have learned—and I have proven—that whatever the conscious mind thinks about just before sleep, is repeated all night long in the subconscious mind.  Of course, there is a right way and a wrong way to do this. I teach my clients how to do it for themselves, for the best success they can have.

I make sure that my learning and effort to improve myself has the most altruistic goal: to be of service.

So, how does altruism work for a businessman who is a professional hypnotist? Simple. The clients I serve must pay, because they must give something in return for the value they receive. That is true for everything in Life. To get love one must show love. To earn money, one must sell something of value. To get anything, there must be effort, willingness to trade—a transaction of some kind.

My time and effort have great value because of the effort I continue to expend to improve myself, my knowledge, and my expertise. 

I charge for my services because I am willing to apply every bit of knowledge and effort to every client who sees me.  I am working for them, I love what I do, and I am always eager to help them get what they need.  My goal, always, is to teach them how to use Hypnotism for themselves.  Once you receive the great gift of Hypnotism, you can never lose it or forget it, and no one can take it from you.

I have expanded my business to include group hypnosis sessions and workshops that I provide to the general public, and I’m thrilled to say that this foray into the community has been very well received! 

The next workshop will be held on December 15 in Red Bank, NJ, and I would love to see you there.

Self-Hypnosis and Visualization

Now that the New Year is fully underway, let me ask: How are you doing with your New Years Resolutions?  Are they working out?  Let’s go over a few facts that you can use to stay on track or get back on track.

On track or off track, our lives are examples of the Subconscious Mind at work.  Do you know that about 88% of your functioning is motivated by the subconscious?  That’s why you can’t explain some things about your behaviors, and why they seem to be “automatic.”  The part of your mind that runs programs in the background is in charge, and it runs the programs that it thinks are best for you.

Your subconscious does what it thinks is best, including: smoking, overeating, worrying, nail-biting, you name it.  Somewhere along the line, your subconscious learned that these behaviors are “good” and necessary, and it will keep running the programs until it learns to do something else instead. The conscious mind wants to be in charge, though, so it will rationalize and justify so that it can feel it has “decided” what to do.  The conscious and subconscious are in conflict—fertile ground for stress and anxiety.

Here’s how to re-train the subconscious mind:  Get into a comfortable position, sitting or lying, in a safe and secure environment.  Allow your mind to relax along with your body.  Concentrate on the rhythm of your breathing until body and mind relax and it seems as if you are in a daydream state.  With practice, you will be able to achieve this state at will, in just a few seconds.  At the point that you go into this state, visualize your desired state as clearly and imaginatively as possible.  See yourself, or pretend or imagine that you are doing the desired behaviors and that you have achieved the goal.  Just pretend.  In this highly suggestible state, affirmations are not necessary, because the imagination works faster than the words.  Trust in the immense power of your own suggestibility, and allow your imagination to teach your subconscious how to do something new or different.  Imagine that you are feeling physically energize and contented and just so happy in every cell of your entire body.  Really feel the sensations, and allow them to continue long after your self-hypnosis session is over.  Imagine or pretend that you are allowing yourself to have the best outcome that you can possibly imagine!

When your conscious mind and subconscious mind are pointing in the same direction, you become unstoppable!

If you have any question about self-hypnosis, give me a call!  (732) 272-7230.

“Hypnosis” Is Just A Word

Some people are just too funny.  I often have to suppress a giggle.  It’s not that I am inclined to laugh at them; it’s that the ideas they express in ignorance are funny.  I don’t think I’m superior to anyone, and ignorance isn’t funny to me.  Ignorance is simply the state of not knowing something, or inexperience.  It isn’t an insult.  No one knows everything.

I love it when the uninitiated think I can get control of their minds and “make” them do things such as quack and wag their tails.  Why aren’t they more concerned that I can make them detail my car and paint my dining room?

Or the belief that I can find out their secrets.  The secrets that I’ve already heard from conscious, earnest clients up to this point would probably disappoint most voyeurs.  I’m afraid that there’s nothing there that I haven’t experienced myself, or seen someone among my family or friends go through.  No, most deeply-guarded secrets are not so scandalizing, at least to me.  And the imagination is not stranger than Real Life.

A lot of people tell me they can’t be hypnotized.  Fair enough!  If they dig in with stubborn resistance, there’s no way anyone can hypnotize them or even persuade them to sit in my office.

And among clients who willingly submit to the process, sometimes I have trouble keeping a straight face.  One gentleman, who admirably came in to let me help him quit smoking, explained that he enjoys smoking a joint with his wife most nights.  He’s not an addict; he uses it the way some people enjoy having a drink at the end of the day.  He asked, “can you make me quit cigarettes but still let me smoke pot?”  The answer is YES!  Tobacco and mary jane are two totally separate things–and one was desired and the other despised by the client.  The mind will have no confusion there.

But ignorance is also detrimental.  If a person will hold to erroneous beliefs, I won’t be able to show them how wonderful hypnosis is, and what it can do for them.  I won’t be able to share this gift with them.  They will never learn that all hypnosis is self-hypnosis, and what they get from me is a new skill that they can use, on their own, for the rest of their lives for many issues that will arise.  It’s like getting an Owner’s Manual for the mind!

Lastly, here’s something I like to point out at the beginning of every session: Hypnosis is just a word.  It describes a very natural state of mind that everyone enters into and out of, many times every day.  Whatever that state is, we can learn to use it and control it to a great degree.  Once we learn to manage that state, we learn that it is the key to the most powerful parts of our minds.  It is the way to align all the parts of mind and body, and the way to becoming unstoppable!

Talk To Me

Talk To Me

In the hypnotism part of sessions with clients, I do most of the talking.  Sometimes we have a simple conversation, but that’s rare.  Usually clients answer some questions with very short answers.  Depending on the depth of the trance, they may not say anything.

Feedback is essential.  During the trance I always test my clients’ depth by observing their responses to certain suggestions.  At the lightest level of trance they will lose control of simple motor functions.  At the deepest levels they will experience hallucinations and negative hallucinations (not seeing something that is there).  I always test.

The feedback I need is immediately after the trance.  I want to know what their experience was like for them, if they were comfortable, if there was any idea or impulse or memory they want to talk about.  I want to know whatever impressions they had that they might want to talk about.  I want to know what hypnosis was like for them.

I don’t ask these things out of curiosity; I ask because the information is essential to their success, and to the way I will conduct the next trance session.  For example, if I know what their individual idea of hypnosis is, I can suggest it to them and they will be able to slip into that state more easily and quickly.  Their answers to my questions also reveal whether I went too quickly or too slowly of if they need concrete or more accurate instructions and descriptions.  Sometimes they pick up on subtleties that I miss, because they are extremely attentive to certain details while in the trance state.

I won’t know most of this information if I don’t ask, because during hypnosis they are sitting passively in a chair, physically relaxed.  Of course, there are many signs that I can see: rapid eye movement, changes in breathing, especially in response to suggestions of physical relaxation, abreactions, fidgeting, etc.

Abreactions are physical movements in response to suggestions.  They can vary in intensity, and they are always significant and must be explored if the client is to be successful.  I always ask about physical reactions, because I need to know what was going on at that time.  It may have been their subconscious reacting in some way–or they might have been physically cold or uncomfortable.  It’s essential that I find out more, so I can help them succeed in the best possible way.

Sometimes certain words or phrases are distracting to them because they remind them of specific situations.  I like to snap my fingers as a cue, but some clients are startled by that, so I’ll do something else such as a gentle knock on my wooden desk.

Feedback closes the loop of communication with my client.  A few simple explanations and descriptions from them help me to understand what to do differently in order that they achieve what they set out to do!

Upcoming Event @ HWPN On 11/10/09

I’m going to be the guest speaker at the monthly meeting of the Health & Wellness Professional Network (HWPN), in Red Bank, NJ, on November 10.

Can you guess what I’ll be talking about? [Read more →]