We are IntechOpen,

the world’s leading publisher of

Open Access books
Built by scientists, for scientists

4,800
Open access books available
123,000
International authors and editors
135M
Downloads

Our authors are among the

154
Countries delivered to
TOP 1%
most cited scientists
12.2%
Contributors from top 500 universities

Selection of our books indexed in the Book Citation Index

in Web of Science™ Core Collection (BKCI)

Interested in publishing with us?

Contact [email protected]
Numbers displayed above are based on latest data collected.
For more information visit www.intechopen.com
Chapter

Active-Alert Hypnosis to Achieve

Personal, Professional, and
Therapeutic Goals
Arnoldo Téllez, Arturo Valdez and Teresa Sánchez-Jáuregui

Abstract

Hypnosis does not always require suggestions of relaxation in order enter into
this state. It can also be induced through suggestions of activation and cogni-
tive alertness. This procedure and the hypnotic state caused by it has been called
active-alert hypnosis (AAH). In this chapter, we describe a strategy to increase the
probability to achieve goals using an AAH technique in which we ask the patient to
move his arms in an alternate way, while imagining that he has a pair of dumbbells
of several kilograms in each hand, in order to produce a hypnotic age progression
phenomenon, in which the patient is oriented to a positive future and mobilizing
hope, and could see himself achieving his goals, creating “memories of the future.”
We report several clinical cases in which this hypnotic strategy was used.

Keywords: active-alert hypnosis, goals achievement, age progression,

prospective memory

1. Just a little background on hypnosis and hypnotherapy

Over time, hypnosis has been defined in various ways. In its early stages, it was
associated with supernatural states. The current official definition, according to
the American Psychological Association, is “a state of consciousness, involving a
focused attention and reduced peripheral awareness, characterized by an enhanced
capacity for response to suggestions” [1]. Unestahl [2] defines hypnosis as “an alter-
native state of consciousness, where information can bypass the logical mind and
bring about changes in suggestibility and perception and in which there are alterna-
tive control systems available.” Taking both definitions into account, we propose the
following definition that describes this state of consciousness more broadly:

Hypnosis is a state of intense and focused attention that leads us to a special state
of consciousness, in which previously learned experiences can be evoked in an
involuntary way. This state is characterized by an increase in suggestibility and
the ability to modify the perception, memory, and functioning of the autonomic
nervous system. [3]

In the past, it was also common knowledge that hypnosis implies a relaxation, or
a sleep-like state, in which the hypnotized person loses his/her consciousness tem-
porarily, being completely under the hypnotist’s control. Now, however, it is known

1
Hypnotherapy and Hypnosis

that hypnosis is a natural state that tends to occur periodically several times a day,
approximately every 90 min in human beings, as one of many psychobiological
ultradian rhythms [4] during which the person is in total control of his/her will [5].
According to our definition of hypnosis, we can say that this state is not limited
to a relaxed state but any state of focused attention that switches our mind to a more
creative mode, helping us to find solutions for specific problems or seeing things
from a different perspective, enhancing the capacity to access unconscious memo-
ries and perceptions and to reframe them, and facilitating processes of dissociation.

2. Active-alert hypnosis: a path to our goals

In her 1973 doctoral dissertation, Eva Banyai explained her study about the
effects of hypnosis in verbal learning that involved 24 patients. She stated that the
majority of subjects achieved a classic hypnotic state (a relaxed, passive state), but
four of them exhibited a different state:

… four subjects exhibited a different behavior: They were in an even “more active”
state than the waking ones. They followed the instructions of the experimenter
immediately, while their fast movements, lively facial expressions, loud voices, and
their fast speech were in sharp contrast with the passive behavior of the average
subjects. It was as if they had been released from some kind of pressure, their
behavior reflected childlike playfulness. [6]

That unexpected finding suggested that hypnosis is not only a relaxed state,
but is also a wide spectrum of “altered” conscious states that can be subjectiveley
experienced in many different forms by each individual with different behavioral
and physiological outcomes.
Banyai called this kind of hypnotic state “active-alert hypnosis.” She also stated
that the sleep-like outcomes in traditional hypnosis occur due to suggestions from
the facilitator rather than from the hypnosis itself. This modality of hypnosis has
been applied to high-performing athletes with significantly positive results [1],
but also with people who prefer an eyes-open trance, or a more active one. In our
experience, this type of induction can also be used for visualization and reaching
one’s own personal and professional goals.
The original active alert-hypnosis approaches were performed while pedaling a
stationary bicycle, receiving hypnotic suggestions of activation and alertness, pay-
ing attention to the feelings in their legs, to automatic movement, to their energy,
and to their inner peace [7, 8].
According to Banyai [6], active-alert hypnosis has been a useful tool in the fol-
lowing cases:

• Lack of initiative and energy

• General inhibition

• Excessively withdrawn personality

• Depression

• Anxiety disorders

• Inhibited identity development

2
Active-Alert Hypnosis to Achieve Personal, Professional, and Therapeutic Goals
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.92197

• Eating disorders (bulimia and obesity)

• Children who do not tolerate the stillness of traditional hypnosis

• Enhancement of physical and mental performance in healthy people (includ-

ing competitive athletes)

Since these original approaches were performed, several methods of achieving

an active-alert hypnotic state have been developed. For example, Etzel Cardeña [9]
elaborated a gentle active-alert hypnotic technique consisting of simply waving
one hand up and down, producing results similar to those of Banyai’s study. Even
though active-alert hypnotic approaches are used primarily in therapeutic contexts,
you can also notice “altered” consciousness states and active-alert hypnotic states
in other contexts, such as religious ceremonies, highly competitive sports (while
practicing or watching), dancing, teaching, writing, playing a musical instrument,
and many other activities that require highly focused attention. This kind of hypno-
sis has been called in different ways: hyper-alert hypnosis, active hypnosis, waking
hypnosis, awake-alert hypnosis, and alert hypnosis.

3. Goals and motivation

I (AV) would like to share an experience I had some time ago. A friend of mine
asked me to slightly change my way of dressing to become a more presentable
professional, to give a different image to others and to myself. I have to admit that
a part of me was reluctant to make that change, while the other one was just a little
curious about what could change for the better if I follow his advice. That curiosity
led me to a little inspection of my closet, with some dirty and old clothes hanging
there along with some clothes that I did not really use, but there they were, and I
came to realize that I needed to go get new clothes, and a new pair of shoes, because
my old ones, although comfy, were starting to rip apart, and we all need a good pair
of formal and comfortable shoes for formal occasions. After making the decision to
go and buy some new clothes and a new pair of shoes, the instruction “buy a pair of
shoes” was imprinted in my mind, nothing else.
Get inside the shop, with all those different kinds of shoes, selecting just one pair
of them was a difficult task. But my mind was clear: “buy a pair of shoes.” I bought
a brown pair of shoes, and they were going to be worn next Monday. That day, I put
them on and walked a little, and after a few blocks my ankle started to hurt. It was
a weak but annoying pain. After a few more blocks, the skin of my Achilles tendon
started to peel and I felt an even more annoying pain, and I remembered thinking,
“But these shoes are new. Why is this happening?”
Now when we make plans, we not only use our conscious mind, but we also use
our unconscious one [10]. The question here is: how?
According to some research [11, 12], our brain makes decisions even before
we think we made them. Let us explain this statement. Imagine that we suggest
that you move your lips to the right when you see something beautiful and to your
left when you see something that you think is not. Then I show you some images
on a screen. When you see an image, the information travels all the way through
your visual processing structures in your brain (occipital lobe structures), then
after being analyzed it is sent to an interpretation area (temporo-parieto-occipital
region), and then to our decision-making structures (prefrontal region) to decide
whether it is beautiful. That takes no more than a few microseconds, but it is a
complex process, all happening without you realizing it. Now that you have decided

3
Hypnotherapy and Hypnosis

to make the movement to the left or right, your frontal lobe sends a signal to your
lips to “move” left or right. That is when it gets tricky: it appears that your brain
sends that last signal before your prefrontal region does its job.
Can we say that our decision-making process and motivation are, therefore,
unconscious? If so, how can we develop a stronger will and motivation to make
different or even better decisions? Some evidence suggests that the decision-making
process comes from a mixture of conscious and unconscious mind [13].
As hypnotherapists, we are accustomed to “talking to the unconscious mind”
[14] and that includes avoiding some of the intellectual and logical barriers that
one builds for oneself. In hypnosis, that is achieved through hypnotic suggestions.
Weitzenhoffer [15, 16] claims that the difference between a hypnotic suggestion
and an order is the nonvolitional outcome after the hypnotic suggestion, that is, the
hypnotized person does not act according to conscious will but rather in a “dissocia-
tive” mode: “it’s as if the levitating arm were not mine.” As Farvolden and Woody
[17] find on their study, diminished activity on frontal lobe structures could be an
explanation to this “unconscious” behavior. And that is the key aspect of a hypnotic
and posthypnotic suggestions, the nonconscious willingness.
Now, how can we use this process to achieve goals? That is what we will be
exploring in this chapter.

4. Prospective memory

“It’s a poor sort of memory that only works backwards.”

Lewis Carroll (Alice in Wonderland).
Prospective memory is the ability that allows us to make plans in the present and
then remember and carry them out in the future [18]. It is known that the hippo-
campus consolidates memory from short term to long term [19] and such a complex
process occurs better while sleeping [20]. Also, the amygdala’s involvement in the
memory consolidation process is well demonstrated since a memory associated with
high-intensity emotional content tends to last longer than a boring one [21, 22].
In the prefrontal cortex, the Brodmann area 10 seems to be responsible for
making plans and translating them into action, with support from the structures
mentioned above. Also, the same area is responsible for retrieving information
about those plans and maintaining the attention required to execute them [23].

5. How to use hypnosis to facilitate prospective memory

As Milton Erickson said

There has to be an integration of unconscious learnings with conscious learnings.

This should be foremost in your mind whenever you use hypnosis on psychiatric
patients. You can recognize that you can resolve a conflict, a phobia, or an anxiety
in the trance state. But unless you do something about it in the waking state, the
patient is still likely to have that anxiety or phobia. ([14], p. 6)

There are some classic hypnotic phenomena reported in literature, such as:

• Amnesia-hypermnesia

• Catalepsy

• Analgesia

4
Active-Alert Hypnosis to Achieve Personal, Professional, and Therapeutic Goals
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.92197

• Age regression

• Hypnotic hallucination

• Posthypnotic suggestion

• Automatic writing

• Age progression

• Hypnotic age progression

We will focus on hypnotic age progression in this section. Age progression is a

procedure that projects the person into the future to experience achieving her/his
goals as if they were happening right now [24]. This involves not only seeing them
as a dissociated image, but also as an associated one, where you can see exactly what
you will be seeing, and feeling what you will be feeling once you have accomplished
an objective, and then be aware of the steps you take to reach that goal, as if they
were made in the past. This approach was used by Erickson in many forms, includ-
ing the “crystal ball” hypnotic strategy.
Now, when you work with this pseudo-orientation in time, you need to make
contact with the conscious mind, and that is where goal construction takes place.
According to Robert Dilts [25], people construct their goals using six principal
methods:

• negation of the problematic state

• defining the goal as the polarity or the opposite of the problematic state

• using an external role model or reference to define the desired state

• taking some key characteristics of the desired state

• making a generative outcome (using their own references instead of external

ones)

• acting “as if ”

When you are working to generate changes with people, all psychotherapy
approaches usually take time to define goals. Some methods establish them in a
positive and a future-oriented way, for example “What you are going to be doing
once you feel…” [26], or focused on what is going to be happening once you get rid
of your problem [27]. In our experience, people often struggle with the construc-
tion of their objective because they are ambiguous and lacking both clarity and
a deadline. Also people focus on what they do not want rather than on what they
really want to reach or accomplish.

6. Active-alert hypnosis for goal achievement

Now, we are presenting an active-alert hypnotic strategy to increase motivation

and visualize goals, a methodology that has shown excellent results in our practice,
and that currently is being tested for efficacy not only in therapeutic contexts but
also through the use of scientific methodology.

5
Hypnotherapy and Hypnosis

6.1 First step: writing your goals

In our experience, the approach that has been most useful in helping people to
formulate their goals consists of four simple rules:

• Write your goal in the first person: Always start with “I…,” even if it is obvious
that the goal refers to you, it is important to express it with certainty.

• Write your goal in the present or in the present progressive tense: Use “I’m” and
“I’m being” instead of using the future tense.

• Describe your goal with as many details as possible: Remember that if you give
details to them, some goals could seem smaller and therefore more attainable.

• Write your goals in a positive way: For example, instead of thinking, “I do not
want to get sick,” you should write, “I am a healthy person.”

Here is an example. A common goal is “I want to lose weight.” Now, following

those four rules, we can formulate that goal in this way:

I am ( first person, and present tense) a healthy person, I have a waist measuring
70 centimeters, and I weigh 60 kg. (Written in a positive sentence), I am eating the
healthy food that my nutritionist has suggested, and I drink at least two liters of
water each day. I exercise five days per week: I do a gym workout and lift weights
on three days and on the other two days I do cardio sessions (providing as many
details as possible).

We ask the person to write two or three goals for every important aspect of his/
her life. Then we ask them to read these goals out loud while imagining him/herself
in that moment, reaching that goal.

6.2 Second step: overcoming fears and limitations

In this second part of the exercise, we ask the patient to write a different list
following these instructions:

All those things that you thought have stopped you from reaching your goals, all
those silly things that you said to yourself that made you feel like you might not be
able to reach them… maybe all those fears that you had before and that stopped you
from success until now.

In my experience (AT), fear is the principal enemy of setting and achieving your
goals, but optimism and good self-esteem will also act as your allies all the way to
success.

All those fears and limitations are just like a malicious software, like a computer
virus… more like trash… like garbage… like waste… mental trash or mental waste or
mental garbage that maybe were put there by somebody that wasn’t you, maybe with
or without intention… but you can get rid of this trash… of this malicious mental
software… you can throw away that waste… you can throw away that garbage.

Once all of these fears and limitations are written on a sheet of paper, we tell
the person to say goodbye to them, and tear up the paper with all her/his strength.
We tell them:

6
Active-Alert Hypnosis to Achieve Personal, Professional, and Therapeutic Goals
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.92197

Now that those fears are in that paper… that garbage is in that list… I want you to
rip apart that mental waste… with all your strength… to tear that sheet of paper
into small… unrecognizable pieces… that cannot be put together again… very
small… unrecognizable… insignificant pieces… torn apart…

Now… with all your strength… throw that garbage away… mental garbage…
mental trash… mental waste… should be in the place where it belongs from now
on… (we bring a trash can to them) … in this trash can… where those very small…
unrecognizable… insignificant pieces of paper will be placed from now on…

(Now with louder voice) While you throw them away… those very small… unrec-
ognizable… insignificant pieces of paper… give them a last goodbye… yell to them …
while throwing them away… ¡THAT’S RIGHT!

6.3 Third step: active-alert hypnosis facilitation: the dumbbells technique

(Arnoldo Téllez, n.d.)

This is an active-alert hypnotic technique developed a few years ago, in which we

ask the person to sit comfortably and look at any point (you can use a point on the
wall or an image). Next, we start to suggest:

When you are ready to begin, please just sit and make yourself comfortable. Shall
we start? Ok, look at that picture1… I would like you to focus your attention on any
point of the picture, whichever you want… Now… please put your hands with your
palms facing up resting on your legs… that’s right… keep looking at the same point…
while you concentrate on your breath… Now… I wonder what sensations are going
to emerge within your body… when you start to practice this exercise… we are going
to practice an exercise … Now… have you ever felt the sensation of a weight in your
hands?… that’s right… as if you have some weights in your hands right now… I
want you to imagine as if you have some weights in each one of your hands, a pair
of dumbbells… one in each hand… about 2 or 3 kilos… is that okay?… Right…
Now… You can grab them hard… and feel the weight… 2 or 3 kilos in each hand…
Right now… you do not know yet… exactly how you feel… but as you move your
dumbbells up and down … they will feel heavier… While you watch that point…
start raising one dumbbell … up to your shoulder … Now slowly lower it… While
lowing it, raise the other dumbbell… Okay… now move up and down the other
one… the left arm and then the other… Right… arm… while still looking at that
point… that’s right … I want you to continue looking at the same point… Maybe
now you can feel how the muscles contract and then relax… I want you to feel the
weight of those dumbbells… feel how the biceps, the muscles of the arms get tensed…
little by little feeling warm… the energy and calories in your arms are burning… the
muscles get tensed and then relaxed … and please keep your eyes open looking at the
picture… looking at the same point … and with each movement… each time closer to
know how you will be feeling… once you start moving… active… and relaxed… you
become more actively relaxed… still focusing on your breathing… now take two or
three deep breaths… That’s right… now… every time you inhale… You can feel more
and more awake … more alert… feeling more active and full of energy… your mind
is awakened… your mind is clear and lucid… can you feel it… now… your energy
spreading throughout your body and your mind?… not too much or too little
energy… just the right amount of energy that you need… you can feel a sensation in
your body… that indicates that this energy is spreading throughout your body…
toward your feet… through your legs… through your entire body… while you
continue… your mind becomes more active… more lucid… clearer …. You feel more

7
Hypnotherapy and Hypnosis

energized and in self-control… empowered… in harmony with yourself and your

surroundings… looking at the same point… can you recognize the sensation
emerging? … now?… your arm movements make your mind become more lucid and
clearer … actively more awakened and relaxed … that is it … feel the movements of
your body… how it gets stronger every time… with each movement of your arms …
your body and your mind get stronger and stronger… that’s right… now… with every
single movement… that energy of motivation is injected into your interior, a positive
energy … what do you know that will happen when… with each movement you
repeat to yourself… “I can do it … I can get it”… Right… now… visualize a goal…
yes… that goal… that you wrote before… to accomplish… it could be a personal
goal…. a professional goal… a goal related to your family, I do not know… but you
do (k)now… this goal is your target now… and with each movement imagine… feel
this sensation… that you move forward… towards your goal… you are approach-
ing… centimeter by centimeter… meter by meter… towards your goal… just feel that
sensation… as if you had some pulleys that move you towards… getting you closer to
your target … that’s right… now … with each movement you can tell yourself… you
(k)now? … “I can do it… I can get there,” and you are slowly approaching your goal
with each movement… closer and closer to your goal… Now… maybe you (k)
now… or maybe you do not (k)now now… that sensation emerging through
your entire body… do you remember now this sensation… you can keep it…
within you… every time you need it… this sensation… you know… within
you… every time you move… every time you smile… every time you see that
goal… every time you breathe… moving forward with enthusiasm towards your
goal… now… I wonder how do you want to be able to go a little faster… now…
accelerating your arms movements… keep going towards that goal… more and
more… towards that goal… and the more you are moving forward … the more
active and clearer your mind becomes… the clearer it becomes… the more you (k)
now that sensation emerging… through all your body… with a lot of enthusiasm …
you can feel an optimistic… motivation… you become more self-confident… with
your arms now moving by themselves … by themselves… automatically… leaving
behind any doubts that you thought you had… leaving behind everything… anything
what you no longer need to carry on your shoulders… anything that was bothering
you… that’s right… now… knocking down the obstacles… clearing the way… looking
more clearly forward.. with more light as you approach to your goal … that’s it…
right…. safely…. with certainty … yes… you can… you can go forward, approaching
your target… your own goal… with that sensation in your body… within your…
body… you keep it… you can remember this sensation… every time you
need it… this sensation… every time you move… every time you smile…
every time you see your goal… every time you breathe… every time you are
using the best of your own inner resources… that’s it… forward… right… now… there
are people waiting for you there cheering… where your goal is… people who love
you… to celebrate your success… more and more… recognizing your own personal
strengths… maybe you did not know yourself… that people love whoever love
yourself… but (k)now you (k)now yourself… leaving behind any burden that you
do not need to carry out with you… breaking boundaries … going beyond… reaching
your goal… achieving the target… that’s it … right… excellent… wonderful… you
almost done it… sure… yes… you can… do it… and… NOW!! you finally have
reached your goal… you are already in it… right… great… amazing… enjoying …
And you can observe… and feel all those sensations… emotions… and thoughts…
linked to the achievement of your goal… look right now… at this moment… inside
you … how do you feel?… do you (k)now (k)now how you feel?… that feeling
emerging… through your entire body… within your… body… you keep it…
you can remember this sensation… every time you need it… this

8
Active-Alert Hypnosis to Achieve Personal, Professional, and Therapeutic Goals
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.92197

sensation… every time you move… every time you smile… every time you
see your goal… every time you breathe… now… I wonder… what emotions are
linked to that success? … Feel the happiness… Feel the satisfaction… What sensa-
tions spread throughout your body? Do you feel self-confidence in your whole body
and your mind? Enjoy that feeling of reliance in yourself in having achieved your
goal… And feel the wind of positive changes on your skin… And perhaps you can
smell the powerful odor of your triumph… that’s okay… decreasing the pace … little
by little more slowly that’s it… right… savoring the success… that’s right… excellent…
very good… now… as you slow down a little the movement… you can close your
eyes… for a moment… and breathe deeply… now you can rest your arms… you have
reached your goal… feel it, enjoy this moment… you are in it …it’s your victory… you
deserve it…. Do not you want to go a little further?… you… can you continue?…
how much happier do you feel… now that… are you there?… yes… you are!…
Breathe deeply… your mind is clear and lucid… active and positive… from now
on… (k)now… maybe you (k)now… or maybe you do not (k)now (k)now…
that sensation emerging through your entire body… you will remember
now this sensation… you can keep it… within you… every time you need
it… this sensation… you know… within you… every time you move… every
time you smile… every time you see that goal… every time you breathe…
And when I ask you to open your eyes and look at that point again, you will feel
energized, active, and empowered, with all your potential… I do not know what
positive changes your subconscious mind is going to carry out from now on… just
moving, smiling, breathing… Very good … Excellent … Are you ready to come back
here and now? How well do you feel?

As you may notice, some of the words are italicized and we know that you
are aware of how to use them, or maybe you can change them a little for your
convenience.

6.4 Step four: the dirty rubber band (Arnoldo Téllez, n.d.)

Next, you can start another exercise. You may stay in the same place.

Now close your eyes again, we are going to do another imagination exercise… give
me your hands (the therapist takes the patient’s hands and pulls them forward
with their palms facing one another, and he holds his/her hands on both wrists)
… okay… imagine that you have an elastic band that ties your wrists… and keeps
them chained to each other… It is a dirty … and ugly band… that holds your hands
together… and do not let you be free… This band is built from former self-limita-
tions… maybe inferiority complexes… or low self-esteem feelings… grudges… and
negative comments… and they all were tying you up … that were preventing you
from being free and expanding your potential… Now I want you to start separating
your hands… with all your strength… you are stretching the band… very well…
while you force your hands to separate (the patient begins to open and separate
his/her arms) … continue to stretch with force… you are stretching the band more
and more… You are about to break it… You are close… with more strength… You
are almost to break free… almost… that’s right… now… And puff! (Therapist takes
the arms and separates them with the force) … It burst!… correct… excellent… very
good… expand your arms… expand your spirit… can you imagine that you are a
bird? … the bird you would like to be…. perhaps an eagle… or a hawk … seagull…
the bird you like to be…. now open your wings… with freedom… flying… You are
finally free of what was holding you back… now you are free… on the top… flying…
seeing from above a perspective never seen before… A horizon full of possibilities…

9
Hypnotherapy and Hypnosis

right… very well… freely… quietly … (pause a minute) … Now you can lower your
arms … And when your arms reach your side and descend on your legs … You will
be totally… and freely… awake… Rested and awaken… How well are you feeling?

Next, here is some feedback from people who experienced this approach:

A 24-year-old man who suffered a chronic sense of demotivation and a lack of

specific and clear goals in his life:

First part
“I visualized myself achieving every single goal that guided me towards my main
goal. I pictured myself getting good grades, I felt joyful and happy, I visualized
myself with my family sharing my success and my main goal achieved.”

Second part
“I felt as if I was finally released from something so strong that was keeping me tied
up. I felt an unbelievable sense of freedom, I felt a bunch of adrenaline, a burst of
energy inside me.”

“I could feel the air in my face, like I was really flying in the air, and I finally saw a
big bright shining light from the sun.”

Report from a patient with depression and anxiety after an active-alert hypnosis
session:

First part
“I felt a huge amount of blood pumping fast up to my head and then running down
to my stomach.”

“I feel more relaxed and peaceful.”

Second part
“I felt how the adrenaline rushes through my body from my stomach to my brain.
This sensation makes me feel euphoric and generates emotion and happiness,
something that I haven’t felt for a long time.”

“This is a feeling that I haven’t experienced before, but now I only feel the energy
from the front side of my brain to my mouth, and even more than the energy, I feel
relaxation and inner peace.”

“I don’t feel exhausted, but relaxed.”

7. Some general guidelines to apply active-alert hypnotic procedure

There is no big difference between how the linguistic structure is applied in

common, relaxed trances, as you may have seen in the approach we share with you,
there are some “hypnotic language forms” [24] or “Milton Model” patterns [28, 29],
such as analogical marks, interspersal, ambiguities (phonological and punctua-
tion), or lack of a referential index, among others.
In addition, the use of posthypnotic suggestions is key to the construction of
a good and effective hypnotic script, since you are looking for a “posthypnotic
behavior” [30] integrated into the “normal” behavior of the person [5], and there
are some suggestions for their usage [3]:

10
Active-Alert Hypnosis to Achieve Personal, Professional, and Therapeutic Goals
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.92197

• Say them at different times and with depth in the trance session

• Express it in different language levels (such as metaphorical, explicit, or with

ambiguity)

• Express them as a contingent suggestion (the standard form is “next time that
you [unavoidable fact], you will [suggestion]”)

• Use distinctive nonverbal cues to indicate that suggestion’s importance.

Unestahl [2] states that every time that a posthypnotic suggestion is triggered, a
“posthypnotic trance” occurs, providing an opportunity for the person to elicit all
the sensations and learning acquired in the hypnotic session and to bring them to a
context where they will be useful.
There is a process in our brain called hippocampal offline replay that allows our
memory to consolidate while in a sleep state. However, there is evidence suggesting
that this process can occur in a special consciousness state (relaxed awake state) to
bring back learned behaviors or sequences of thoughts in a shorter period of time
[31, 32]. That process may be the one that will help us to consolidate and accomplish
our most important goals through active-alert hypnosis, posthypnotic suggestions,
and clearer goal setting.
This did not happen with that half-baked goal of mine about “getting some new
shoes” because that instruction was not specific enough to obtain the desired result.
My hippocampus just replays “new shoes… new shoes” a lot, without any more
details, and that is what I obtained in the end. A better hypnotic suggestion might
have been the following “buy a pair of new and comfortable shoes.”

8. Conclusion

Active-alert hypnotic states could be an alternative in some cases where tradi-

tional, relaxed-state hypnosis may not be applied. This approach can be used as a
tool to guide people to realize how hypnosis could be experienced on a daily basis
and as an auto-hypnosis method, making use of posthypnotic trance states.
Reaching a goal requires people to think, to feel, and to act, both consciously
and unconsciously. Both active-alert hypnosis and traditional relaxed-state hyp-
nosis help to store goal-seeking information into the unconscious mind in order to
encourage the person to reach his/her goals in a nonconscious manner. However, an
advantage of active-alert hypnosis is that it seems to increase motivation and energy
as well as increasing the probability of producing a state of flow.
According to our experience, this dumbbells technique is an excellent tool help-
ing people to set and achieve their own goals, whatever they are: personal, profes-
sional, financial, and health-related ones. Also, in many cases it could produce a
flow state characterized by a focused attention and full concentration, merging
awareness and action, “freedom” from worries about failure, self-consciousness
disappearing, distorted time sense, and auto-rewarding experiences [33]; this flow
state leads the person to a higher motivation and energy, augmented self-efficiency
perception, mind clarity, and self-control.
AAH could be very useful in high-performance athletes, as has been shown by
Unestahl’s research [30]. We have used the dumbbells technique, as a kind of AAH,
in several cases of high-performance athletes and sport teams, from amateurs to
professionals. The following is a report from a female cyclist who won gold medal in
2018 Pan-American games, who experienced this technique after a session of AAH
dumbbells technique:

11
Hypnotherapy and Hypnosis

“I felt all the people in the stadium was screaming, encouraging me… to arrive the
finish line in first place… I felt how my legs were stronger and faster as time goes
by… once I reached the goal I felt proud, happiness, and a lot of inner peace.”

We invite you to develop your own approaches, keeping in mind that there are
many kinds of hypnotic states and that you can elicit those states just by talking,
even about something trivial, like your wardrobe, following conversational hyp-
notic patterns, by reading while your unconscious learns something without you
noticing it yet, you know?

Conflict of interest

The authors have no conflicts of interest.

Author details

Arnoldo Téllez1*, Arturo Valdez2 and Teresa Sánchez-Jáuregui2

1 Psychology School and Health Sciences Research and Development Center

(CIDICS), Autonomous University of Nuevo León, Monterrey, Mexico

2 Health Sciences Research and Development Center (CIDICS), Autonomous

University of Nuevo León, Monterrey, Mexico

*Address all correspondence to: [email protected]

© 2020 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms
of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/
by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium,
provided the original work is properly cited.

12
Active-Alert Hypnosis to Achieve Personal, Professional, and Therapeutic Goals
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.92197

References

[1] Elkins GR, Barabasz AF, Council JR, [11] Libet B, Gleason CA, Wright EW,
Spiegel D. Advancing research and Pearl DK. Time of conscious intention
practice: The revised APA division 30 to act in relation to onset of cerebral
definition of hypnosis. International activity (readiness-potential). In:
Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neurophysiology of Consciousness.
Hypnosis. 2015;63(1):1-9 1993. pp. 249-268

[2] Unestahl LE. Alert, eyes-open sport [12] Desmurget M, Sirigu A. A parietal-
hypnosis. American Journal of Clinical premotor network for movement
Hypnosis. 2018;61(2):159-172 intention and motor awareness.
Trends in Cognitive Sciences.
[3] Téllez A. Hipnosis Clínica: Un 2009;13(10):411-419
Enfoque Ericksoniano. México: Trillas;
2007 [13] Baumeister RF, Masicampo EJ,
Vohs KD. Do conscious thoughts cause
[4] Rossi EL, Nimmons D. The behavior? Annual Review of Psychology.
20-Minute Break: Reduce Stress, 2011;62:331-361
Maximize Performance, and Improve
Health and Emotional Well-Being Using [14] Erickson MH, Rossi EL.
the New Science of Ultradian Rhythms. Experiencing Hypnosis. New York:
USA: JP Tarcher; 1991 Irvington; 1981

[5] Yapko MD. Trancework: An [15] Weitzenhoffer AM. Hypnotic

Introduction to the Practice of Clinical susceptibility revisited. American
Hypnosis. UK: Routledge; 2012 Journal of Clinical Hypnosis.
1980;22(3):130-146
[6] Bányai ÉI. Active-alert hypnosis:
History, research, and applications. [16] Weitzenhoffer AM. When is
American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis. an “instruction” an “instruction”?
2018;61(2):88-107 International Journal of Clinical
and Experimental Hypnosis.
[7] Banyai EI, Hilgard ER. A comparison 1974;22(3):258-269
of active-alert hypnotic induction with
traditional relaxation induction. Journal [17] Farvolden P, Woody EZ. Hypnosis,
of Abnormal Psychology. 1976;85(2):218 memory, and frontal executive
functioning. International Journal of
[8] Bányai ÉI, Zseni A, Túry F. Active- Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis.
alert hypnosis in psychotherapy. In: 2004;52(1):3-26
Rhue JW, Lynn SJ, Kirsch I, editors.
Handbook of Clinical Hypnosis [18] Hassin RR, Uleman JS, Bargh JA,
American Psychological Association. editors. The New Unconscious. UK:
1993. p. 271-290 Oxford University Press; 2004

[9] Cardeña E, Maldonado J, [19] Moscovitch M, Cabeza R,

Galdón MJ, Spiegel D. The hypnosis and Winocur G, Nadel L. Episodic memory
the posttraumatic disorders. Anales De and beyond: The hippocampus and
Psicología. 1999;15(1):147-155 neocortex in transformation. Annual
Review of Psychology. 2016;67:105-134
[10] Custers R, Aarts H. The unconscious
will: How the pursuit of goals operates [20] Girardeau G, Inema I, Buzsáki G.
outside of conscious awareness. Science. Reactivations of emotional memory
2010;329(5987):47-50 in the hippocampus–amygdala system

13
Hypnotherapy and Hypnosis

during sleep. Nature Neuroscience. [30] Erickson MH, Rossi EL.

2017;20(11):1634 Hypnotherapy: An Exploratory
Casebook. New York: Irvington
[21] Rudebeck PH, Ripple JA, Mitz AR, Publishers; 1979
Averbeck BB, Murray EA. Amygdala
contributions to stimulus–reward [31] Carr MF, Jadhav SP, Frank LM.
encoding in the macaque medial Hippocampal replay in the awake state:
and orbital frontal cortex during A potential substrate for memory
learning. Journal of Neuroscience. consolidation and retrieval. Nature
2017;37(8):2186-2202 Neuroscience. 2011;14(2):147

[22] Cacciaglia R, Nees F, Grimm O, [32] Buhry L, Azizi AH, Cheng S.

Ridder S, Pohlack ST, Diener SJ, et al. Reactivation, replay, and preplay: How
Trauma exposure relates to heightened it might all fit together. Neuroscience.
stress, altered amygdala morphology 2006;31(3):551-570
and deficient extinction learning:
Implications for psychopathology. [33] Csikszentmihalyi M,
Psychoneuroendocrinology. Abuhamdeh S, Nakamura J. Flow. In:
2017;76:19-28 Elliot AJ, Dweck CS, editors. Handbook
of Competence and Motivation. The
[23] Cona G, Bisiacchi PS, Sartori G, Guilford Press. 1990. pp. 598-608
Scarpazza C. Effects of cue focality
on the neural mechanisms of
prospective memory: A meta-analysis
of neuroimaging studies. Scientific
Reports. 2016;6(1):1-13

[24] Battino R, South TL. Ericksonian

Approaches: A Comprehensive Manual.
USA: Crown House Publishing; 2005

[25] Dilts R. From Coach to Awakener.

Capitola, CA: Meta Publications; 2003

[26] De Shazer S, Dolan Y. More than

Miracles: The State of the Art of
Solution-Focused Brief Therapy. USA:
Routledge; 2012

[27] Haley J. Problem-Solving Therapy.

New York: Jossey-Bass; 1987

[28] Grinder J, DeLozier J, Bandler R.

Patterns of the Hypnotic Techniques
of Milton H. Erickson, MD. Vol. 2.
Cupertino, CA: Meta Publications; 1975

[29] Grinder J, DeLozier J,

Bandler R. Patterns of the Hypnotic
Techniques of Milton H. Erickson,
MD. Vol. 1. Cupertino, CA: Meta
Publications; 1977

14