Last month, the Sarasota County School District paid $600,000 to settle a lawsuit with the family’s of three students who died after they were hypnotized by their principal.
[WEB EXTRA: Selecting a qualified professional ] It was a bizarre case that brought the effects of hypnosis into the spotlight.
News 6 looked into the practice with two people who use it in very different ways.
Richard Barker is a hypnotist who wrote the book, “Secrets of The Stage Revealed,” The Guide To Hypnosis and Stage Hypnotism.
He performs live shows where he hypnotizes audience members on stage.
He has also done a number of national television appearances, including “The Late, Late Show with James Corden.”
“My experience of 20 years of hypnosis, everything I’ve seen and all the evidence that has been presented to me has been positive,” Barker said to News 6′s Louis Bolden.
Barker says hypnosis can be used for entertainment but also for practical purposes, like pain management, weight loss, and managing fears and phobias.
News 6 producer Ashleigh Coran wanted to try hypnosis to stop smoking.
“I’ve tried here and there, like I quit for a month, not even, maybe a month, but then I started again,” she said.
Barker started by having Coran stare at a fixed object.
“The more you stare the more tired you become, the more tired you become, the more you stare. It’s perfectly normal,” Barker told Coran.
He then had her open and close her eyes, and when open, she was to look at the object she had chosen.
“One, two, three, open your eyes. Look at the object. Close your eyes even further. Keep yourself relaxed,” Barker said quickly.
Once Coran was hypnotized Barker started the suggestions about smoking.
“I want you to understand that if you’re foolish enough to ever smoke again, your subconscious mind will come back to haunt you,” he said.
At one point, Barker tells Coran to open her box of cigarettes and crush them, which she did.
In all it was a 45 minute session.
“That was so weird,” Coran said afterwards. She described the experience as being a total state of relaxation.
“It was like a different sort of calm,” she said. “It was just like a different of zone.”
Barker also hypnotized News 6 reporter Johny Fernandez to help with his fear of cats. Fernandez went from not letting anyone get too close with a cat, to holding it himself after about a half hour session.
Be Careful Who You Use
Dr. Alan Keck is a licensed psychologist who believes you should only allow a licensed mental health professional to hypnotize you.
“Anything that’s powerful enough to help, can also harm and that’s why it needs to be handled in the proper hands,” Keck said.
“Could it be dangerous to allow the wrong person to hypnotize you?” Investigator Louis Bolden asked.
“Absolutely,” Keck said.
People can have latent mental health issues that could be triggered by hypnosis, according to Keck.
“You can say the wrong thing, to the wrong person, at the wrong time and help them do something that really is not in their best interest,” Keck said.
Barker and Keck use the tool in different ways, but both agree on this,
“Like anything in the wrong hands,” Barker said. “There’s always potential for good and bad.”
Ashleigh has not had a cigarette since she was hypnotized. It’s been four weeks now.
In Florida, practicing therapeutic hypnosis without a license is a crime, so if you try it be careful who you choose.
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Article source: http://www.clickorlando.com/news/investigators/hypnosis-does-it-work