Favorite hypnosis techniques
Okay, here we have two winners, and both are winners by scandal: fractionation and resistance.
And each deserves an explanation, because I think both are genuinely fascinating.
First of all, I genuinely cannot understand someone who doesn’t like fractionation.
And this can be interesting from the subject’s side.
As you probably know, some subjects can have trouble going into trance. Maybe they’re extremely analytical, maybe they have trouble concentrating, or maybe it’s simply one of those things that happens.
So when a subject is about to enter a hypnosis session, there can be that little thought in the back of their mind:
What if I don’t go into trance?
Did I just waste the hypnotist’s time?
Fractionation teaches you something very useful:
Yes. You can go down. And yes, you can come back up.
If part of your fear was getting stuck in hypnosis — like in the movies, where apparently you can remain under someone’s control for an entire 21-episode season — don’t worry. You can come out.
And every cycle teaches you something.
And eventually you realize that it gets easier and faster.
So if you had some preconceived idea about hypnosis, fractionation can quietly dismantle it.
No, hypnosis is not some irreversible state.
You can enter it, leave it, and enter it again.
And then there is the other side: if you actually enjoy the experience, there is something fascinating about the oscillation itself.
Look at me, I’m obeying the hypnotist. I’m being such a good boy/girl.
But there is another experience that I find much more interesting:
You suddenly don't quite know whether you are awake, asleep, in trance, or somewhere in between.
And maybe that state is sublime.
A place where there is no real “up” or “down.”
For hypnotists, fractionation is fascinating for completely different reasons.
It is a very useful technique, and while nothing in hypnosis is guaranteed to work every single time, fractionation can be remarkably reliable as a way of deepening and reinforcing trance.
And for people who enjoy the technical side of hypnosis, there is something almost laboratory-like about watching the changes.
You see the subject go down.
You watch the changes in their breathing, their skin, their eyes, their posture.
Then they come back up — but perhaps not quite as far.
If your subject is physically expressive, or if you have learned how to read their responses, it can become fascinating because you can almost see where they are in the cycle.
You can recognize when they are getting deeper.
You can recognize when they have reached that point where they are completely absorbed and have no particular intention of coming back up.
And for people who are easily distracted, there is another practical advantage.
You don't necessarily have to spend half an hour going through ten different techniques.
Fractionation can work almost like a set of compact cycles.
And each cycle builds on the previous one.
But I think the reason I like fractionation goes beyond technique.
Fractionation is a metaphor for life.
Expansion and contraction.
A vibration between two states that somehow becomes its own state of being.
And that is much more interesting to me than simply saying, “This technique makes people go deeper.”
Who doesn't like resistance?
Okay — first, an important distinction.
I am not talking about the brat who resists because they can, enjoys pushing buttons, and wants the whole thing to eventually become “fine, then make me.”
That is a different thing.
I'm talking about resistance as I understand it.
For subjects, resistance can be a game.
But it is a game where agency becomes extremely visible.
I want to go into trance.
And for subjects who are afraid that they might do something under hypnosis that they don't actually want to do, resistance can be an interesting demonstration.
Nothing moves without my yes.
You can decide not to respond at the moment you are instructed to respond.
And there is something reassuring about discovering that for yourself rather than simply being told that you still have agency.
There is also another side to resistance.
Sometimes the subject can feel almost special.
Oh, the usual methods aren't working.
So I guess you're going to have to bring out the good stuff.
Your hypnotist is going to have to use the entire arsenal before I finally give in.
And isn't there something flattering about that?
Look at all the time and energy you had to spend getting me into trance.
Of course, I'm aware that this is not necessarily a healthy interpretation of every hypnosis interaction. I'm talking about the playful dynamic here.
Because for the hypnotist, resistance can become a game too.
If someone is resisting, you can't simply decide:
Okay, this session is about confusion.
And then spend the entire session doing confusion techniques.
I'll talk really fast because that might help.
You try something with breathing.
It becomes a process of figuring out how this particular person responds.
And if both people are genuinely participating in the game, the hypnotist will usually eventually “win” because they found the right key — or because the subject eventually experiences enough cognitive fatigue that maintaining the resistance becomes harder.
For someone who genuinely enjoys the technical side of hypnosis, that can be incredibly satisfying.
“I played Happy Birthday on the piano.”
“I played an étude. Look how well that sounded.”
The challenge itself is part of the fun.
And there is one more category that I think deserves its own little footnote:
the subject who is also a hypnotist, or who understands hypnosis techniques.
Those people can actually get something interesting out of resistance too.
Because now the subject isn't just resisting.
What is the hypnotist doing?
Why did they change techniques?
Are they actually trying to change my breathing, or are they testing whether I'll follow the suggestion?
Is this part of the induction, or am I choosing to play along?
And suddenly you have something that resembles mental chess.
The hypnotist is trying to find the opening.
The subject is trying to anticipate the move.
And the queen, in this particular game, is the subject's mind.
