Hypnosis is a mental state of extreme suggestibility in which a highly focused person can be guided, controlled, and even manipulated by a skilled hypnotist. It is an altered state of consciousness that allows people to experience vivid, imaginative visions and ideas.

The term ‘hypnosis’ comes from the Greek word ‘hypnos’ meaning ‘sleep’.

Hypnosis is a kink that involves exploring the power of the mind and manipulating what a person thinks, feels, and even believes. It is a form of mental control that allows a person to be guided, ordered, and even made compliant. A person under hypnosis is in a dream-like state and is often very submissive to the hypnotist.

A subset of mental play, Hypnosis leverages different techniques to achieve sensations and behaviors within the recipient controlled by the person applying the hypnosis techniques.

With different types of hypnosis comes also different kinds of play and different kinds of connections. Most kinds of hypnosis play use

imprinting techniques to condition a subject into being susceptible to suggestions. These can range from certain trigger words resulting in sensations or emotions for the subject and inducing a trance in the subject. Hypnosis can therefore be used for a wide range of things including fear play, sensation play, Bondage, and Submission.

Everyone CAN go into a trance. We all do it, all the time. A hypnotic trance is a state of focused attention. It is similar to being “off with the fairies/glazed over/zoned out/in the zone”. The state of mind you can experience in a trance is similar to what you might get during the last 10 minutes of a yoga class when you’re relaxing and the instructor is talking and guiding you into a deeply relaxed state that’s like sleep but not sleep.

The state of trance is different for different people on different days. It is not a singular experience that every experiences the same way. Think of it as a whole range of possibilities. At one end of that range is a ‘light trance’ where you’re calm and relaxed but can hear everything the hypnotist says, there can be an awareness of the wider environment as well as an awareness of the inner environment (like thoughts and feelings).

At the other end of the scale is a ‘deep trance’ where the subject is off with the fairies. In this state, they may have no awareness of what is being said or how they feel, or what they think. They may look like they are asleep while being in a deep trance. Trance looks like sleep they are two very different and distinct states.

For hypnotic suggestions to have the desired effect it is not always essential to be in any particular depth of trance. Certain depths may make it easier or harder for certain techniques to be used effectively but everyone is different and what might be ideal for one person may not be for another.

For hypnosis to work it needs many variables lining up. It will have to be someone the hypnotic subject is happy and comfortable with, the hypnotist will need to be able to talk in the right way and use the right words which have been calibrated to the hypnotic subject, it will need to be the right time, and the right location. These are the main variables but others could have an impact on the success of the session.  If all the variables align then there is the potential for a great experience.

The enthusiastic participation and consent of the subject is a decisive factor in the process. There is a misconception that you can’t be hypnotized against your will. That is true if you know you are being hypnotised but if you don’t know you are being hypnotised it is hard to resist if someone is using ‘conversational hypnosis’. Many of the language patterns used in conversational hypnosis are also used in the advertising and marketing industries and for good reason. Language can be very persuasive and you don’t have to be in a stereotypical hypnotic trance to be persuaded into doing something that you might not otherwise do.