Post-hypnotic suggestion

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The ability of a human to be induced into a form of behavior or thinking pattern after coming out of the hypnotic state.

Post hypnotic suggestions are administered by the hypnotist and may optionally include a time scope. An altered sense of perception or behavioral pattern may be "programmed" into the person under hypnosis. Certain sequences of events may be set as triggers to enter or exit the post-hypnotic pattern. The behavior patterns resemble conditioned reflexes, though administered without classical behavior alteration techniques.

An episode of MythBusters tackled the subject of post-hypnotic suggestions. Both the subjects hypnotized would not do things against their will, which the experts interviewed agreed would not happen.

Examples

Any number, color, object, etc. may be induced to be ignored by the patient after full consciousness. A certain keyword starts the suggestion and a different word ends it. The patient will not know nor use the item to be ignored. He/she may state that the sea is colored red, if suggested to ignore the color blue. A count of eleven may be achieved if asked to count ones fingers if a number -say 5- is suggested to be ignored. Thus the patient counts 1-2-3-4-6-7-8-9-10-11

Different type of behavior patterns may be induced such as forcing the patient to recite a certain sentence whenever anyone says out loud the special keyword. The patient is fully aware of the conditioned action but it is very difficult, if not impossible, to restrain from doing it. Sweating, loss of coordination and full lack of concentration plagues the patient until he/she performs the programmed action.

An object may be set to be perceived as invisible and it will be fully ignored and evaded during the period of suggestion. Experiments may be performed with a coffee mug, induced to be invisible. If the mug is put on top of a page with writing, the patient will only read the parts not covered by the mug. Even though the sentences may make no sense, nothing is seemingly wrong to the suscepted. It is difficult to suggest an object be invisible, yet stay tactile. Usually the object is completely ignored by all senses. Thus, the mug in the example will reportedly not exist, even when the patient is touching it.

Stage hypnotists will sometimes perform shows in which they hypnotise participants to think they are some celebrity and behave exactly like them. John Mohl, stage hypnotist and member of The National Guild of Hypnotists, says that he has often hypnotized people to become someone else, Mohl noticed that adults often became a celebrity while Middle or High School students usually become something much more creative or imaginative.

References see Hypnosis

Post-hypnotic suggestion

Examples

See also