I had a call today from someone who watched the recording of Derren Brown’s brilliant Showman on Channel 4 last night to ask if I could do what he does! The answer is yes and no! Yes…I can hypnotise people rapidly and it is a wonderfully powerful altered state….and no, I am not an entertainer or illusionist – I am a hypnotherapist!
As I explained to my caller, Hypnotherapy is a therapeutic technique used by trained hypnotherapists like me to help individuals overcome various mental and physical health issues such as anxiety, depression, addiction, phobias and chronic pain. Hypnotherapy aims to help individuals access the subconscious mind and use it to achieve positive change in their lives.
On the other hand, stage hypnosis is a form of entertainment where a hypnotist (and Derren Brown is a master hypnotist) performs on stage to entertain an audience. Stage hypnosis is not a therapeutic intervention, as the focus is on entertainment rather than therapeutic outcomes. The hypnotist’s goal is to get volunteers from the audience to perform amazing comical or bizarre acts under hypnosis.
And so, the main difference between hypnotherapy and stage hypnosis is the purpose and intention behind each practice. Hypnotherapy is a serious therapeutic treatment that requires extensive training and experience, while stage hypnosis is primarily for entertainment purposes only, although it does of course also demonstrate the power of hypnosis.
