Portland Hypnosis Training » Hypnosis Training

Dates Released for the Next Hypnosis Course in Portland Oregon

admin — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 01:02:06 +0000

The NW Hypnosis Institute’s next Hypnosis Course is scheduled to start on August 27, 2011.

Portland Oregon Hypnosis Class Schedule:

August 27th & 28th
September 10th & 11th
September 24th & 25th
October 1st & 2nd
October 15th & 16th
October 29th & 30th
November 12th & 13th
November 19th & 20th
December 3rd & 4th
December 17th & 18th
January 7th & 8th
January 21sth & 22nd

See our Hypnosis Training Course page for more details about our Hypnotherapy Certification Program.

Self- Hypnosis Class

Chris Santana — Sun, 24 Apr 2011 00:53:19 +0000

The best part of Bruce Terrill’s class this weekend at The Northwest Hypnosis Institute was on “positive action suggestions”. I can say that unreservedly because not only did I learn how to use a very powerful tool for my hypnotherapy practise, but I also found a powerful tool to use for myself. In order to guide people towards Self-Hypnosis, I would obviously have to be pretty good at it myself. I prefer the term “affirmation,” but “positive action suggestions” is more to the point. The most important word in there for me being “action”. That’s one thing I found about hypnotherapy that differs than other types of motivational counseling – there are specific directions that are essential to follow as you go. Otherwise, there’s too much wiggle room. And if there’s any wiggle room at all in any self improvement program of mine, I’m going to wiggle away.
First thing we were taught is how to write a positive action suggestion statement. Among other things it has to be positive in tone ( that’s kind of obvious), believable ( not as easy as it sounds) and rewarding. The rewarding end of it was very interesting. I’m not the kind of fellow that’s going to write something like, “I’ll be a better human being and the world will be a better place for it” That’s just not tangible enough for me – or believable, come to think of it. I need a tasty reward, right away. With self-hypnosis, this is entirely possible right away as long as I co-operate with myself. And as a certified hypnotherapist, it would be very rewarding to help people co-operate with themselves. If I could do that successfully, my practise would be off the charts – financially, creatively, socially and personally. When the subject comes up of our “higher selves” moving us along in a better direction, I don’t know anyone that wouldn’t mind a kind push in the direction that their higher self is leading. And no hocus-pocus please! Practical, accountable and measurable progress is what Self-Hypnosis is to me. Step by step accountability – knowing to some measurable degree that I am in fact co-operating with my better half . Some people can do it dreamy, but I need structure. Otherwise, I make unrealistic and vague promises to myself with goals that are not met.

Now is the time in the classroom when we pair up and write our suggestions. With the invaluable help of my partner and after many tries, my finished card reads, “I am smoking less and enjoying the few I smoke more.” Perfect for me with all the criteria in there. I’m being honest, first of all -I do not want to quit today. It’s positive in tone
( although it could be more positive), yet it’s believable. It’s measurable and in the present tense, and certainly rewarding. Now I read the card to myself a few times, then sit back and do the breathing exercises while vividly imagining I am doing exactly what is on my card. I am confident I can do it. It is starting to get ingrained in my sub-consious already and right about now Bruce tell the class it’s time to take a break. Perfect.

During the break I light up and start enjoying that smoke. It’s only the second of the day for me and it’s about 10:30. While I’m smoking, the resident of the house next to the hypnotherapy school comes out and lights up himself. I join him and mention the exercise I just participated in. I explained to my fellow smoker that I am learning Self-hypnosis as part of the course towards being a certified hypnotherapist. I further explain that I’m using the class today to personally cut down on my smokes and enjoy them more. I also mention that I find myself only enjoying half the cigarettes I smoke and it is affecting my health. He agrees that it is affecting his health as well but he’s not ready to quit. That said, I have my first client.

Before he could finish his cigarette, I was back with my positive action suggestion and the exercises written down to go with it. As an anchor, I had him write down the action statement for himself. This fellow was game and took it as kismet that we met. We reviewed the breathing and affirmation action needed for the suggestion to work -and for the reward to happen. I gave him my contact info and mentioned that the school meets every two weeks. I stressed that I would be back in exactly two weeks, at the exact same time, and at that time we would compare experience and share a smoke or not. The two week time frame might be too long of an initial interval between reinforcement, but I believe that if he works the plan diligently, it’s going to work for both of us. Meanwhile, “I am smoking less and enjoying the few I smoke more.”

Learning Rapport in Hypnotherapy School

Jody Workman — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 22:03:35 +0000

In our daily lives, whether we know it or not, we build rapport with the people we meet. What is meant by building rapport is building a relation of trust between yourself and another person or group of people. Successful customer service people are very adept at building rapport. The doctor you feel comfortable with and trust, or the clerk at the clothing store whose opinion you ask for. And on the other hand you have the people who, for some reason, are not as good at building rapport and solicit a feeling of distrust in you. For instance the salesman you feel is trying to scam you or the person you just met in the bar and is setting off alarm bells in your head.

As students at the Northwest Hypnosis Institute we’re learning how to successfully build rapport with other people using various techniques. These techniques have many different elements which we practiced in class with each other. The three basic elements involved being body language, voice and behavior, which are broken down into more specific areas.

Reading body language is something we do everyday. It’s how we know a co-worker is stressed out. We read their stiff posture and tense shoulders. When we meet people we read their body language too. If they have an open posture with their arms relaxed at their sides, we do the same to build rapport. By mimicking their open stance and appearing non-threatening, you’re encouraging them to remain calm and not go on the defensive. You’re building trust. People are comfortable around the familiar and by gently copying a person’s body language you are like them, and there for are familiar and able to be trusted. Like wise if you encounter a person who’s taken on a defensive posture with their arms crossed over their chest, you can help put them at ease by approaching them with an open and non-threatening posture which can relay trust and diffuse their apprehension.

Another technique hypnotherapists use to help build trust and rapport is through the use of their voice. By pitching the tone and volume of your voice as close as naturally possible to the client’s and matching their talking speed, you can also project familiarity resulting in their relaxing and trusting you. And like using your body language to put someone at ease, you can do the same with your voice. Keeping it gentle and non-aggressive, you can make someone feel safe and again, trust you.

Your behavior also contributes to your ability to build rapport with someone. If you show an interest in subjects someone else finds interesting, they will open up to you. Just like if you go to a sporting event, people who cheer for the same team will congregate together and feel at ease with one another since there is that commonality and shared interest. They feel accepted and therefore at ease.

While in class we broke off into groups of three to practice these rapport building skills. One person would say something and one person would mirror or mimic that person’s body language and voice while the third acted as coach. The coach would tell us how successful we were at mirroring the body language and voice and how we could improve. Then we would change rolls so each of us acted as speaker, mirror and coach. What we all discovered was that when you do mirror someone you have to be careful how you do it. If you’re too obvious about it, it can be creepy being the person mirrored. But if you’re subtle enough to get your actions past the conscious mind, you can be very successful at building rapport.

If you are interested in learning more about rapport, hypnotherapy & NLP -visit our Hypnotherapy School description page.

My Third Weekend at Hypnosis College

Chris Santana — Sat, 12 Mar 2011 20:25:13 +0000

This weekend’s class at The Northwest Hypnosis Institute, Bruce Terrill, our instructor and confidant, introduced Hypnotic Inductions.
It was clear from the start that the class was ready. It seemed like we had become comfortable with each other and we were working well as a unit. Now we could actually start to see how hypnosis works by example.

According to David Mason, an author of many popular inductions, the process involves a combination of suggestions, deepeners and tests for depth of trance. According to my notes, things can get confusing, quickly. After a page or two of mad scribbling, I figured the best way to keep track of the information would be in real time of a typical session. I thought if I could fit all the information I was getting from Bruce and all the material from our Hypnosis Training Manual under that simple system, I could learn more effectively.

For example, before you even start your induction, you have to “read” the client to ascertain what type of induction might work best for them. I can do this “pre-talk”, just as David Mason promotes for inductions: by suggestions, deepeners and tests. These “pre-talk” techniques we learned in an earlier class.

Then you have to build rapport. Again, I can do this with our arsenal of suggestions, deepeners and tests. For example, is a client more inclined for a passive induction or a more aggressive one? These types of questions are best answered through experience, an experience best garnered in a classroom setting. In fact, I don’t see how you could get it right without being in a hypnotherapy school.

Once we have “read” the client and established rapport, we choose an induction we have ascertained as best for the subject. As we study our selected induction in class, we notice that throughout the guided meditation or trance story, there are those same type of tests to see exactly where we are in the hypnosis process. Many of these tests are subtle, some are more direct. Now somewhere along the line, the client and I should be ready and willing to go as deep into a hypnotic state as need be to accomplish the task at hand. We have established trust and rapport. We have expectations and I have permission. I reassure along the way and introduce convincers to ensure we are right on schedule. Every client is different, and we are being shown there are vast numbers of ways how best to serve that client.
Yet once again, instead of scrambling with all the information, I organize in a progression of a successful session. I break up my session in three parts; 1. I tell the client, “We are going to go there.” 2. I assure the client that, ” We are there,” and 3. after hypnosis depth testing, ” We’re doing ______ here.” The blank is for the particular need of the client.

Another way of saying it is, 1. ” We’re going to do this.” 2. “We’re doing this.” and 3. “We’re doing this to solve ________.” Then I can put all my notes, my scripts and my guidelines under those three categories.

Sounds simple enough, but right from the start, it was obvious it was going to take a good deal of practice. Now it was time to pair off and give the sample inductions a few run-throughs with Bruce listening. I worked with a young executive type female who seemed to be inclined to respond best to a passive, quided meditation to get into a hypnotic trance. Sure enough, once I was able to get the rhythm and tone of my voice together, she was in a hypnotic state of relaxation, feeling safe and secure as I read. I knew this by noticing her responses to test questions and reassuring her that she was doing well. I also noticed her breathing and worked my speech pattern accordingly. There was also no resistance when I “slipped her a convincer.” She was obviously in a hypnotic state. How far in I couldn’t really tell because of my lack of experience. Once I brought her out of it, we switched roles, then discussed our insights on where we got it right and what needed to be improved upon. We then shared it with the whole class. The most important thing I took from school this weekend was the experience of ” I can do this,” and the knowledge that, ” This can really work.”

If you are interested in attending our college of hypnosis, please visit our College Hypnosis Training Course page.

Hypnosis School: Weekend #1 Review

Chris Santana — Sat, 05 Mar 2011 06:06:06 +0000

After years as an investigative journalist, where half the story is reading people and getting the best out of them, becoming a certified hypnotherapist might not be too much of a stretch. Well, after weekend one at The Portland Hypnosis Center, I’m here to report that so far it looks like it’s my perception that’s doing the stretching.

In the newspaper business, the way you look at things is critical. Finding those little details, or a new slant on how things may appear can make or certainly break a story. In our first training class, I’m learning the same holds true. We started by discussing in detail how different people communicate differently. Not only in speech patterns, but in non-verbal communication as well. This was my introduction to the portion of our certification training known as Neuro-Linguistic Programming, or NLP training. The first thing that really hit home was that somewhere between our study of Sensory-Specific Words and NLP Eye Accessing Cues, it became quite clear that what Bruce was teaching us in his class, I had been doing for years without knowing it! Now the guessing game is pretty much over. Not only do I now know what to look for with more certainty, but I have years of scientifically and experimentally proved data right in front of me to refer to. After just one hour of study, I could already use this systematic approach to better ‘”read people” and make it easier for all concerned to “get the best out of them.” If only my editor was here for the ride! He might very well pay for the whole course, and then some.

We paired up for first hand experience of these approaches straight away. I recall the Nurse Practitioner of the group sat next to a Cook, a Real Estate Agent with a Veterinarian, a Social Service Counselor of some sort and a Software Engineer, and then there was Theresa and myself. Theresa is a mother of three with two dogs, and apparently she can’t be hypnotized ( mentioned twice with pride). Well, we’ll see. She talked in jest (?) during everyone’s brief introduction that even though she lives in Astoria, Oregon, one reason she is taking our hypnotherapy course in Portland is to hypnotize her husband of 35 years to help finish what he starts. “He’s a big dreamer,” she said “and I love him all the more for it, but I just wish he would stick to one thing at a time and finish it. I wouldn’t even care if it flopped, just so he would have some sense of finishing what he started. And I could feel a part of it, too.” Now that’s what I would call marriage counseling at its practical best.

If you are interested in attending our hypnosis school, please visit our School of Hypnosis Course page.

Quick Self Hypnosis Technique For Stress

Bruce Terrill — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 13:40:44 +0000

BECOME YOUR OWN STRESS BUSTER!

Emotional balance starts with your ability to manage stress.

Being able to manage and relieve your stress in the moment is one of the keys to staying balanced, focused, and in control, no matter what challenges you face.

People typically feel stress when they worry about things that are out of their control, dwell on the negatives, criticize themselves, imagine the worst, are held to unrealistic standards, or take on too many responsibilities.

The good news is that you can come to your own rescue by becoming your own stress buster. Right now, you have the power to reduce the impact of stress as it’s happening.

The following Quick Relaxation Exercise is from the upcoming National Guild of Hypnosis Certification Course*. As you practice it, you’ll immediately feel relaxation and relief as you become an expert in relieving the building tensions of stress.

QUICK RELAXATION EXERCISE

This is a quick relaxation script that will allow you to focus on reducing stress by being calm, relaxed and in control. You can reduce stress by practicing this script several times each day as you go about your daily activities. Do this exercise while sitting in a chair.

As you tense and relax each area, tighten up only until you feel tension – not pain. If you feel any discomfort, go easier or stop.

Neck and Shoulders

Bend your head forward and feel the tension in your neck. Hold for a few seconds. Release the tension by raising your head back upright.

Raise your shoulders up toward your ears… tighten the muscles there…. hold….. feel the tension there….. and now release and let your shoulders drop.

Feel how much more relaxed your neck and shoulders feel now.

Hands

Tighten your hands into tight fists and hold for a few seconds…. then release. Shake your hands gently to shake out the tension. Feel how much more relaxed your hands feel now.

Feet and Legs

Raise the heels of each foot off the floor ten times (while keeping the toes touching the floor). Lift one foot off the floor a few inches and gently shake your leg to shake out the tension. Repeat with the other leg. Feel how much more relaxed your legs and feet feel now.

Forehead and Eyes

Raise your eyebrows, feeling the tight muscles in your forehead. Hold the tension for a few seconds. Then lower your eyebrows and tightly close your eyes, feeling the tension in your forehead and muscles around your eyes. Hold the tension for a few seconds. Then relax all the muscles and feel how much more relaxed your forehead and eyes feel now.

Mouth and Jaw

Tightly close your mouth, clamping your jaw shut, very tightly. Your lips will also be tight and tense across the front of your teeth. Feel the tension in your jaws. Hold it for a few seconds and then relax and release all of the tension. Feel how much more relaxed your mouth and jaw feel now.

BREATHING

First Breath

Inhale deeply and hold the breath for a few seconds. Feel the tension as you hold the air in. Then exhale all the tension.

Second Breath

Inhale relaxation and hold the breath. Feel the relaxation spreading out throughout your body and you hold the air in. Then, exhale and feel any remaining tension in your body going out with the breath.

Third Breath

Feel how much more relaxed you feel.

AFFIRMATION

Use your imagination to vividly visualize and experience the following:

I feel much more relaxed.

I feel calm…. I feel relaxed…. and I feel in control.

Everything’s OK! I feel great!

*NGH Hypnosis Certificate Course Graduates are certified in 15 methods of stress management including self-hypnosis, autogenic exercises, imagery, anchoring, relaxation visualization, progressive neuromuscular relaxation, thought stopping, systematic desensitization, guided meditation, stress hypnosis, etc.

Spring 2011 Portland Hypnosis Training Course – Weekend #1 Just Started

admin — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 10:06:37 +0000

The Spring 2011 Portland Hypnosis Training Course just started and scheduled to turn out a fresh batch of Professional Hypnotists in July 2011.

It’s not to late to join in!

Becoming a Hypnosis Professional in Portland Oregon is emerging as one of the hottest professional career opportunities of this decade.

There are still just a couple seats left and it’s not to late to get caught up with the current class AND take advantage of the Partial Scholarships and Discount Plans. [ read more ]

Fall Hypnotherapy / NLP Classes Scheduled to Start Sept. 25th, 2010

admin — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 03:36:51 +0000

One month left to schedule for the Fall NGH Hypnotherapy Certification Training Course and this time you’ll be fully trained in only 9 weeks!

Professional hypnotherapy is emerging as one of the hottest professional career opportunities of this decade.

The good news for people searching for a professional opportunity in these economically challenged times is that a growing public awareness of the value and real life impact of hypnotherapy is creating a huge demand for skilled, trained professional hypnotherapists. So, whether you are just looking for a new career or you are passionate about helping people, your timing just couldn’t be better!

Seeking the assistance of hypnotherapists has long been one of the best kept secrets of high achievers and the most successful people; including doctors, lawyers, business professionals, top entertainers and sports stars. [ read more ]

Hypnosis Weight Loss – Weekend #8

admin — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 03:15:18 +0000

Weight Loss

Weekend #8 Recap: Our training was for Hypnosis Weight Loss (a.k.a Weight Management) and it rocked plus Students had Real Breakthroughs to boot!

Students received another full weekend of top notch Hypnotherapy training from the NW Hypnosis Institute as Bruce Terrill, CI, CHt worked his magic. The topic was weight loss and on several occasions Bruce pulled back the curtain and showed the students the inner working of what makes the NW Hypnosis Institute’s teachings so different. Bruce not only teaches the NGH (National Guild of Hypnotists) course materials and tons of additional materials – he also uses several special techniques to instill confidence and skills that would normally take students a significant amount of time in a professional practice plus loads of practical application to achieve. Most students in the class just enjoy learning from Bruce and don’t realize the extremely unique / world class training they are receiving… Bruce is a-ok with that, in fact he prefers it that way.

The weekend’s course materials consisted of a full Weight Management Session Checklist (below is some of what students practiced & learned):

Establish Rapport with Client
- rapport, rapport, rapport – you can’t help a client if you don’t have rapport. So we practice it over and over again.
Client Information Form
- 4 page intake form (the basics)
Weight Management Questionnaire
- 12 page questionnaire
- the “meat and potatoes” of the program
Basic Assessment Worksheet
Goal Setting Worksheet
Weight Management Script
- custom designed for each individual clients needs
Weight Loss Contract
Teaching Client Weight Management Autosuggestion Exercise
Teach Client Self-Hypnosis
Plus additional Hypnotherapy procedures, tests, steps & practice.

The single most powerful thing over the entire weekend (according to several students) was the Diagnostic Trance Process. “The Diagnostic Trance involves an exploration of the various unconscious images and associations connected to the problem.” It was amazing yet so simple and several students gained huge breakthroughs (and practical steps) into improving / fixing personal “problems” they practiced with. I just love how powerful yet simple hypnotherapy is… it simply just works! I can’t wait to hear all of the weight loss success stories from the students when we attend class two weeks from now.

If you would like to learn how to help people lose weight with hypnosis, hypnotherapy & NLP – learn more from our next Hypnotherapy Training Course.

If you are currently dealing with a weight management issue and are interested in weight loss via hypnosis, contact Bruce at (503)267-1675

Hypnotherapy Course for Spring 2010 | T-19 Days and Counting

admin — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 01:30:20 +0000

19 days left to catch the first day of our Professional Hypnotherapy Course!

February 27th, 2010 at 9am will be the beginning of our next Hypnotherapy Certification course.

We’ve had quite a bit of interest in this class and we definitely are going to have a full class this time around.

Just a reminder to all of you who haven’t signed up yet – Now is the time. Sign up here.

SCHOLARSHIPS Still Available.