by Endo » August 24th, 2015, 8:12 am
Diane, do you mean "unintended" long-term effects? Not usually, no. Depending on how your mind interprets vague suggestions, there could be some unintended results, but those are (usually) due to the vagueness of the author's suggestions, not any sort of ill-will on their part or some sort of odd side-effects from the process.
There can certainly be short-term side-effects that result from the brain needing to process things afterward. I've noticed that if I do too much time right before bed (say, about an hour of total exposure within 1/2 hour of "bedtime"), I'll fall asleep, but I'll toss and turn for several hours.
There hasn't been much evidence to suggest that there are long-term side-effects for most people who undergo hypnosis or hypnotherapy. Anything you could find is very likely to be a fringe case.
As for "How hypnosis works", well... You've got to be willing to let it happen. Conditioning works regardless of the recipient's intentions. Hypnosis is not conditioning.
Personally, I believe that "practiced hypnosis" is the most effective method (for me, anyway). This is what I call a specific core of strong, inter-related suggestions that are reinforced through certain activities, but those particular activities ALSO have an positive influence in moving a person towards their goal.
An example of this for say, weight control, would be something like the following: "You enjoy feeling healthy", "Eating a healthy diet makes you feel good", "You enjoy regular activity, and crave fresh air every day", "Other generic, safe, healthy suggestions".
Those are the core of the program, they encourage people to eat healthy and exercise, and suggests that they enjoy those things. Then, we drop some suggestions that reinforce the enjoyment of diet and exercise while they eat and move about. Some generic things like "Eating healthy foods makes you want to refine your diet to a healthy level", "Getting fresh air makes you want to get outside more often". Granted, those suggestions need some temperance so that a person doesn't become obsessed with diet and exercise, and I'd also want to throw some "skeptical" suggestions in there so that people don't just jump on the first fad diet they see without rationally examining it's ideas.
Most often, it's not just one file you're using, there's a collection of files that lead you to effects, or you have a live-tist helping you along with regular, adaptive content. You have to follow the content, allow it to work, and work with it, in order for it to work. Matters of the head are quite often hard to explain, and a lot of people get hung up on the issue of "Is it really working, or is it just me?" Either way, think of it as a catalyst. If it is working, then it's working. If it's just you letting it work and it's "working", or you forcing yourself to do what it's telling you to do, then the changes are still being made.
Permanence is a matter of practice and dedication. It could be as simply as re-listening to the file every now and again after you've achieved the effects. It could be something like ensuring that your habits reinforce the suggestions of the files. "Curse" files make explicit suggestions that the file will be permanent, which comes down to how much you trust the author.