Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1894-12-07
HYPNOTIC INFLUENCE
THE THREE STAGES OF THE
TRANCE DEFINED,

TRANCE DEFINED,
Strength OF Will and Patience Il,
Power which CenarOl-Care Mus
He Taken-CriminaI Side OF tn
Subject.
Despite a very prevalent belief t.
the contrary, there is nothing of tn
occult in hynotism. The operator re
quires no special power or qualities
A school boy, had he patience, coul'
produce the same phenomena as th'
most learned scientist. To hypnotic,
a person it is only necessary to Civ,
him something bright to look at
with the suggestion that after Will,
the eyes will grow very tired, viii
close, and he will go quietly to sleep
This is the method used by Bernheim
the head of the German School o
Hypnotists. He says the will OF the
operator has nothing to do with max
ing a subject sleep" On the other
hand, Charot, of the French school
claims that the influence of the mind
lie largely responsible for the subjects
sleep, and that only nervous or hys-
terical persons may be hynotized. As
Bernheim has succeeded in hynotiz-
ing every one on whom he has had op
portunity to experiment, his theory is
the one generally accepted.
Simply looking at something bright
is not all that is necessary to make a
person sleep. No one can be hypno-
tized against his will. The subject
must. therefore, consent to be expert
mented upon, and should feel perfect
confidence in the person conducting
the trial.
To obtain the best results, place the
subject in an easy chair with instruc-
tions to arsume the most comfortable
position possible. Give him some.
thing bright-almost anything will
do; cork wrapped in tinioil answer
ing very nicely-and let him look
fixedly at this. His gaze should not
be removed under any pretext what
ever. In the course OF few minutes
his eyes will grow very heavy, will
close slowly, and perceptible flutter-
ing of the underlid will be noticeable.
When this stage is reached the opera
tor should give the suggestion TO
sleep. For this the voice should be
low, but perfectly distinct and firm, so
as to command obedience.
If the suggestion has been properly
given the subjects eyes now close and
he will sleep more or less profoundly.
Suggest, then, that he sleep soundly
until told to awake.
He is now in the first stage OF the
hypnotic trance. Bernheim divides
this trance into five states, so closely
allied that it is almost Impossible to
distinguish between them. Three
stages are all that the ordinary inves-
tigator need notice. First, Lethargy !;
second, catalepsy; third, Somnambul-
ism. The cataleptic state is often en-
tirely absent, unless the patient is
told that his muscles are rigid, either
in the whole or in part of his body.
After sleeping from two to twenty
minutes, the subject enters the third
stage, that OF somnambulism. He
will now obey any suggestion made to
him; will open his eyes (having been
first cautioned that, though he does
so, he will be still sleep), will walk
about and even carry on an animated
conversation. He will do whatever he
is told to by the hypnotizer.
Care must be taken, however in
making suggestions to = person hyp.
Noticed for the first time. The patient
is in q state of unusual mental sus.
ceptibility. He bears and sees, with.
out realizing, everything that goes on
about him. He knows that he is the
center of attraction and a feeling of
shyness comes over him. He even
resists in a measure doing what he is
told. 1t is because of this peculiar
sensitiveness OF an inexperienced sub.
ject that a request of any unexpected
character will startle him, frequently
to such an exent as TO cause him to
awake.
Only trained subjects obey unhesi.
tatingly every command. By a trained
subject is meant one who by frequent
hypnotization has become accustomed
to the hypnotic state, and submits
entirely to the operators control, his
own will having apparently no power
whatever OF opposition.
The more frequently a person is
hypnotized, the more easily he COM
plies with the demands made upon
him. until, in the course of time, vary
ing in length according to the persons
susceptibility to outside influences, he
becomes what is known in technical
language as a good subject"
The most important thing for a
person experimenting in hypnotism
to learn is the art of awakening a
sleeping subject. Here comes in the
unexplained phenomena Of post
hypnotic suggestion, or the carrying
out after awaking of suggestion made
while asleep.
To awaken . subject by simply
bidding him do so is to take chances.
Owing to the unusual condition in
which the hypnotized person has
been, it is not improbable that he
would awaken with u start, possibly
having q severe headache and feeling
so drowsy that he would insist upon
again going to sleep.
To avoid this the operator should
use some such formula as 6" l am now
about to awake you. You will have
no headache or pain of any kind
You will be rested and refreshed from
your s.e,p, and will remember moth