The first paper in Miscellaneous Musings is an Introduction to Hypnosis.  It was written in response to a request from a psychology professor and delivered to her class at the local university.  It contains the following simple relaxation exercise designed to illustrate some of the principles of hypnotic induction.  You may…enjoy the relaxation for its own sake or for what…it can teach you about hypnosis. But be careful that you don’t…allow yourself to beome hypnotized…too…quickly as did the professor who “went under” so fast that she missed the entire presntation.  So if you…do decide to let your body relax in response to these hypnotic instructions, keep your mind alert in response to your desire to learn more about the process.

Of course, it will always be entirely up to you, whether…you will let yourself become deeply relaxed, and if, at any time, you may find if inconvenient to relax, you will stay just as tense as you may wish to be.  In addition, if at any time while deeply relaxed you may wish to become fully awake, you may do so simply by sitting up, taking a few deep breaths, and directing your attention back to the objects around you.  However, when you…do let yourself become deeply relaxed, you will…find that it is a very pleasant and rewarding experience, and that, when you awake, you will…feel refreshed and rested.  

In the meantime…you are becoming more and more skilled at the art of relaxation, gaining more and more control over your entire mind and body, a skill that will enable you to…think about and deal constructively with life’s problems without interference from unnecessary nervous tension. 

Relaxation Instructions (RR #17)

The instructions which follow have been designed to help…you learn, too…relax.  Although these instructions do have a hypnotic quality, it is not intended that…you should be hypnotized by them; but keep your mind alert, while your body learns, too…relax. 

Before we begin, would you please ensure that your clothing is loosened, so that your breathing and circulation are not obstructed; and in your mind’s eye, open yourself…to the experience of relaxation. 

Resting as you are, you can…continue to relax in the safety and security of the knowledge that, whenever you may wish to become fully awake, you may do so simply by sitting up, taking a few deep breaths, and directing your attention back to the objects around you.  In the meantime, however, you are gaining more and more control over your entire mind and body.  You are becoming more and more skilled at relaxation.  This skill will enable you to…think about and deal constructively with life’s problems without interference from unnecessary nervous tension.  Take a few moments to make yourself comfortable.  And after you have made yourself comfortable, just close your eyes gently, and think of peace…of quiet…of tranquility.  Of slowing down.  And as you…do so, you will…notice that…your breathing is becoming slow and regular, and you are becoming more and more…relaxed.  Enjoy the relaxation, the comfortable breathing, the feeling of calmness and peace, as… nervous tension gradually gives way to relaxation. 

Now, take a deep breath, and let it all out.  Stretch the muscles of your chest and throat, and let them…relax.  And let your breathing become even more slow and regular, as you…sink even more deeply relaxed.  Let the muscles of your arms…relax.  Let them go.   Let…both your arms sink soft and loose.  And now your legs: let…all the muscles of your legs relax. The muscles of your lower legs…relax…the muscles of your upper legs and thighs.  

And now, relax the muscles of your stomach…relax…the muscles of your abdomen and lower back…relax…the muscles of your chest and shoulders.  Let your shoulders hang loosely; very, very peaceful and calm.  Smooth out your forehead; relax…the muscles of your eyes.  Remember that it requires effort even to maintain a facial expression, and let your face become vacant, and completely without expression.  Nothing is important at this moment except the sound of my voice, and attaining a state of deep, pleasant… relaxation.  An alert mind in a relaxed body.  A state of peacefulness and calm. 

You may yawn, if you wish; stretch the muscles of your throat, and then…let them relax.  So tired and peaceful; so sleepy.  Imagine, if you wish, that…someone is coming to the door, and you want them to think that…you are sound asleep.  Take a peek and…see them at the door, but then…close your eyes and imagine that…you are sound asleep; and drift and dream with me, while you experience the peacefulness of deep, pleasant relaxation. 

As you…continue breathing deeply and comfortably and rhythmically, I would like you to…imagine that you are standing at the top of a gentle carpeted stairway.  It doesn’t matter whether…you can…see it clearly, or vaguely, or even not at all.  You’ve been at the top of a stairway before, and you will be again.  All that matters is for you to…know that in a moment, I am going to ask you to…begin to count backwards with me from twenty, while you go slowly down the stairs.  And…notice how much more comfortable and relaxed you can feel, as you…go slowly down the stairs.

Twenty…nineteen…eighteen…seventeen…sixteen.  Pause, and notice that…with each number that you count, and even with each even breath that you take, you are becoming even more deeply relaxed.

Fifteen…fourteen…thirteen…twelve…eleven.  Already half-way down the stairs, and perhaps beginning to…notice that you can…easily understand these instructions, even though you may not consciously attend to what I am saying, and these instructions can stay safely tucked away in the back of your mind, available for you to…use whenever you need to become deeply relaxed again.  

Ten…nine…eight.  And perhaps beginning to…notice that any sounds that you hear can become part of your experience of comfort and well-being, so that nothing bothers and nothing disturbs.  

Seven…six…five.  And perhaps…you can experience feelings of heaviness and warmth spreading throughout your body; or perhaps…your body feels as if it is floating on soft, billowy clouds, as light as a feather, as if it could just float comfortably away; or perhaps…you may notice that you don’t even have to be aware of your body at all – just the feeling of comfort and well-being, as…you become more and more deeply relaxed.  I really don’t know, and it really doesn’t matter at all.  

Four.  Almost to the bottom of the stairs, to a place of safety and security, where nothing bothers and nothing disturbs.  

Three.  Feeling more and more the real enjoyment of deep, comfortable relaxation.  Perhaps beginning to wonder what to experience when you reach the bottom of the stairs, and yet knowing already how much more ready you can feel to…become even deeper and deeper relaxed, more and more comfortable, where nothing bothers and nothing disturbs.  

Two.  And you can…enjoy the experience, as much as you like.  Enjoy the relaxation, the comfortable breathing, the feeling of peacefulness, as you…let your body become even more deeply relaxed.  

One.  And you are almost there. And now, ahead of you there stands a blackboard.  Beside it is a big can of paint with a big paintbrush in it.  Move out from the stairway, take the brush, and paint the board red.  Slap the paint on; dip the brush as often as you need; cover it completely.  When it is all red, picture in the middle of it a big number 7.  Take the brush again, and paint the board orange.  Cover it completely, slap the paint on, get around the edges, dip the brush as often as you need.  When it’s all orange, picture in the middle of it a big number 6.  Take the brush again and paint the board yellow.  Get into the corners, around the edges, dip the brush as often as you need.  When it is all yellow, picture in the middle of it a big number 5.  Take the brush again and paint the board green.  Slap the paint on, get in around the edges, cover it completely.  When it is all green, picture in the middle of it a big number 4.  Take the brush again and paint the board blue.  When it’s all blue, picture in the middle of it a big number 3.  Take the brush again, and paint the board purple.  When it is all purple, picture in the middle of it a big number 2.  Take the brush again and paint the board violet.  Cover if all over, slap the paint on, and when it is all violet, picture in the middle of it a big number 1. 

Now, turn so that…you can see in front of you a screen of trees, bushes and shrubs.  When you are ready, step through that screen of trees, bushes and shrubs and find yourself in a quiet place.  This place might be any place; somewhere, perhaps, that you remember from your past, or even from your future.  A place where…you feel happy and absolutely safe.  If you like, you could put some loved ones there, perhaps from your childhood.  If you put loved ones there, take a few moments to greet them and renew fond memories.  In any case, enjoy the safety and security and happiness you feel in this place.  Then, when…you are ready, look ahead of you, and picture a gentle slope going upward toward a small hillock or knoll.  Slowly make your way up that gentle slope toward the top of that little hill.  Along the way, you might notice the blue sky above you, soft white fluffy clouds in the sky, and the smell of the earth and grass.  Feel the gentle warmth of the sun.  

When you reach the top of the rise, look over and down a gentle slope towards the sea.  And notice that, between you and the sea, there is a big rock, and sitting beside the rock there is a cup, and beyond that, a stream.  As you begin to walk down the slope, take off your troubles and worries and, when you reach the rock, put them under the rock, and slide the rock over them, burying them for all time.  Then, take off anything that you will need when you return, your shoes, coat and the like, and put them on top of the rock.  Take the cup from beside the rock and, when you are ready, go past the rock and step into the stream.  Feel the warmth of the sun on you, and the coolness of the stream on your feet.  Look down into the water and see the clear, clean, crystal water of the stream.  Listen to it bubbling over your feet.  Bend down and dip some water from the stream into the cup.  Take a sip of the water.  The water is serenity and peace.  Feel the water course down into your stomach, and transfer to your bloodstream to circulate all through your body, down your legs and arms, throughout your trunk, and into your head.  Take another sip of the water.  The water is serenity and peace. 

When you are ready to move on, you can pour the rest of the water back into the stream from which it came.  Leave the cup by the stream and walk on down toward the sea, and slowly along the beach.  Imagine that it is mid-July, and it is evening.  The sun has not yet begun to set, but it is getting lower on the horizon.  The sun is a golden blazing yellow, the sky a brilliant blue, the sand a dazzling, glistening white in the sunlight.  Feel the cold, wet, firm, hard-packed sand beneath your feet.  Taste and smell the salt in the air.  There is a residue of salt deposited on your lips from the air around.  You can taste it if you lick your lips.  Hear the beating of the waves, the rhythmic lapping to and fro, back and forth of the water against the shore.  Hear the far-off cry of a distant gull as you continue to walk along the beach. 

And suddenly you come upon a sand dune, a mound of pure white sand.  Covering the mound are bright yellow buttercups, and deep pink moss roses.  You sit down on its crest and look out to sea.  The sea is like a mirror of silver reflecting the sun’s rays, a mass of pure white light, and you are gazing intently into this light.  As you continue to stare into the sun’s reflection off the water, you begin to see darting flecks of violet intermingled with the silver.  Everywhere there is silver and violet.  There is a violet line along the horizon, a violet halo around the flowers.  And now the sun is beginning to set.  With each motion of the sun into the sea you become deeper and deeper relaxed. 

The sky is turning crimson, scarlet, pink, amber, gold, orange.  And as the sun sets, you are engulfed in a deep purple twilight, and as you look up into the night sky, a velvety blue haze.  It is a brilliant starry night.  The beating of the waves, the smell and taste of the salt, the sea, the sky; and you feel yourself carried upward and outward into space, to …become one with the universe.  Find your comfort in that space, while I talk to you about something that you already know a lot about – remembering and forgetting.  

And I say that it is something that you already know a lot about because you do it every waking moment of your life.  You remember, and then you forget, so that you can remember something else.  No one can remember everything all at once, so you…let some memories move quietly to the back of your mind.  I wonder, for example, whether you will be surprised, or curious, or pleased to…discover that the things that you have learned today are just the same, things that you may remember tomorrow, or the next day, or next week, or even next month.  I wonder if…you will decide to…let the memory of these things rest quietly in the back of your mind, or if…you will remember gradually, or all at once.  I wonder if you may remember completely, or only partially.  Perhaps…you will be surprised to…notice that this is the place for memory to surface, or it may be more comfortable for you to…remember at a different place, or at another time.  I don’t know when…you will remember the things that I have been telling you, or where…you will remember the things that I tell you, but you will remember: whenever you…make yourself comfortable in preparation for relaxation, it can serve as a reminder…of the instructions which I have been giving you.  So whenever you…remember, however…you will remember, wherever…you will remember, if ever…you will remember, it will be just fine, and perfectly natural.  Whatever I have said, has been said, and is safely tucked away in the back of your mind, available for you to…use, whenever you…again make yourself comfortable in preparation for relaxation. 

And I wonder…if you will…feel surprised to…notice that you can…become so deeply relaxed in such a brief period of time.  And perhaps…you will…feel curious about that surprise.  Surprise, curiosity, and I wonder…if you will…feel pleased to…notice that, any day you wish, you can…remember the pleasant feelings of relaxation can come flooding back to you quickly and automatically whenever you…make yourself comfortable again…in preparation for…relaxation. 

Again, let me remind you that relaxation is a skill that comes with practice, and as you…continue to…follow these instructions, you will…find it more and more easy to relax, when you again make yourself comfortable in preparation for relaxation, and throughout your daily life as well.  

But rest now, rest, whether with your eyes closed or with your eyes open.  That’s right, you have…not left…your pleasant state of…relaxation. 

In a few moments, I am going to ask you to arouse yourself, but till then, just remain resting peacefully, and really enjoy the feelings that your body can give you, so that, in a moment, when I count from one to five, you will be able to…feel yourself walking or floating gently up the stairs, and feeling refreshed and rested and oh, so good all over.  More alert with every number that I count.  No need to hurry; you can have all the time that you want.  After all, time is relative, and you will be able to…feel yourself returning slowly, comfortably up the stairs; more alert with every number that I count; perhaps surprised that…you can…feel so well.  Comfortable, and feeling well. 

Now, bring that feeling of comfort and well-being with you as you…begin to slowly climb or let yourself float back up the stairs to full waking consciousness.  One: Beginning to arouse yourself as you journey back up those stairs to full waking consciousness.  Two: Open your eyes wide and look around you.  Three: When you reach the top, take a few deep breaths and direct your attention back to the objects around you.  Four: Wake up.  Wake up.  And five: Wide awake, rested, refreshed, and feeling well all over.  I trust…you…enjoyed these few brief moments of relaxation.