How to Use Nominalizations in Hypnosis

Nominalizations are verbs or adjectives that can be used as abstract nouns. Each person can decide for himself what the nominalization means and use the nominalization to aid in self-hypnosis. An example of a nominalization is the word "curiosity."

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

1. Decide what you want to accomplish during your self-hypnosis sessions. Some examples of things you may want to work on are increasing your self-esteem, overcoming shyness or being more assertive.
2. Find a nominalization that you can use to represent what you want to achieve. For instance, if you want to be more assertive, you can use the nominalization of "assertiveness," and you will know what you mean by this word. Assertiveness may mean being more willing to speak up at work meetings or being able to insist on your place in a line instead of letting others go past you.
3. Build a script around the nominalization you chose. Your script should be short, in present tense and positive.
4. Put yourself into a hypnotic state and recite your script to yourself, keeping in mind the meaning of your nominalization.
5. Practice self-hypnosis regularly, at least once per day to achieve your goals.

Tips & Warnings

• Although stage hypnotists and television shows often show hypnotized people doing silly or dangerous things against their will, this is not really a possibility. Those who "perform" for stage hypnotists are willing to do these things from the start.
• Self-hypnosis is a safe practice unless you practice it at times when inattention can be dangerous, such as when driving a car.