SS 178 – What the heck is hypnosis and how can it help you? With Ramzy Ayachi
Episode 178 Show Notes
Grant and Heavey are joined by Ramzy Ayachi, Chief Learning Office of NoVa Hypnosis and Wellness. Did you now that hypnosis is actually more than just a stage trick? It’s actually used for a handful of medical interventions especially if you’re thinking about quitting smoking or losing weight. But really, how effective is it? And how does it actually work? All this and more on today’s episode!
[02:35] Ramzy’s Background: From the Marine to Hypnosis
From a Marine Corps officer to a pilot, Ramzy discusses how he actually got into hypnosis. Suffering from anxiety issues, it was at that time that NoVa’s owner, and his friend, invited him to try hypnosis. Initially reluctant, Ramzy describes his experience as having a level of clarity and awareness about what’s happening inside your mind.
From that session, he also gained a lot of insight into the number one thing that drives people, which is FEAR. He started to quickly shed options of the federal service, defense contracting. This brought down his level of fear to a level that he could take action.
[09:19] What is Hypnosis?
Heavey recalls that he initially knew about hypnosis as a stage trick until learning that it’s actually more than that. In fact, hypnosis is being used in a number of different medical interventions.
Grant went to a farm with a stage show where he saw how it actually worked. In fact, hypnosis has helped his dad to stop smoking.
Ramzy explains that the secret behind the stage stuff is that it’s the same process but they just have a timeline where they do it very rapidly. With therapy, Ramzy describes gaining clarity from it considering that you already have all the information inside of you.
The problem is we get too tight and very angular so we start to take on fears of judgment, fears of criticism or that there’s not enough. Being consumed my all this stuff, hypnosis has allowed Ramzy to find that clarity and in that clarity, he had the answers himself. It’s him living in his own truth.
Ramzy adds that it’s best to look at a hypnotist as a facilitator where they can create those conditions and create a story. And the story is a metaphor for guiding the client to the fork in the road of their life where they see very clearly what the next step is.
[14:38] Are You Stuck?
When Ramzy went to a hypnotist to his first visit, he said he was stuck. He was aware and haven’t been tuning in to himself for a while. He states the importance of being able to tune yourself in the process so you’re aware what you’re experiencing in your body.
Every thought that you have and everything you say to yourself, in the english language, there are about 3,000 words that capture emotions. When we say something, we’re actually vibrating the body in a certain frequency. And that vibration causes a feeling inside and it causes the release of chemicals, hormones, endorphins, cortisol, etc.
So Ramzy felt stuck and he knew what he felt. He knew a hypnotist could drive him to the decision he made, which was he wasn’t going to be stuck anymore and he’s going to be open to whatever is scary and fearful but he’s going to step into the unknown.
Ramzy says his wife was helpful in asking him the extremely hard questions. He adds that one of the most difficult things for humans to do is to look in the mirror and really analyze yourself and admit you such at something and you have to fix yourself.
[17:15] Is Hypnosis for Everybody?
What they found is that 75% – 80% of the population can be hypnotized. The remainder would be people who have true mental health disorders such as bipolar or multiple personality disorder.
[18:00] What It’s Like When Under Hypnosis
Ramzy explains that when you’re under hypnosis, your brain is in the alpha brain wave state, which is the activity level of the brain. He goes on to explain the other levels of brain state. Now, when you’re in hypnosis, you’re in alpha and there’s nothing else you’re focused on but you’re so intensely focused and you have a hyper sense of self-awareness of what you’re hearing.
Moreover, there’s a level of change work that is inherent in having a third party. So if you’re hearing someone say something. You’re responsive to what they’re saying but you’re not analyzing what they’re saying or judging them.You are just right there on that edge.
[21:22] Hypnosis vs. Meditation
In hypnosis, you can bring someone through a phenomena. It’s not a surprise. But it’s allowing them to enter and remain in that present moment. You can bring them into that present moment in their full capacity and in their full presence.
Whereas with meditation, it’s exceptionally hard to change behavior. Inherently, in behavior change, you have to anticipate what you’re going to say to yourself. Say it, run back to the present moment. Feel it. And then it’s just going to be what you say again to keep the scenario going.
As with a hypnotist, you’re just there and you’re following what they’re saying. When you’re experiencing something, you’re experiencing in that present moment. You’re feeling it and it has the release of the chemicals in the body that reinforce the thoughts at the maximum level.
There are similar gates you go through for meditation and hypnosis. But once you get on the other side of the physical and mental relaxation, the thing that happens after meditation is typically used to reinforce change that has already happened. Or hypnosis which is used to actually create a different outcome.
[23:00] Hypnosis vs. Psychedelics
Alcohol, psychedelics, marijuana – these are elements that allow you to go into a very focused state. Your mind opens up. When you think about the period of the painters and impressionists, they are constantly drinking and using recreational drugs to be inspired and have those moments of creativity that have changed the history of art in the world. It’s the same with the literary giants. So it’s very similar to that, hypnosis allows you to move into a place where you have ultimate aliveness of yourself. You have ultimate awareness from that observation of yourself.
[24:30] Every Cell in Your Body Can Observe
A great molecular biologist from John Hopkins University, discovered the cell receptor sites and how the neuropeptides in the brain change the composition of the cell. And the change in the composition and function of the cell transform how we respond to things.
This biologist describes the cell as the smallest unit of observation. A lot of times, what we think or see is the only things in sensory input, when in actuality, every cell in your body can be focused and directed. Every cell in your body can observe.
[26:00] From Smoking to Chewing
Ramzy is on a mission to help 50,000 people stop smoking by 2020. Grant used to smoke and he found it to be difficult. He basically smoked when he was 14 years old to 24. And there were different methods to quit but it’s hard. So he didn’t go seeking help but he now encourages people to do it. He did it through replacement therapy. He quit smoking by starting to chew tobacco which is just as bad, if not worse, in some ways as it enables people to use it more often. Since when you smoke, you have to go outside and be somewhere else. But with chewing, you can just do it constantly.
This said, Grant would have encouraged his younger self to seek help so he can expedite the quitting process.
What Heavey noticed in the people around him that smoked is that they almost always have an anxiety that develops out of smoking or whether smoking cures the anxiety or settles the anxiety they have. But in order to move on from smoking, most of the people he knows had to channel that energy into something else, whether that be chewing or working out. You see people take that energy and just move it somewhere else.
[29:08] How Hypnosis Helps a Habitual Smoker to Quit
Ramzy illustrates one of the three varieties of people they’re seeing. One is they have a habit they form when a person associates into a certain behavior with other types of triggers or other types of events happening at the same time. Once it’s fired, it has a greater chance and a bigger ability to fire again. So you begin to create those scenarios that support having all those things match again. There’s a need for humans to have things that are familiar because to have things that are unfamiliar creates a sense of fear inside. This is the common profile for a habitual smoker.
The way they help them, Ramzy says, is to invite them back to a younger version of themselves and coach that younger version of themselves to go and become the one that had the cigarette the first time.
[30:50] Smoking to Fill that Need for Certainty
The other format is this replacement therapy where there is anxiety under the surface which oftentimes that feeling of great discomfort because of the things that are uncertain. And whenever we can’t have the answer on something, it causes a lot of stress and we start doing things to try to be back in control.
Ramzy explains that a person’s need for certainty is so strong that they then use cigarettes because they know exactly what the outcome is going to be when they have a cigarette. They know it’s not healthy for them. But they know exactly what their response is from picking up the cigarette that they can guarantee that out of their chaotic life, this one thing is going to give them the thing they need.
[32:30] Reframing the Cause of Anxiety
Ramzy says it’s more lasting to have clients reframe the cause of the anxiety. So they help the identify what’s causing that. Normally, people who have anxiety have developed it at a younger age. And that window is from age 0-6. During this period, as a young person, you’re looking at authority figures and role models. You don’t have any reference on your mind. So when you see someone handling the situation in an unresourceful manner, you don’t know whether it’s good or bad. You just look at it and your brain tries to mirror and match what they’ve seen.
This begins the process of weighing down the foundation for being tense or in a state of stress all the time. All this being said, it’s more lasting to reframe the cause of anxiety rather than giving control for the anxiety.
Ramzy clarifies though that this works differently for different people. Everyone’s life is totally different. It’s a unique path for everyone. But the patterns they have are very similar.
[35:20] Hypnotherapy vs. Traditional Therapy
With hypnotherapy, they do what they’re doing inside the subconscious mind or participating with the subconscious mind. As with most traditional therapy, they do it on a conscious level.
He gives this example of a time in the military. When you’re a pilot, you’re with your buddies. But there’s a sense of competitiveness in a large barn of egos. (Also sounds like a CrossFit gym!)
So when you go in there, people are fearful. People have egos which are setting them up for fear. People will respond in a certain way and they’ll be defensive or try to alpha somebody else. These reactions are not a person who is fully present. These are actions of someone who’s afraid or they’ve had experience in their life where they were made fun of. It brings them to a temporary state of pleasure to watch someone else suffer.
When you’re talking to someone consciously, it’s very hard to get that filter out of the way. That filter is the critical faculty which deletes information so you won’t have to deal with it. You can avoid it so it doesn’t hurt you anymore. It distorts information so that it becomes biased. It also generalizes information. It does it for survival and so that you don’t have to think so hard about things.
But when you’re speaking at a subconscious, you will be in a state where you will get way more accurate answers. One of the ways they facilitate getting accurate answers is by keeping a tempo and a pace so that the conscious mind cannot be invited back in.
Ramzy clarifies that when you’re in hypnosis, it’s not like you’re in a sealed door that closes and you’re knocked out of it until you’re invited back out. Basically, when in your alpha brain wave state, you can flutter back into beta and then go back again. It’s just like having those variations you have when you’re sleeping. So it can be deep and lighter and vice versa.
[39:18] Weight Loss and Fertility Through Hypnosis
According to Ramzy, the weight loss is never about the food. He gives an analogy of the weed that has got flowers on top of the surface and below it is the root. The flowers on the surface are smoking, overeating, unhealthy eating, Netflix, porn, drugs, etc. – all the escapes for your mind to go some other place. Weeds are the emotional needs that are not being fulfilled.
Ramzy talks about this one client who actually came in for weight loss but it wasn’t really his weight loss but his relationship with his wife.
It’s the same thing with infertility. When a mom is unable to become pregnant, there are a lot of factors involved. The ones they focus on are reducing the stress. When a mom doesn’t feel safe in her environment. That can be caused by a host of things – marriage problems, financial worry, concerns about being a mom or getting back into the workforce. All these things can cause stress in the body. Stress happens in a migratory fashion that is unique to that person.
[41:50] Pain Management Through Hypnosis
In pain management, there’s a reward or secondary gain and Ramzy explains this through a case study. His client is a sweet lady in her 60s and she was brought there by her husband. She got into a car wreck and went through the window. She had damaging injuries from the accident and one of her eyeballs dislocated from the socket. A ton of glass were stuck in the side of her face. Now, you couldn’t see any damage on her face but there are still little pieces of the glass that could migrate into her eyeball or other parts.
Here she is in her late 60s and has migraines for the longest time that developed after her son was born. During one of their sessions, she discovered herself that she had a great deal of resentment towards her husband. He was making himself available to help the neighbor who was a widow constantly asking him to help doing house maintenance. Hence, the migraines developed as a result of lack of attention on the part of the husband towards her.
She then realized that she was pushing her husband in making him be responsive like a puppy dog when she’s in pain. The more she did this, the more it engrained itself in her nervous system.
[45:45] Secondary Gain in Disability Claims
Ramzy explains how secondary gain works in disability claims. If you overestimate how much you’re hurt then you would not have to work so hard and you can be compensated for it. They will never admit this otherwise it’s insurance fraud. But at the same time, they’re doing it because they’re getting the financial reward for it.
[46:30] Hypnotherapy Online
Ramzy says they do hypnotherapy online. But there are a couple of things you need to make sure, which is a protocol they send out to clients. They ensure they complete it before just like tuning to get themselves ready for the session.
For this to work, you’ve got to ask yourself, are you motivated for the change? Are you dedicated to making a change?
Say you want to stop smoking, have you really decided that you’re going to stop smoking? Well, you have to decide this is the last time you’re going to have a cigarette. Because once there’s a feeling of a lack of conviction from “I want to stop smoking,” you have to commit to it. Also, are you willing to let yourself fall in that process of being on the edge of being present.
For it to work online, set up the computer where it doesn’t turn itself off or it doesn’t have a sleep mode. There should be strong internet connection with no buffering issues. No distractions. Sit in a comfortable area. You have to be able to facilitate the body in being able to relax. You also have to be online before the session to make sure there are no technical issues.
[49:55] How Effective is Hypnosis?
Heavey brings up some studies looking at the efficacy of hypnosis on certain issues like irritable bowel syndrome or handling medical procedures or the effects on smoking. They showed no real difference compared to other interventions. Ramzy explains the couple of things they see people for and they are typically related to stress.
Ramzy explains this using the analogy of working out. The key in what trainers do in moving their clients towards progress is the routine of it. The same thing applies to your mental shift and who drives that.
When you think of hypnosis, they employ multiple tools like neuro linguistic programming and just straight coaching. They use tools to apply leverage whenever it needs to be applied. When they use hypnosis with client, they use it for applying leverage that is congruent with the outcome. Then they use other activities that are routines done in their conscious mind. This creates the momentum for people.
Unless the person doesn’t want to change, clients have been successful with Ramzy’s company. Basically, they give clients ten minutes to say everything negative they need to get out of their system and after that everything they do is directed towards your outcome. Because if you focus on everything that’s bad or the suffering you’re having, it’s an element that’s at play for what your health condition is. Although their results are not 100%, they’re still pretty high with the way they approach it.
[57:55] You Have to Make that Decision
If you really want to quit smoking, then you really have to decide upon it. Otherwise, there’s no way you can quit. Ramzy further explains that in the alpha brain wave state, clients are giving them cues as to whether they’re in that state. Once they no longer give out those cues, they go into the change work, deepen them, then test them again. He sees this process as an art because he responds to whatever they do.
Some classic cues of a person being in alpha is that their eyelids will flutter or the waxy complexion, and complete relaxation of the arm. He adds there are different levels of change that need to happen and different depths so you need to test it before you go in there. Otherwise they will come out of the state.
Learn more about Ramzy and what his team is doing at: NoVa Hypnosis and Wellness. You can also sign up for an assessment or a 15-minute consults.
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