Discussion of Definition of Hypnosis
• History and Overview of Hypnosis (from ancient civilizations to contemporary hypnosis, including Mesmer, Braid, Elliotson, Esdaile, French Schools, Coue, Freud, Erickson)

How Hypnosis Works
(Reference: How to Help and Heal with Hypnosis: An Advanced Guide to Hypnotism)
• 1. Functions of the conscious mind and the subconscious
• 2. Research
• 3. Determining who can/cannot be hypnotized
• 4. Somnambulism
• 5. What people can achieve through hypnosis, and what hypnosis cannot do
• 6. Common examples of everyday hypnosis (including hypnagogic state and road hypnosis)

How Suggestion Works
• Suggestion vs. Hypnotizability
• Suggestibility Testing & Student Practice
• 1. Arm levitation
• 2. Handclasp
• 3. Chevreul’s pendulum
• 4. Postural sway
• 5. Progressive relaxation
• 6. Fruit imagery
• 7. Magnetic fingers

Myths and Fallacies about Hypnosis

How to determine when a person is in trance
• 1. Mental indicators and trance logic
• 2. Physical/objective indicators
• 3. Subjective indicators (client’s observations)

Types of Depth Testing and Research

Six-step Depth Testing (students experience and practice)
• 1. Small and large muscle catalepsy
• 2. Analgesia and anesthesia
• 3. Mnesic and Amnesic
• 4. Somnambulism
• 5. Positive and negative hallucinations
• 6. Other depth scales used for hypnosis research

Dangers of Hypnosis
• 1. Abreaction
• 2. Hysterical subjects
• 3. Therapy for which hypnotist is unqualified
• 4. Appropriate professional behavior
• 5. Misapplications of hypnosis
• 6. Liability and professional responsibility

Self-Hypnosis
• 1. Students experience self-hypnosis, deepening, auto-suggestion
• 2. Students learn how to teach clients self-hypnosis
• 3. Students learn how to teach a six-hour self-hypnosis course

Client communication and evaluation
• 1. Verbal language clues
• 2. Body language
• 3. Eye accessing cues
• 4. Sensory avenues (visual, auditory, kinesthetic, gustatory, olfactory, digital, intuitive)

Effective ways to deal with different types of clients (abstract, concrete, defensive, talkative, highly suggestible,etc.)

Professional Tips
• 1. Office Setting (decor, seating choices, appropriate music, colors)
• 2. Professional appearance and demeanor of hypnotist
• 3. Mechanical Aids

Initial Steps of a Hypnosis Session
• 1. Handling telephone inquiries
• 2. Making the appointment
• 3. Client intake
• 4. Establish client comfort and build trust
• 5. Observation
• 6. Pre-talk & additional listening techniques
• 7. Language of Hypnotist
• 8. Establishing rapport
• 9. Mirroring
• 10. Explaining hypnosis to client and allaying fears or misconceptions
• 11. Permission to touch
• 12. Recording sessions
• 13. Establishing contract & obtaining optimum client cooperation
• 14. Susceptibility and favored sense testing
• 15. Establishing special place

About Hypnosis Inductions
• 1. How a person enters hypnosis
• 2. Permissive and Authoritarian approaches
• 3. Influential 20th-century hypnotists’ techniques (including Erickson, Elman, Hunter, Kein)

Use of Scripts vs. Improvisation

Hypnotic Induction Techniques (Why and how they work, details of procedures, student experience and practice; below list is partial)
• 1. Progressive relaxation
• 2. Dr. Flowers
• 3. Storytelling
• 4. Eye fixation
• 5. Eye-roll
• 6. Numeric count-downs
• 7. Fractionization
• 8. Breathing
• 9. Mental relaxation
• 10. Confusion techniques
• 11. Elman induction
• 12. Imagery
• 13. Acupressure points
• 14. Heightened awareness
• 15. Mechanical and musical
• 16. Chakra inductions
• 17. Hand press
• 18. Rapid and instant inductions
• 19. Standing inductions
• 20. Apposition of Opposites
• 21. Humor
• 22. Special procedures for analytical thinkers

Deepening Techniques

Difference between use of Suggestions and use of Imagery

Types of Suggestion
• 1. Positive
• 2. Negative
• 3. Posthypnotic
• 4. Indirect
• 5. Embedded
• 6. Chained
• 7. Compounded
• 8. Content
• 9. Process
• 10. Interspersed
• 11. Metaphor
• 12. Paradoxical
• 13. Bind of comparable alternatives
• 14. Future/present tense
• 15. Pyramiding
• 16. Tag questions
• 17. Pattern Interrupt
• 18. Nominal
• 19. Confusion

Suggestion Repetition, Pyramiding, Chaining, Reinforcement, Creating Success

Imagery (includes watching videos such as “Treasure Chest of Guided Imagery Techniques,” cautions and guidelines, why imagination is effective & for whom, discovering special place, utilizing all the senses, importance of metaphor, establishing & rehearsing success sensations, importance of creating smile)

Specific Applications of Hypnosis (Including Discussion, Scripts, Improvisation, Cautions. Methods and Focus on each of the below and others; additional focus on subjects of special interest to students)
• Relaxation
• Stress Reduction
• Smoking Cessation
• Weight Loss
• Medical Hypnosis (includes pain management)
• Emergency Hypnosis
• Parts Therapy
• Reframing
• Age Regression
• Regression to Cause
• Hypnosis for children
• Anchoring 
• Removal of Phobias
• Other Common Applications of Hypnosis Addressed (Including but not limited to following list:)
• Comfortable Childbirth
• Sports Performance
• Accessing Inner Wisdom
• Study skills
• Healing
• Pain Management
• Boosting positive qualities  (confidence, etc.)
• Performance
• Improving memory
• Stuttering
• Impotence/Frigidity
• Past-life regression
• Creativity
• Stage hypnosis
• Insomnia relief
• Public Speaking

How to Emerge a Client from Hypnosis

Post-session and cool-down techniques

How to Conduct a Complete Hypnosis Session

Record-keeping

NLP Techniques (Neuro-linguistic Programming)

Common Hypnosis Terms

Marketing Tools and Practice Management

The World of Hypnosis
• 1. Code of Ethics
• 2. State Regulations
• 3. Discussion of various hypnosis associations, conventions, publications

Just for Fun
• 1. How to do demonstrations
• 2. Stage Hypnosis (including videos)

Monitored Practice of Techniques (Ongoing)

Graduation Requirements
• 1. Complete 120-150 hours of training (includes post-grad work–see below)
• 2. Demonstrate competency in conducting a complete, professional hypnosis session from beginning to end
• 3. Pass examination

Additional Academy certification requirements
• 1. Prepare 20-45 minute talk on hypnosis
• 2. Hypnotize a minimum of five people at no charge after conclusion of the course, and offer taped, written or telephoned report to instructor for evaluation
• 3. Prepare a complete written or recorded hypnosis script
• 4. Read and study all hypnosis texts and handouts given in class (students receive 4-5 books & several hypnosis manuals)

Post-course
• 1. Up to 25 hours of credits that may be applied to 100-hour requirement are available through the National Guild for accomplishing certain post-course assignments
• 2. Yearly continuing education is required for maintaining certification (most easily obtained by attending conventions)
• 3. Lifelong mentoring and support from Mary Elizabeth Raines.