No, you will not be.
Part of being hypnotized is a willingness of the participating party to be hypnotized. There are people who actually wish to be hypnotized by professionals, such as for therapeutic reasons, and cannot attain the state of relaxation necessary for actual hypnosis; some of them may learn in time, and some never achieve it.
When done in an entertainment venue, such as a magician on stage (or on the street, such as Criss Angel) the people are willing participants; even if they have not been told ahead of time what will happen, they are eager to participate in the spectacle, and that willingness to cooperate is the key.
There are, of course, drugs that can be used, either with consent of without, that lessen resistance. One of the most famous is Sodium Pentothal (that's the trademarked name, I don't know the generic name). It is a barbiturate that relaxes you very quickly, and which partly suspends your higher cognitive functions. It is often given to a patient before they receive an anesthetic for procedures such as surgery. I actually spent two hours under the influence of this drug fairly recently. I was scheduled for a surgical procedure, and they had already administered it in the form of an intravenous drip (along with fluids and a bunch of other stuff) when they found out the surgeon had an emergency and that I would have to wait. Because I was so terribly nervous, they made the decision to keep me sedated during the waiting period so that my blood pressure and heart rate wouldn't go through the roof. I was in and out of consciousness during that two hour period of time, but I remember very distinctly that one of the male nurses joked with my husband during one of my conscious periods that if there was anything he wanted to ask me, that was the time to do it. I was also, when awake, very chatty and talkative before going back to sleep. The reason for this is it inhibits the parts of your mind that tell you when it's time to stop talking. However, while your judgement may be impaired while under this type of drug, it is not entirely suspended; if someone was trying to get sensitive information out of you, or make you do something bad like harm someone, you would still be able to summon the resistance to not do it.
Another case I know of when it has been used with consent is one my friend, a police officer, told me about. A woman had been raped, and though she spent a good amount of time looking into her attacker's face, she was completely unable to give a description of him to the police. Her mind was blocking his image as a self-protective device because it brought out all the associated fears and anxieties associated with her rape. She agreed to submit to hypnosis, and they were still unable to elicit any information because her mind resisted the efforts of the trained doctor who was attempting to hypnotize her; it was still too scary for her mind to deal with. She was given a tiny dose of a barbiturate (I don't know which kind), and then hypnotized again. That second time it was successful, and with a little coaxing, she was able to give a very good description of her attacker, down to details of a tattoo on his shoulder, which is what allowed the police to promptly identify and arrest him. It is worth noting that many substances, including regular old drinking alchohol (ethanol) can have this effect on a person. If you are ever around someone who is tremendously drunk, observe how much they talk and how readily they say things they would not normally volunteer. They are also tremendously open to suggestion. That's why someone who is extremely drunk is easier to put to bed than someone who is not. When you tell them it's time for them to go lie down and go to sleep, they usually are very good about going to bed, while someone who is less drunk will often argue that they want to stay up and continue partying.
Don't worry too much about people being hypnotized against their will. People who are under the influence of hypnosis are doing it because they want to do it. And remember that hypnotism itself is usually benign, and used for good purposes, not for ill.
2006-07-13 08:25:16
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answer #1
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answered by Bronwen 7
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Some people are "weak". Others are not. Some are susceptible to hypnosis. Others like myself are not. I can't be hypnotized. I have tried for health reasons, but something about my mind just won't let go. People like Criss Angel may be able to do it because he distracts them while he hypnotizes them. Then again, it could just the the illusion of TV.
The mind is interesting in that we selectively filter everything. Why is it that some see certain details that others don't notice? How can two people look at the same painting and have two different thoughts? It's the mental filters we put in place.
In the middle of this Madison Ave. has hypnotized all of us with its crazy fantasy world of entertainment, convincing us that we need to be entertained by external sources 24x7. This breaks down the mind's ability to discern and process information. It makes it harder to determine what is truth & what is not, and this in turn makes us all more vulnerable to mind games like hypnosis.
Here's an example - I'd be willing to bet that more people would be able to give you intimate details about their favorite entertainment celebrity than would be able to name the members of their local city council. But who has more affect on their lives? They would easily be able to tell you when this celebrity got married/divorced/had a baby/etc. But ask them who the CIO of their own company is? The COO? The rest of the Corporate officers? And who has more affect on their lives?
What it boils down to is that you are correct - we have willingly given our mental capabilities to powers outside our control and expect them to treat us with respect. Some do – but others don’t. The cure? Read more – real reading, not People, Rolling Stone, etc. Read the newspaper. Read several & compare the bias. Even something as working out word puzzles or Sudoku can be very helpful. And be very careful of who you entrust your will to.
2006-07-13 07:33:03
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answer #2
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answered by byhisgrace70295 5
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No. If you think in your mind that you do not want to be hypnotized then No you won't be hypnotized. I saw it last night.
2006-07-13 07:49:07
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answer #3
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answered by vicktoria_24_ga 1
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