A potentially controversial video...

This video, and the resulting comments
on YouTube hit me on so many levels.

First, and foremost, it appears that
"Mike" knew he was being hypnotized,
and why, and he went along with it.

Secondly, it looked as though he was
enjoying the results.

Third, as you do not see all that
happens, there are certain assumptions
that might be made about the nature
of what he was told hypnotically.

However, if you assume that he was
told pretty much what you see, then
it is pretty straight forward.

You also see his wife interacting with
it, in what seems to be a "responsible"
way. Yes, it is quite possible that
she could take advantage, if she wanted
to, and there might be those that would,
if given the opportunity.

The thing that got me the most, however,
were the judgments of Mike as a bad
father and husband. The fact that things
happened the way that they did, and the
fact that he seemed very much to care about
his family, to me, says that he likely
would have done things "better" and
differently,if he only knew how.

Our subconscious selves tune into the
things that give us what we know is safe.
It is that way for anyone living and
breathing. We go to where is comfortable.

Somewhere along the line Mike found that
the way he behaved worked for him on some
level, so that is the way he behaved. Just
because it is familiar/comfortable, doesn't
mean it's our "Best" choice. Often what
we do that is comfortable and familiar can
cause us problems. "Comfortable" here
(incidentally) is equivalent to familiar.
We find comfort in what we know, even when
it creates outcomes we would prefer not to
have.

It would seem that the situation that Mike
had with his family is one of those outcomes
that wasn't "preferred" on a conscious level.
However, with his unconscious running the
show, it is difficult (if impossible) for him
to do anything else.

One note that I would make about all of this,
too, has to do with the route that the hypnotist
took. On a superficial level, yes, it does
take care of the lack of action on Mike's part
that can have a positive influence on his life
and his family's lives.

However, I believe that it also invites the
comments of some, and ignites the fetishes of
others. Nothing inherently wrong (I suppose)
with that, however, I would have to wonder what
the hypnotist's intention was in creating this
video.

If the intention was to show how hypnosis can
make a difference, I would have to suggest that
perhaps he could have taken a different approach -
one in which he addressed the CORE of what made
Mike stand in his own way.

The beauty of an approach like that could have
Mike consciously choosing to do what the trigger
"wonderful" was having him do unconsciously. On
top of which, he would be able to remember what
he was doing, instead of having it be something
outside of himself.

His wife and family could provide reinforcement
of his new behaviors, and a new family dynamic
would naturally evolve.

My guess is that perhaps, if it has been going
on for a while, that might be happening any way.
However, when the core is addressed, things can
happen as quick as a flip of a switch.

It is a beautiful thing.

There is likely more I wanted to say, but this
is enough for now...:-)

Let me know what you think!
Isis