Rapid-induction hypnotherapy

Domain VI · Brief, integrative, trauma, hypnosis & coaching · Dave Elman · 1940 · USA

What it is

Dave Elman (born David Kopelman, 1900–1967) was a former vaudeville performer and radio producer. He took up hypnosis after a family friend used it to relieve his father's cancer pain. From 1949 to 1962 he travelled the USA teaching hypnosis, mainly to doctors and dentists, in a course called…

Format

• No phased treatment manual from Elman himself is published. The blurb for Explorations in Hypnosis says the book answers what somnambulism is, what the Esdaile state is, what self-hypnosis is, whether everyone can be hypnotised and whether there is any danger of not waking up. These topics are…
• Phase A: Assessment, screening and preparation (first session; no induction, or only a short demonstration at the end).

Who practises it, and how they are trained or regulated

• Version followed: the four-stage Elman induction as given by DocCheck Flexikon, which cites Bongartz et al. (2000) and two German practitioner pages (Wackernagel; Musche): (1) eye closure with eyelid catalepsy, (2) fractionation, (3) arm-and-hand catalepsy (arm drop), (4) counting backwards with number amnesia. Wikipedia gives a shorter three-step version (eyelids, arm drop, numbers in clouds that blow away) with no…
• Scope of this guide. This guide covers clinical hypnosis only, as used by licensed health professionals within their own competence. It does not cover stage hypnosis, shock or “snap” inductions from the entertainment and lay-hypnotist tradition (Boyne, Tebbetts; noted in Wikipedia, Hypnotic induction), covert induction, or any method meant to bypass consent. Medical and dental uses are adjuncts within medical care…

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Is there physical contact? Was it explained beforehand, and do you feel free to say no or stop at any point?
• Does it involve any substance, plant preparation, remedy or supplement? Has your doctor or prescriber been told, especially about any medication you take?
• Does it involve intense or unusual breathing? Have you been told about the medical conditions for which that is not advised?
• Does it involve fasting, a special diet or 'detox'? Have you discussed this with your doctor?
• Who runs it, and what training or registration do they hold?
• What actually happens in a session or meeting, and how often?
• What does it cost, and is there pressure to commit to more?
• How do you feel afterwards, in the hours and days that follow?
• Does it fit with, or clash with, the work we do here?

What practitioners of it watch for

• Visible release in the shoulders, hands and jaw, and slower breathing.
• Startle responses to noises. If they occur, address them directly and slow down.
• Dizziness, headache, heaviness in a limb, confusion. Do not let the client drive or leave until they are oriented.
• Unresponsiveness that persists, slow re-alerting, and disorientation afterwards. Allow extra re-alerting time (4.13).
• Non-practice (see section 5), and any unpleasant experiences during solo practice. Stop solo practice if they occur and review in session.

When to involve someone else

• New or worsening physical symptoms, or advice to stop or change prescribed medication: involve the client's doctor or prescriber.
• Signs of coercion, isolation from family and friends, escalating costs or secrecy: discuss openly and consider safeguarding.
• A crisis or thoughts of suicide: follow your crisis protocol. In the US, call or text 988; in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans on 116 123.

Drawn automatically from the guide's own sections. Stay curious: neither endorse nor dismiss what the client values, and check anything that matters against the full guide and its sources. Not medical advice.