Self-Hypnosis, because of the movies and TV shows, the very word conjures up the picture of a beady-eyed hypnotherapist swinging a gold watch repeating the words, "You are getting sleepy."

Use any search engine and you will find hundreds of thousands of pages devoted to the topic. Unfortunately, many websites that sell self-hypnosis programs make wild and crazy, unsubstantiated claims. I've been in the industry since 1978. So I think that I'm more than expert enough to set the record straight on weight loss hypnosis.

First of all, post-hypnotic suggestion is a tool, just like a scalpel is a tool. Just as different surgeons have different skill levels in the use of a scalpel, different hypnotists have varying skill levels in the use of post-hypnotic suggestion. And to complicate the matter, there are many different forms and types of post-hypnotic suggestion.

Here are just a few of the ridiculous claims about weight loss hypnosis that I've seen on the Internet, along with the truth of the matter:

"Hypnotic suggestion will speed up your metabolism." The truth is that post-hypnotic suggestion will never directly speed up your metabolism. But it can be very adequate at helping to program your subconscious with increased motivation to exercise. And exercise can greatly speed up your metabolism. Similarly, post-hypnotic suggestion to speed up the metabolism for quick weight loss can be effected by programming the subconscious to motivate the intake of increased amounts of protein, because that intake will step up your metabolism.

"Hypnotic suggestion will make you become slimmer." This is false. But post-hypnotic suggestion can be used to help clean out your appetite, so that you eat less. And eating less can help you to become slimmer. The average person's appetite and urges for food and compulsion to eat are triggered by two subconscious programs:

A. When you combine eating with any other behavior, the other behavior will trigger cravings for food and a strong desire to eat. This is called a conditioned response. For example, if you eat as you sit and watch TV, you will automatically get an urge to eat every time you sit down to watch TV.

B. When you feel tense, you feel a strong urge to put something into your mouth for relaxation and pleasure. This is the result of programming that you received as a baby. When you got crabby, your mom or dad put a bottle in your mouth. You got distracted, relaxed, and probably fell asleep. Now when you get cranky (anxious or tense), you feel compelled to put something into your mouth for relaxation and pleasure.

C. There is a third unconscious program that is present for some people. It's called emotional eating. Emotional eating takes place when someone is motivated to make him or herself fat, because by being fat they will protect themselves in some way. For example, if someone gets their heart broken in a relationship, their subconscious can motivate them into a behavior that would prevent them from getting their heart broken again. Example: They are motivated to gain weight to keep them out of another relationship, because that will eliminate the possibility of another broken heart.

So just how can hypnosis for losing weight get rid of the above problems? Click here to read the rest of this weight loss hypnosis article.

I have written several articles on this complex topic that available on my website. These articles outline some powerful and effective ways to use hypnosis for emotional compulsive eating.