ABSTRACT
The phrase “inducing hypnosis” implies the clinician is doing something to the client. The language of hypnosis is sometimes limiting and even misleading, for the client is not simply a passive receptacle for the clinician’s suggestions. Rather, the client is an active force in shaping the interaction, and the clinician must respond meaningfully to the unique responses of the individual. Guiding the person into hypnosis may be a more accurate representation of the clinician’s role. In the capacity of guide, you cannot know the exact experience the client is having or is going to have, and so giving the client room to experience hypnosis in his or her own way is not only desirable but necessary. The process of guiding a person into hypnosis is a large responsibility to assume as you make yourself a primary focal point, for the client is now focusing himor herself on the experiences you stimulate through your communications.
