Valencia Induction

The valencia induction (also known as Valencia Model Waking Hypnosis or VMWH) is an alert induction that does not involve any kind of hypnotic trance. This is a good induction to know if you are in a public situation or have physical activity that would make relaxation awkward.

There are several stages of the induction, but not all are necessary in a recreational hypnosis context. The stages are as follows:

  • A cognitive-behavioral introduction to hypnosis

  • Clinical assessment of hypnotic suggestibility

  • (Rapid) self-hypnosis

  • Didactic Metaphor

  • Practice and training suggestions

  • Hetero-hypnosis (waking alert)

  • Suggestions

You probably won’t want to follow all of the stages here, but they may be useful with new partners especially. The theory pages will cover the introduction and didactic metaphor bits if you want to get into that.

Here’s a video giving an overview.

The induction is first described in Effects on suggestibility of a new method of active-alert hypnosis. There’s a complete description of the motivation and thinking in The Valencia Model of Waking Hypnosis and its Clinical Applications from chapter 10 of Hypnosis: Theories, Research and Applications. (There’s also some "very brief models" in Chapter 3 but they follow the same model but are designed for emergency situations.)

The induction consists of several pre-induction exercises, followed by the alert hand induction. Exercise 1 and 3 are always done, but if there are difficulties then 2 and 4 may also be followed.

You will almost certainly want to modify this for your own partner, by creating your own exercises and experimenting. I’ve included it unmodified so that you can get an overall sense of it.

Introduction

To enter hypnosis, your mind must be receptive so that if you so wish, you can follow my suggestions and enjoy them. You know that it is not necessary to be relaxed or to close your eyes. In fact, many people prefer to keep their eyes open and not to relax, so that they can retain a greater sense of control and feel more comfortable.You can enjoy hypnosis without having to be relaxed. I can help you feel alert and active.It is not a matter of feeling unusual or anxious but active and alert, as when you expect something pleasant to occur. You will see that it is an enriching experience that will help your mind be active and work efficiently.But before doing hypnosis, we will do some exercises so that you can understand better what I am saying.

Exercise 1

At some point, you must have felt impatient when waiting for something you wished for very much, for instance when you were going to meet someone you had not seen in a while and wanted very much to see. Try to remember that time. Imagine that it is 30 minutes before that encounter and that you are starting to feel anxious, pleasantly anxious, that is. As time goes by, you start to notice that your heart is beating faster, each minute beating faster, and that emotion over-whelms your body. It is only a few minutes before you will see that person, and you want it to happen. You feel restless, not an unpleasant restlessness but a very pleasant one.

Do you understand what I mean? Did you experience the sensations (heartbeats, anxiety) I described? Did you imagine the situation I described?

(If not) Don’t worry. Let’s do another example. (Go to Exercise 2) (If yes) Very well! Now we’ll go to another example. (Go to Exercise 3)

Exercise 2

Remember a time when you were taking a long walk. It is possible that at the beginning, when you decide to start strolling, it is a bit difficult and you feel a bit lazy. But after a while, surely you start feeling better. Remember that as time goes by and you continue walking, you start to feel clear minded and refreshed, and you enjoy walking more and more. To continue walking becomes easier. As you continue walking, you feel more refreshed and active, and there is a pleasant sensation throughout your body. It is possible that your breathing will be faster, considering that many muscles in your body are working, but it is not a worrisome breathing. It is, instead, a very pleasant breathing because you feel increasingly more energy as you continue strolling.

Do you understand what I mean? Did you imagine the situation I described? Did you experience the sensations (breathing, energy) I described?

(If not) Don’t worry. Let us do another example. (Go to Exercise 3.) (If yes) Very well! Now we will go to another example. (Go to Exercise 3.)

Exercise 3

(The experimenter will need a drawing, and the phrasing of the exercise will change accordingly.)

Let us do a little exercise.

Focus on the word ("congratulations") above the drawing. Ready? Good, now try to see the bird underneath it…​. The goal is to gradually increase your field of vision, so that your mind will also expand— If you do this, you will see that there are some houses and, in the periphery of your vision, a few trees. That’s it, fine. Let us continue. Now, concentrate on the scene under the houses, look at the little animals and continue expanding your field of vision so that you will now see that some animals are eating ice cream and some others are playing with a ball. The time will come when you have the whole scene in your mind, because your mind is expanded and active.

Have you followed the exercise?

(If not) Don’t worry, we’ll do another exercise, and you will understand it then. (Go to Exercise 4.) (If yes) Perfect! Because I can see that you understand what I am talking about, how about if we start with the hypnosis session? Did you experience how your mind expanded?

Exercise 4

"I am going to ask you to close your eyes and imagine what I am saying: Imagine that you are watching a TV show. You like this program very much and are absorbed in it, your mind is totally focused on the TV set. That’s it, very good…​ Now, imagine the room with the TV set and try to see everything that is around the set, the closest things and those that are farthest away; for instance, imagine any piece of furniture the TV set is on, any chairs, furniture, lamps. You can see the whole room, you have a complete view. That’s it. You continue to be in the room with the TV set, but now imagine that the roof and everything else over that room has disappeared, so that from above, you can continue seeing the TV set, that room and the rest of your house or apartment— Imagine the whole building, if you have an apartment, the street where your house or apartment is, the whole area, you can see it from the air…​. Your mind is expanding more and more, and what I am describing to you is easier and easier because your mind is becoming more active. Now place your street in your city, look at all of the streets, any buildings or parks, any cars, lamps, stores, pedestrians…​ Try to imagine it all from above, as if you were flying over the city…​. From that perspective, you can see your house or apartment over there, at the distance, the rest of the buildings…​ And, you start to go higher and higher, and you can see the people and the cars becoming smaller…​. It is becoming easier to control your mind. We will continue imagining…​ Continue flying over the city as you get higher and higher, so that you will be able to see not only the city but the whole country. Try to imagine it. You can see your city and the whole country at a distance. You can see the country as if it were drawn on a map, very far away, so far that you can see its rivers, mountains, and oceans…​ Your mind expands more and more, to such an extent that you can see the Earth itself. You can see the whole globe and can differentiate high mountains, oceans, and so on. You are controlling your mind, which feels so expansive and activated that you can see the Earth within the Milky Way, you can see the whole space, the stars, the planets, the rest of the Universe— you can see the Earth from the vast space.

Did you imagine the situation I described? Did you experience how your mind expanded?

Alert Hand Induction

(Once we are ready to proceed with the induction and the participant is comfortably seated in an armchair, we proceed.)

Now, concentrate on your right hand. Start moving it up and down from the wrist, while you rest your arm on the arm of the chair. Keep moving the hand up and down without stopping…​ You will notice soon that the movement becomes more and more automatic and that the hand will start moving on its own, automatically…​ Your muscles will not get tired but the opposite, they will become more and more activated …​ Notice how the movement becomes more and more automatic, as if the hand had a mind of its own…​ The hand is becoming more and more active, more and more, as you notice that the arm feels also pleasantly tense and activated…​ Your heart is pumping more and more blood to move the muscles…​ and you can notice how your heart rate is increasing slightly, in a similar way as when you are impatient or somewhat excited…​ Your heartbeat is speeding up, and your breathing starts to speed up more and more…​ You are breathing more and more rapidly but with a nice rhythm…​It is a fast but pleasant rhythm. And you start noticing that you are more and more hypnotized, activated and hypnotized…​ Your mind is working more and more rapidly, expanding…​ You can now stop the movements in your hand, but your breathing remains rapid and agitated and you are becoming more and more hypnotized…​ very hypnotized. All your body is becoming more and more active— The blood coming from your hand is irradiating throughout all the veins and arteries of your body, taking along a sensation of energy, expansion, and activation, similar to when you are alert, waiting for an event, a pleasant event, to happen…​ and you are feeling even more hypnotized. Your legs are more active and they have a tendency to move, your chest and head are also more active and feel like moving…​ You now feel the need to get up from the armchair and walk, calmly and at your pace, to the door of the room. (The person gets up and walks.) As you walk, you feel yourself more hypnotized, alert, with an activated and receptive consciousness…​ Your mind is prepared, activated and very, very expanded, increasingly clear and expanded…​ Your mind is hypnotized and ready to work quickly and effectively.

(Note: After this induction, exercises such as arm levitation, or any other that may be of particular interest, may be carried out to "show" participants that their mind can do these exercises when it is activated.)

Reinduction Suggestion

To save time before the next sessions, I am going to give you a cue so that you will be able to enter that state of hypnosis in a few seconds. This will be very helpful to you and me because we will be able to spend more time solving a problem. Now listen carefully, each time I touch your shoulder (or another appropriate cue) and tell you that you will "go into this active and alert mental state," and as long as you wish it, you will regain this level of mental activation (touch the shoulder or do another cue). Remember that every time I touch your shoulder this way (touch the shoulder or do the other cue again), and as long as you wish it, you will achieve this same efficient and active mental state.

Wake up

Now concentrate on my voice, and as you do so, your heartbeat starts to gradually slow down, your breathing also becomes slower, both to a comfortable level…​ As your heartbeat and breathing slow down, you start coming out of hypnosis, less activated physically and less expanded mentally.

In a moment, I will count to 3. When I reach 3, you will have come out of hypnosis, you will feel calm, your muscles will be relaxed, and you will have an active mind…​ You will sense the urge to be active, but in a serene and peaceful way.

  1. Your muscles are less activated, and your breathing is slowing down

  2. You are coming out of hypnosis, your mind is active but less expanded.

  3. You are out of hypnosis but remain active and relaxed, with an urge to do things.

That’s it, very well. How are you feeling?

Debrief

Discuss the experience with your partner. How does Valencia feel vs other kinds of inductions? Do they prefer the feeling of alertness over being in trance? What changes would they make to the induction?