Introduction
Dave Elman originally referred to this as the ‘catalyst induction.’ However, it did not always involve a handshake. In fact, in his classic book Hypnotherapy, Elman teaches this induction via three puffs on a cigarette!
Transcript
Just take my hand, and look into my eyes. That’s it. Fix your eyes there.
[The following instructions are given whilst the hypnotist continues to hold their partner’s hand.]Here’s what is going to happen: I am going to shake your hand 3 times. The first time I shake your hand, you’re going to relax so much that your eyes are gonna start to feel tired. They are going to get quite heavy. You know the feeling when you’re reading a book late at night and you’re struggling to keep them open?
— “Yeah.”
That’s going to happen the first time I shake your hand. But I want you to fight it and keep them open.
The second time I shake your hand, there will be a really strong urge for your eyes to close, but I want you to try and fight it. If they do close…
[Partner blinks]That’s right… I want you to try to open them again… until, the third time I shake your hand.
And the third time I shake your hand, your eyes will close, your head will drop forward slightly and you will enter into that daydream place of hypnosis.
Okay?
— “Yeah.”
[Begins Handshakes. The hand is shaken continuously as the hypnotist repeats what will happen. That is, each “handshake” is actually a series of shakes. The hypnotist only stops shaking between the instructions]The first time I shake your hand now, your eyes are gonna start to feel tired, beginning to feel heavy…
[Waits for a blink]That’s right… But I want you to fight it and do your best to try and keep them open.
The second time I shake your hand now, there will be a strong urge for your eyes to close, but I want you to fight it.
[Waits for a blink]That’s right…
[Partner slightly closes their eyes]But I want you to do your best to open them…
[Partner opens their eyes, blinking repeatedly]That’s right… try to keep them open.
And now the third time I shake your hand, your eyes close, your head drops forward…
…And sleep!
[Hypnotist pulls hand further down and forward on the downward shake as they say, “Sleep.”]That’s right… relaxing all the way down.
[Follow with an arm-drop deepener, such as:]And as this arm just plops into your lap [or falls to your side], you can go ten times as deep…
[Hypnotist lets arm go]And as your other arm just falls by your side, you can go twice as deep into that experience…
[Hypnotist picks up the other arm and just drops it into their lap.]All the way down… sinking, drifting, floating, deeper into that pleasant experience…