Introduction
Dr. Sidney Flowers created an incredibly simple yet effective induction, that rightly bears his name and is a favourite of many hypnotists.
The Dr. Flowers induction utilises eye fixation, expectation and fractionation. It is particularly useful for situations where physical touch is not appropriate (meaning that inductions like the Elman are not allowed).
The induction is recognisable by the fact that the client opens and closes their eyes as the hypnotist counts down. Some variations have the hypnotee open-and-close between numbers. Others might have them close on (e.g.) even numbers and open on odd.
Transcript
I would like you to start, by picking a point on that wall, where you can focus all of your attention.
Look at that wall, almost as if you can see through to a perfect calm and soothing scene. You may even feel like you are looking into a daydream. Either way, simply rest your eyes on one spot on that wall.
[Wait until your partner’s eyes appear to have fixed on one spot, ideally appearing slightly defocused.]That’s right. Now, bring all of your attention to that spot, as you rest your eyes there.
Soon you’ll find all of the muscle groups in your body will relax. Your facial muscles will relax. Your arms will relax. Your legs will relax. Your whole body will let go.
And soon you will close your eyes… and go into a sound, peaceful hypnotic rest.
Hypnosis is not a state of unconsciousness, but rather a state of dreamy relaxation where the mind is open to new experiences.
Are you ready?
— “Yeah.”
In a moment, I am going to count backwards from 20 to one. With each number I say, you will close your eyes. And in between the counts, you’ll open them.
So, for example: 20 – close…open. 19 – close…open. 18 – close…open. And so on.
And what you will begin to notice is that it increasingly feels like too much effort to open your eyes. You would rather keep them closed, enjoying that scene, over there, drifting into that experience.
And sometime before I reach 1, maybe at five, maybe at ten, maybe even at fifteen… You’ll close your eyes and go into deep, sound hypnotic rest.
Okay?
— “Yep.”
H: “Perfect. Let’s begin.
20… 19… 18…
Notice now how easily you can sink into this process, just allowing yourself to enjoy that experience…
As you begin to feel that relaxation spreading throughout your body…
[Partner’s facial muscles relax and drop.]That’s right.
17… 16… 15…
And you can be aware of that sense of relaxation, and as you do you can notice how it becomes more and more inconvenient to open those eyes…
14… 13…
[The hypnotist notices their partner struggling to open their eyes, so interrupts the usual pattern of counting in threes…]And when it becomes too difficult to open them, or just too easy to keep them closed, you can keep them closed; simply imagining that you are opening them.
12…
That relaxation spreading throughout your body, as you drift deeper into that rest. And the deeper you go, the better you feel… and the better you feel, the deeper you go.
11… 10…
[The partner does not open their eyes between 11 and 10.]That’s right.
9… 8… 7…
Enjoying that deep deep rest…
6… 5… 4…
And with each number now, you can find that relaxation doubling, going deeper down, twice as deep.
3… 2… 1…
That’s it… Any remaining stress or tension, just disappearing, evaporating from your body…
And in a moment, not yet but in a moment, I am going to say the number “zero.” And you can even picture that big round number in front of you… like the ‘O’ in the word, ‘hypnosis.’ And when I say that number, you will step through into deep hypnosis… completely relaxed in mind and body… stepping into that calm and soothing space your own mind has created for you…
Get ready…
Zero…
And you go straight through that big round number, stepping into a deep hypnotic rest… as you let go all the way down…