In a dark, cozy room tucked away from the bustling lunchtime traffic near Ridgedale Center, Susan Slack says she will focus on giving me more self-confidence.
But she isn't going to give me a pep talk. She is going to hypnotize me.
Slack is the founder and owner of the Slack and Young Institute of Hypnosis. As a certified hypnotherapist who provides complimentary care to people with issues like smoking addiction, weight gain, anxiousness and phobias, Slack imparts suggestions for people to change their behaviors or actions. (The "complimentary" part applies especially for clients who are referred to her by their doctors, previous clients, or visitors of her website.) After exploring why her clients keep practicing an undesired action, she puts them in a hypnotic state so her suggestions can resonate with their subconscious and unconscious minds.
"[Clients] always come to me because part of them wants to do it and part of them doesn't," Slack explains. People have valid reasons for wanting to change their unhealthy eating habits, for example, but then they are unsuccessful. She says it’s because something in the subconscious/unconscious brain "has an advantage for you to eat like that."
When clients link negative emotions to their actions, Slack says, "they don't know how to replace that in their brain. That's where I come in."
Leaving the waiting room, where Slack's professional credentials from the International Medical and Dental Hypnotherapy Association and the National Guild of Hypnotists, plus her Masters in Human Development from St. Mary’s University, hang on the wall, I walk into the back office.
This space is full of bright sunlight. I sit on a big, comfy recliner as Slack showcases an expert knowledge in how the mind works. Then she asks, “So, you ready to go into hypnosis?”
I reply, "Yes." I sit back and close my eyes.
With a voice as soothing as a yoga instructor, Slack asks me to imagine a rocket ship. She asks me to hold an imaginary lever. As my right arm hangs above my head, I slowly count down from 10.
Slack brings my arm down. Fast. She quickly says, "Sleep. Loose, limp and relax. Every breath you take is deeper and deeper as you also allow the sound of my voice and the touch of my hand on your shoulder to relax you even deeper."
My initial surprise drifts off. I sink deeper into my chair and feel like I am in a spa. I relax more and more as Slack guides me to relax every muscle from head to toe. I picture gentle breezes moving fluffy clouds. I hear soft music. I feel my back gently slumping to the side as it feels like a waterfall.
Then Slack says that I can relax my eyelids so completely that "even if you tried to open them, they cannot." I am curious. She asks me if I would like to experience this level of relaxation.
I reply, "Yes."
Soon I realize I am hypnotized. I cannot open my eyes. She notes, "Your unconscious has another amazing capability. And this is the amazing ability to feel. Watch how well this works."
I am curious again when Slack raises my right arm above my head. Soon after repeating the words "Stiff, strong, solid," my entire arm feels like a rod of steel. She pushes my arm from side to side, and later makes it limp like a wet noodle.
I think to myself, this is actually working.
The mind is a powerful thing. I now understand why Slack describes herself as a guide because she helps people realize what their minds can do. The rest of the session is a heartfelt talk about trusting in myself. Afterwards, I feel refreshed and positive coming out of hypnosis.
Her words stay with me to this day, and Slack notes that some of her clients get everything they need from one two-hour session. And though an initial skeptic, if I were asked to be hypnotized again, I would reply, "Yes."
