Hypnosis can be used for more than just behavior modification and non-therapeutic applications. Many people are not aware of the clinical uses of hypnosis, and what State laws govern this practice. For many hypnotists or hypnotherapists, regardless of their level of training, they work with therapeutic and non-therapeutic forms of hypnosis and touch upon medical, mental health and dental conditions without a legal basis to do so. Misunderstandings about our profession and the laws that govern it keep many people from learning hypnotherapy and embracing a career as a hypnotherapist. For anyone interested in utilizing hypnosis in a professional manner, we invite you to join us this Monday Night at 7:00pm as we discuss Medical Hypnosis, Hypnosis Law and Scope of Practice Assessment; all designed to keep you and your clients safe and within the confines of the law.
Can anyone practice hypnosis or hypnotherapy?
Yes, however each State has its laws that govern the practice and some are more specific than others. Some States require licensure and registration, other States have general or specific laws, and others have no laws at all, however professional levels of understanding are required for all 50 US States. You do not need previous credentials to practice hypnosis, as anyone can read a book and do very basic work, yet when you put yourself out there as a professional, then much more advanced training is required to ensure that you are safe and practicing legally. Weekend workshops that promise you a profession are a great way to damage our occupation and to get you into serious trouble.
What about licensure, certification and/or registration?
The Department of Education of each State requires that anyone teaching hypnotherapy as a profession is licensed to do so. However, the truth is that many schools and hypnosis training are not licensed to teach hypnosis, and operate under the radar, technically illegally. The profession itself is not licensed. Instead, hypnotherapists hold certifications, yet their certifications may be worth as little as the paper that they are printed upon. Organizations that certify hypnotherapists are not necessarily Federal or State agencies and do not necessarily provide the credentials needed to practice medical, dental or mental health levels of hypnosis. It is important for you to know these levels of credentialing and to operate within them.
What if I want to practice Medical Hypnotherapy and I am not a physician, or practice on mental health conditions if I am not a licensed mental health care provider?
This depends on the State in which you are a certified hypnotherapist, and it also depends on other credentials that you many hold. For instance, in the State of Florida, a “qualified” person can practice therapeutic (medical, dental or mental health) hypnosis only with the prescription, referral, supervision or direction from an appropriate licensed practitioner of the healing arts. This essentially means that you can indeed work on a medical condition using hypnosis as long as a physician prescribes the treatment for his or her patient. The same is true of mental health or dental hypnosis. However, with this said, there are only certain skillsets that a well-trained hypnotherapist has, and without clear scope of practice assessment protocols, you can certainly end up working on issues that you simply are not qualified to work on. This again requires a very careful understanding of the law and of your credentials.
Please join us this Monday Night at 7:00pm with Institute Founder, Matthew Brownstein, to discuss these important topics so that you can learn hypnosis properly and with the proper credentials and understandings. Join us at www.InstituteofHypnotherapy.
Matthew Brownstein is the founder of the Institute of Interpersonal Hypnotherapy, Florida’s first and after 12 years only State-Licensed postsecondary vocational institute which provides career diplomas in professional hypnotherapy that are backed by the Florida Department of Education. Matthew has been in the field for over 25 years and has taught and practiced hypnotherapy around the world. He currently teaches and travels extensively as he raises the standards of hypnotherapy training, while working to maintain high spiritual and ethical standards within this exciting field of study and occupation. For more information about Interpersonal Hypnotherapy training, visit www.InstituteofHypnotherapy.com or call 800-551-9247.
