Comparing Psychedelic Therapy and Hypnotherapy, and Why Both Change Your Life
In the last 20 years, Psychedelic Therapy has become a popular underground healing modality. Despite the slow battle towards decriminalization and legalization that leaves many practitioners in a legal grey-zone, availability of these modalities (and regulation around proper training) has greatly improved. And much like Hypnotherapy, these experiences are not sought after just for utilitarian purposes, but also for spiritual growth and self-knowledge. But why do the effects of psychedelics afford us the opportunity for growth? After all, alcohol alters our mental state almost as significantly as many psychedelics (if in a very different way). What is it about the psychedelic experience that changes us?
Of course I wouldn’t be a very good hypnotherapist if I didn’t link this back to hypnotherapy somehow. Luckily, my clients have already done that for me. Some comparisons that I’ve heard from clients post-session include: “that was like a mushroom trip, but more controlled”, or “that was better than any acid trip I’ve had.” So in this blog we’ll examine the similarities between hypnotherapy and psychedelic therapy, as well as the differences. Along the way we’ll learn why expanded states can lead to rapid growth, as well as examine some pitfalls that can arise.
DISCLAIMER—I’m not a psychedelic therapist, so I don’t know everything that goes into that practice! Also, this is not medical advice.
What are the similarities between Psychedelic Therapy and Hypnotherapy?
Both can induce expanded states
It may seem simple enough to say that psychedelics and hypnotherapy both can induce an “expanded” state, but what exactly is meant by an expanded state in the first place? An expanded state is characterized by the expansion of awareness beyond the normal bounds of the ego. In day-to-day life we tend to identify strongly (at a subconscious level) with the self, including the individual history, perceived limitations, and desires.
In an expanded state our self-identifications tend to weaken, or shift into the background. There’s a continuum to this of course—at the extreme end, a strong psychedelic experience may have you forgetting that humans even exist, let alone that you are one. A slightly expanded state may allow you to see yourself from a more “objective” perspective, such as finding compassion for your inner child.
Our normal filters of reality are lowered
Each of us has an inner model of the world, how things work, and our place in it. That’s what you THINK the world is like. You have models for every person, place, and thing you’ve ever encountered. We filter our experience of the world based on these models. For example, if you think you are unlikeable, you’ll tend to filter out or discount experiences of people being nice to you, and interpret interactions in a more negative light.
During a psychedelic experience many of these filters fall away, and we may have the sense we are seeing the world for the first time. The same can be true with hypnotherapy. Of course with hypnotherapy there is usually more of an agenda—we may be actively changing our models to be more beneficial, releasing limiting beliefs, and so on.
Symbolic and Metaphorical thinking increases
The rational part of our mind tends to think in language. Planning, critiquing, analyzing, even narrating—for most people this is the dominant inner experience. One of the key indicators of a non-normal state then, is when our inner experience becomes richer with symbols and metaphors, often coming through multiple inner senses.
In hypnotherapy we consider metaphor to be the language of the subconscious. Dreams, visions, intuitions—they are all communications from the “inner genius” inside us all. And these metaphors are often densely packed with information. One image from a dream may have layers and layers of personal meaning, waiting to be unpacked by the conscious mind. The more we enter into a reciprocal relationship with this inner genius, the more access we have to its vast intelligence and creativity.
What Are The Differences Between Psychedelic Therapy and Hypnotherapy?
You Can Stop A Hypnotherapy Session At Any Time
This is probably the biggest advantage that hypnotherapy has over psychedelic therapy. A major fear that people have with psychedelic therapy is that they’ll have a “bad trip”, and though this is pretty rare when you’re working with a competent psychedelic practitioner, it’s still in the background for many. With hypnotherapy all you have to do is open your eyes and the session is over. This is especially important when dealing with deeper traumas, where it can be beneficial to work bit by bit, not overwhelming the nervous system and triggering a trauma response. On the flip side of this, psychedelic therapy can force you to face something you have been avoiding, which can be beneficial in some cases.
You Are Always In Control With Hypnotherapy
Similar but slightly different than the previous point, hypnotherapy affords you more control than psychedelic therapy. How deep you want to go into the experience, where you go once you are in trance, even the technique or aspect of the self you want to work on—the decision is up to you, and you’ll never feel “out of control” with hypnotherapy. Additionally, you can learn self-hypnosis and state anchoring techniques to shift your mental state outside of hypnotherapy sessions, affording even more control in your daily life!
Hypnotherapy Is Often Easier To Integrate
Psychedelic experiences can be difficult to integrate into your day-to-day life. It can frequently take a month, or even several months, to integrate a psychedelic experience, leading most to space these journeys out. Hypnotherapy can usually be integrated quite quickly, within days if not hours. Weekly hypnotherapy sessions are not uncommon, with each session helping build towards the achievement of a goal.
A couple more differences not needing elaboration:
Hypnotherapy is more organized and focused than Psychedelic Therapy
No chemicals or plants are involved in Hypnotherapy
Psychedelic states do not require guidance to enter
Psychedelic therapy tends to be more hands off
Psychedelic therapy often involves listening to music
Hypnotherapy is fully legal
Choosing Between Hypnotherapy and Psychedelic Therapy
At the end of the day, both modalities can lead to big insights and shifts in our world views. They do this largely by thrusting us into relationship with the often unseen world of symbols, the shadow aspects of ourselves, the parts of our psyche that we ignore. If you’re trying to choose between Hypnotherapy and Psychedelic Therapy, hopefully this blog can help you zero in on what feels right to you. To me, psychedelics can feel like a sledgehammer sometimes, while Hypnotherapy is a chisel. There’s certainly a time and a place for sledgehammers, but if you’re wanting to refine your world-view as opposed to tearing it all down, Hypnotherapy might be a better choice.
Feel free to reach out and schedule a free 15-minute consultation with me if you’d like to learn more about Hypnotherapy! I love meeting new people, even if they don’t become clients.
