What is Hyperempiria?

"The power of suggestion" is rooted in
the perception of reality itself

Let's perform a thought experiment. Suppose you are standing by a newspaper rack one morning, when your eye is caught by the following headlines:

MASSIVE ASTEROID POISED TO STRIKE EARTH

"NO WAY OUT," SAY SCIENTISTS

MILLIONS GATHERING TO PRAY

A bolt of fear shoots through you, as you stand rooted to the spot -- until you hear the sound of loud laughter behind you and, turning, you see a friend who works in a print shop. You realize that you have been made the object of a practical joke. Your friend (who by now is probably your former friend!) obviously had printed up a fake newspaper, and placed it in the rack when he saw you coming.

A practical joke such as this one would be based upon presenting an idea in such a way that it is likely to be accepted as literally true, and therefore "real," at least for the moment. In the hypothetical example just mentioned, notice that when such a suggestion is accepted, you respond not merely with your voluntary abilities, such as thinking about whether or not there might still be a place to hide, but with your involuntary responses as well, such as feeling frightened and all that goes with it. In other words, "the power of suggestion" is rooted in the perception of reality itself.

As stated in the heading to this Blog, it is widely agreed among educators and therapists that people learn most effectively by experience. Regardless of the type of induction which is used, the total involvement which results from the systematic, comprehensive application of multimodal or "Best Me" suggestions can be regarded as a form of hyperempiria, as +Brian David Phillips  ( 2007) has stated, or suggestion-enhanced experience. In the fullest sense of the term, hyperempiria refers to an entirely new paradigm which uses the power of suggestion as an artistic medium, and human experience itself as the ultimate art form (Gibbons, 2000, 2001).

Young children (especially those with "cool" parents who encourage this kind of active imagination) often experience the kind of imaginative involvement in their play life which characterizes high responders in hypnosis. +Kelley Woods has described it as, "Rather like when my son was small and living in his delightful trance state, having no limits on his imagination. he thrilled at becomig a dog, a car, a monster! . . .I love reminding clients of similar "resource states," and once the door is opened they can go there at will." Adults, however, usually need what +michael ellner  has referred to as the "transformational magic" of an induction in order to attain this degree of imaginative involvement." Once this door is opened, adults are able to imagine even more profound transformational experiences than children can. 

With our adult ability to conceptualize, and with sufficient experiential training, we can build an almost unlimited number of resource states, with an unlimited number of dimensions. In the words of the mystical poet, William Blake, you will be able

To see a world in a grain of sand,

Or a Heaven in a wild flower,

Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand,

And Eternity in an hour.

We all long to return to the safety and security of a little infant tenderly nestled in its mother’s arms, for example. At the opposite extreme, all phobias are basically rooted in a fear of not being, which is actually a fear of death. If the number of parallel universes is theoretically without limit, there is – somewhere – an alternate universe where we can bathe in an ocean of infinite, unbounded, and everlasting love, freed from the limitations of space and time, to satisfy these deepest longings, enhance our self-esteem, and overcome all our feelings of unhappiness, loneliness, anger, and despair.  (Gibbons & Cavallaro,2013).  

Now that's hyperempiria!

Recently, Lenny Cavallaro and I have been suggesting to hypnotized clients that they are being transported to an alternate universe where time and space do not exist. After orienting them to this universe and inducing emotions which are as pleasant as possible -- i.e., "dissolving  into an ocean of infinite, unbounded, and everlasting love," we suggest the following: "with practice, you will be able to feel this kind of fulfillment whenever you put your whole self into working towards a goal you have chosen. As you think about achieving the goal ahead of time, you can believe it will happen, expect it to happen, and feel it happening! And with practice, you will be able to act, think, and feel as if it were impossible to fail!"  \

Clients have been saying things like, "I can't thank you enough!" and, "I'm at a point in my life now where I think I can accomplish anything!" The changes which they are reporting in their lives seem to bear this out.  It's too early for any hard data, as we have just begun to use these techniques. But we would like to invite you to join us in exploring these fascinating new realms of experience, and sharing with us in the thrill of discovery! 

With much fanfare and without further ado, here's the link:

Gibbons, D. E., & Cavallaro, L (2013).. Exploring alternate universes: And learning what they can teach us. Amazon Kindle E-Books. (Note: It is not necessary to own a Kindle reader to download this e-book, as the Kindle app may be downloaded free of charge to a standard desktop or laptop computer and to most cell phones.) 

 References 

Barber, T. X. (1985), Hypnosuggestive procedures as catalysts for psychotherapies. In S. J. Lynn & J. P. Garske (Eds.) Theories of hypnosis. New York: Guilford Press, pp. 241-274.

Bányai, E. I., & Hilgard, E. R. (1976). A comparison of active-alert hypnotic induction with traditional relaxation induction. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 85, pp. 218-224.

Gibbons, D. E. (2001). Experience as an art form. .New York, NY: Authors Choice Press.

Gibbons, D. E. (2000). Applied hypnosis and hyperempiria. Lincoln, NE: Authors Choice Press (originally published 1979 by Plenum Press).

Gibbons, D. E., & Cavallaro, L (2013).. Exploring alternate universes and learning what they can teach us. Amazon Kindle E-Books.

Gibbons, D. E., & Lynn, S. J. (2010). Hypnotic inductions: A primer. in S. J. Lynn, J. W. Rhue, & I. Kirsch (Eds.) Handbook of clinical hypnosis, 2nd ed. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, pp. 267-291.

 Gibbons, D. E. (1976). Hypnotic vs. hyperempiric induction: An experimental comparison.Perceptual and Motor Skills, 42, 834.

Gibbons, D. E. (1975, August). Hypnotic vs. hyperempiric induction: An experimental comparison. Paper presented at the meeting of the American Psychological Association, Chicago.

Gibbons, D. E. (1974, March). Hyperempiria: Waking up hypnosis. Paper presented at the meeting of the Southeastern Psychological Association, Orlando, FL.

Gibbons, D. E. (1973, December). Hyperempiria: A new "altered state of consciousness" induced by suggestion. Paper presented at the meeting of the Society for Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, Newport Beach, CA.

Gibbons, D. E., & Lynn, S. J. (2010). Hypnotic inductions: A primer. in S. J. Lynn, J. W. Rhue, & I. Kirsch (Eds.) Handbook of clinical hypnosis, 2nd ed. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, pp. 267-291.

Phillips, B. D. (2007). Tranceplay: Experimental approaches to interactive drama involving experiential trance. Journal of Interactive Drama, 2(1), pp. 15-55.