Hypnosis has been defined as by-pass of the Critical Faculty of the Mind.
The Critical Faculty or Critical Function of the Mind has been described as a semi-permeable barrier that exists between the Conscious and Subconscious levels of mind. By-passing the Critical Faculty gives us access to the Subconscious level of Mind where we can create change.
If the mind was an orange the outer skin would be the Conscious Mind. The Conscious Mind is focused primarily on external things. Or our internal responses to external things.
The juicy sections inside would be the Subconscious Mind. All the juice is in the emotional part of us. That’s what holds onto the meaning we give things.
All that’s sweet and nourishing is there – along with the pits.
And the pulpy section between the skin and the fruit? That barrier between the outer skin and juicy interior would be the Critical Faculty of the Mind.
Hypnotherapy is the process of getting past that so we can get access to what’s inside.
We want to gain access to the Subconscious level of Mind so that we can get rid of the pits so all our good and healthy juices can start flowing again.
By changing what’s going on in the inside we change our experience of what’s happening on the outside.
But what if all we’re doing with hypnotherapy is changing the Critical Function? What if there’s nothing wrong at the Subconscious level of mind?
What if all we’re healing is the Critical Faculty?
I think of the Critical Faculty, not as a barrier, but as a lens.
Or more like a cluster of lenses.
Or a multi-faceted prism that acts as a focal point through which we see the world of people and things around us.
It’s our “lens on life.”
That lens is made of all the Parts of us that make up our personality.
Parts hold onto our experiences from the past. They color how we see things based on what we learned.
So, the lens is made up of what we learned in the past – thoughts, feelings, behaviors – and it acts to filter to create our point of view on things.
The Critical Faculty acts to filter out anything that doesn’t match our deeply-held values and beliefs.
It’s function is to keep us congruent with our beliefs.
The problem is that we don’t ever experience a true present because all that we can see is some version of our past.
This gives us a sense of ‘normalcy’ by maintaining the status quo. And that provides a sense of security.
While it may not make us happy, at least we know how to cope. So, it gives us a sense of control, but it’s really a false sense of security because it limits us.
Some call it “ego”
Metaphysically, ego is just who we think we are.
Ego is what anchors your identity to the physical body. It’s your “body-centric” identity. The image you hold of yourself.
That’s good. You need a body if you’re going to be in a physical and material experience.
So, the Critical Faculty is just your way of being in the world as a body.
It’s just not all of you.
Ego is just who you think you are most of the time.
It’s the sum total of your life experiences that makes up the Story you tell yourself, about yourself, in the privacy of your own Mind.
The Story is about who you are. And what you can expect from yourself, your relationships, and the world in general.
That’s what you’re helping people to heal through regression to cause hypnotherapy – their Pain Story.
(Watch the video to discover what this has to do with depression and squirrels!)
