Hypnosis is used for a variety of purposes: to suggest specific changes in thinking or behavior, as an aid in psychotherapy (for example, to help a client overcome anxiety or deal with upsetting ideas), and to enhance relaxation. Although the technique has been used clinically for years, research on hypnosis is in its infancy. There is considerable controversy over what hypnosis actually is and whether it really involves a special trance like state. Because of its success in inducing states that appear to involve relaxation, it has aroused the interest of behavior therapists as well as psychotherapists. It is now known that hypnosis is an altered state of consciousness-not sleep, but an intense alertness in which the mind can screen out extraneous matters and one particular. The hypnotic trance is characterized by extreme relaxation and heightened susceptibility to suggestion. It allows people to suspend logical reasoning and draw upon psychological strengths that they do not normally command voluntarily. The focused concentration and heightened suggestibility of the trance state help the individual accept the therapist's directions and come to grips with problems more rapidly. When used with people who are suffering from great pain, hypnosis seems to mask the discomfort. The person still "feels" the pain at some level, but conscious awareness is blocked. Just how the trance state enables one to "disconnect" pain from awareness is not known. Hypnotists typically begin their sessions by asking subjects to stare at an object, suggesting in a soothing voice that their eyelids are becoming heavy, that they are relaxing and becoming hypnotized, and that they will find it easy to comply with the hypnotist's suggestions. In experimental settings this "hypnotic induction" typically lasts for about 15 minutes. If the subjects are willing to be hypnotized, they appear relaxed and drowsy and become responsive to test suggestions from the hypnotist. Afterward they report changes in body sensations and claim that they have been hypnotized. People who are susceptible to hypnosis have beliefs an expectations that motivate them to adopt the hypnotic role. They usually have better than average ability to focus attention as well as a vivid imagination. Hypnosis works for normal anxiety however for more extreme cases of anxiety it is necessary to use psychotherapy. A new method of therapy called The Liberator Method is perfect for handling all types of anxiety...that persist for long periods of time.