Introducing Toronto’s Most Complete Hypnotherapy Training Program

Our next course runs every Sunday from March 14 to July 18, 2010 (19 weeks) between 9:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. (with a 1 hour break for lunch). This course will take place right here at The Morpheus Clinic for Hypnosis in downtown Toronto, near Yonge and Dundas.

The course offers 150 hours of in-class instruction, demonstrations and supervised practice, plus approximately 90 hours of homework and readings, for a total of 240 hours of training. The cost of the course is $2995 (plus GST) paid upfront, or four installments of $799 (plus GST).

There are four seats remaining for the March 2010 course. For more information, please e-mail our office or call us at 416-556-4068.

What Should You Consider When Choosing a Hypnosis School?

Every year, more than 100 students graduate from the many hypnotherapy schools in Ontario, but only a handful of those students develop the capability and confidence to practice professionally. At Morpheus, we give our graduates the best chance of success with the most comprehensive course in the province, rigorous testing standards, and a unique internship program that allows exceptional students to work with clients in our hypnotherapy office. We take these steps to ensure that the odds are stacked in your favour.

Here are some questions to consider when choosing a hypnosis school:

How comprehensive is the curriculum?

Most hypnotherapy certification programs contain only 60 to 80 hours of in-class time, plus homework, for a total of 100 hours of training. We believe that that 100 hours of training is too little training. Our program includes 150 hours of classroom time, plus homework, for a total of 240 hours of training.

How rigorous is the certification process?

Some schools will certify anybody who takes their course. We believe that the easier it is to receive a certification, the less value the certification carries. We require you to pass a five-hour exam with an 80% grade or higher, pass a criminal background check and carry professional liability insurance before you can call yourself a hypnotherapist.

What happens after you graduate?

Our hypnosis centre selects interns from our students, and associates from our interns, which means that there is a clear career path for students who prove themselves exceptional during the certification course.

We can give you references for students who have completed our program and have gone on to practice hypnotherapy successfully, and other students who have successfully incorporated hypnotherapy into their existing profession.

Will you need additional training, or is the education that you receive enough to practice?

Many schools offer "master" courses on top of their basic training at an additional expense. We believe that mastery comes from years of experience, not a one-week course, and that "master level" material should be included in the initial training that you receive. This is the main reason our course is longer than other certification courses available.

Hypnosis Certification Course: Curriculum

1. How to define and describe hypnosis to your clients
1. Dave Elman's definition: Bypass of the critical faculty of the conscious mind, and the establishment of acceptable selective thinking
2. Three models of the conscious and unconscious minds: The iceberg model, the horse and rider, and the flashlight in a dark room
2. A brief history of hypnosis
3. How to address common misconceptions about hypnosis
1. The fear of being controlled (hypnosis can't make anybody do anything against their will)
2. The fear of losing consciousness (the conscious mind usually remains active in hypnosis)
3. The fear of becoming "stuck" (no person has ever been unable to emerge from hypnosis)
4. The fear of revealing secrets (nothing will be revealed against the client's will)
4. The differences between stage hypnosis and hypnotherapy
5. How to test for suggestibility
1. Arms rising and falling test
2. Chevreul's pendulum
3. Hand clasp test (authoritarian and permissive)
4. Miscellaneous tests
6. Summary: How to deliver a compelling pre-talk
   1. Build rapport through pacing and leading
   2. Explain what hypnosis is, and what hypnosis isn't
   3. Use suggestibility testing to show the client how he or she responds to suggestion
   4. Build mental expectancy
7. Cautions to the new hypnotist
8. How to induce hypnosis
1. Authoritatian vs. permissive inductions
2. The Dr. Flowers induction: What, why and how
3. The Dave Elman induction: What, why and how
4. Progressive relaxation inductions: What, why and how
5. Instant inductions: What, why and how
6. Arm levitation induction: What, why and how
7. Miscellaneous inductions
9. Six important conditions for establishing the hypnotic trance
10. Desensitizing clients to outside sounds
11. Subjective and objective indicators of hypnosis
12. Four trance types
13. How to test for trance depth using the Arons scale
1. Stage 1: Eyelid catalepsy
2. Stage 2: Arm catalepsy
3. Stage 3: Number amnesia
4. Stage 4: Analgesia
5. Stage 5: Positive hallucinations
6. Stage 6: Negative hallucination
14. How to deepen hypnosis
1. Fractionation
2. Staircase, escalator and elevator deepeners
3. Miscellaneous deepeners
15. How to conduct the intake interview
1. Forms to use
2. The BASIC assessment
3. Goal-setting
4. Questions to ask the client
16. How to conduct an effective direct-suggestion session
1. How to toss your scripts away and never look back
2. The Goal Image Focusing Technique
3. The power of compounding suggestion
4. Gerald Kein's "direct drive" technique
5. Five laws of suggestion
17. Post-hypnotic suggestion: Seven rules for establishing
18. The beliefs, attitudes and approaches that will make you a successful hypnotist
1. NLP presuppositions
2. What it means to be client-centred
3. How people construct their models of reality—what you can do about it, and what you can't
4. What it means to be humanistic
5. What it means to be results-oriented
6. Group induction by instructor to instill attitudes
19. Age regression
1. How to deal with abreaction
2. Directed regressions
3. Non-directed regressions
4. The affect bridge technique
5. Using "clean language" in a regression
20. Parts mediation therapy: For addressing secondary gain and moving toward integration of conflicting "parts"
21. Chair therapy: For helping clients move on
22. Ideomotor signalling (finger signals)
1. Used instead of verbal feedback
2. Applied to progressive desensitization
23. Other states: Hyperempiria and the Esdaile state
24. Ego strengthening
25. Putting it all together: How to structure a session
26. How to structure a series of sessions
27. How to practice self-hypnosis and teach self-hypnosis to clients
28. Applications of hypnosis
1. Smoking cessation
2. Weight loss
3. Stress reduction
4. Pain control
5. Fears and anxieties
6. Fear of public speaking
7. Sexual problems
8. Habit control
9. Turning procrastination into motivation
29. Managing the suicidal client
30. Basic NLP for the hypnotist
1. Primary representational systems: Visual, auditory and kinesthetic
2. How to elicit and alter submodalities for powerful emotional change
3. Framing and reframing
4. Anchoring
5. How to use the Meta Model for discovering and expanding your client's model of the world
31. Introduction to Ericksonian (conversational, waking) hypnosis
1. The Milton Model: Language patterns for inducing trance and effecting change
2. Metaphors and storytelling
3. Utilization
32. Professional ethics
1. The ARCH Code of Ethics
2. Your scope of practice
3. Obtaining medical referrals
4. Other ethical issues that might arise
33. How to run a successful hypnosis practice
1. The Morpheus story: How my client base grew to support a full-time income in just five months
2. Marketing your hypnosis practice
3. The basics of running a business
4. Legal and accounting issues
34. Case studies of past clients
35. Extra time for questions and supervised practice

Student Testimonials

It has been a true gift to study and learn hypnosis from a master of his craft.

Luke is not only passionate about hypnosis but also is a smart business person which allows the student to take in a full picture of the craft and how one may market oneself once the course is complete.

For anyone who is has a desire to learn hypnosis you could not be in better hands. Luke will guide you step by step making sure that you leave the course with a solid foundation in the practise and artform of this exception tool.

From the moment I met Luke, studied with him, and had the privilege of experiencing my own sessions with him I felt as if I was in the presence of a gifted hypnosis prodigy.

If you want to learn the craft or take your existing set of hypnosis tools to the next level you have come to the right place.

— RM, Student and Client

Faye Elatrash, now an associate at The Morpheus Clinic, writes about her experience taking a course at the Morpheus Clinic compared to taking it with another major school in Toronto:

I was originally certified at another hypnosis school in Toronto, and I felt that it left me with a lot of holes in my knowledge. I didn't feel confident enough to practice hypnosis. After taking Luke's course, I feel completely qualified and eager to work with clients. His practical approach is exactly what I was looking for. He took the time to clarify concepts with me personally, and now I'm working with him in the clinic.

As a result of his course, I've learned many advanced hypnotic methods that I did not learn in my previous course. He introduced us to ideas like NLP, advanced language patterns and how to run an effective hypnosis business. He holds nothing back, and I feel like I've been let into a world that was unknown to me earlier.

— Faye Elatrash

J.M. of Toronto writes about his experience taking the certification course in July/August, 2008:

Luke is a very good instructor who's extremely knowledgeable about hypnosis. He explains the concepts well, and he’s good at transferring his knowledge to his students. His voice is very soothing and hypnotic.

Not only did he cover the basics, he also taught advanced forms of hypnotherapy that weren’t in the NGH books. I liked his demonstrations and hands-on practice sessions. He also used client examples and case studies to illustrate applications of hypnotherapy.

I like his practical, no-nonsense approach. There were no spiritual or metaphysical teachings.

The course structure was well-organized. I also enjoyed the marketing and business lectures in the end. Throughout the course, Luke truly cared about his students and he always answered your relevant questions to the best of his ability. The class size was really small and that meant you can have short and personal discussions with him.

Overall, it was a fun and rewarding experience for me. I learned a lot of about hypnosis and hypnotherapy during the course.

— J.M.

Hi Luke,

I just wanted to express my gratitude to you for providing such an in-depth, interesting and extremely useful certification course. Although previously certified through another organization, I felt I was lacking the tools to really help clients achieve their goals. The "Luke Style of Hypnosis" is absolutely superior to the standard "script reading" method taught by so many others. I would encourage anyone really interested in learning powerful hypnosis techniques to choose your course. I'm so glad I did!

Thank you again.

Kate Gardiner (now an intern at Morpheus)

For New Graduates: Internship Opportunities

My students are eligible to become interns at our office, where they receive one-on-one training and continuing supervised practice. After certification, internship is the next step to starting your own practice or joining The Morpheus Clinic as an associate.

For Professional Hypnotists: Consulting Services

For professional hypnotists outside of Toronto, Luke Chao provides consulting for hypnotherapy, practice management and the business of hypnotherapy. Please inquire for details.