Doug Sands, hypnotist and language learner explains how hypnosis works to help you learn languages and tells his own language story (Spanish) and how he became a hypnotist.

Vocabulary to focus on in this episode:

hypnotist: person who uses hypnosis as a form of treatment, or sometimes entertainment: I went to a hypnotist to try to give up smoking.

God hypnos: God of sleep

to have a minor in Psychology

anxiety: anxiety is an emotion characterized by an unpleasant state of inner turmoil and includes subjectively unpleasant feelings of dread over anticipated events.

“rural part of the US”: living in or characteristic of farming or country life. Oposed to living int he city / urban life. 

mind blowing: something that is so shocking, surprising, unexpected or wonderful that your brain cannot comprehend it. 

to stutter: talk with continued involuntary repetition of sounds, especially initial consonants.

the stakes are high: a high-stakes activity or situation involves a lot of risk or serious consequences.

In the podcast the sentence “The stakes aren’t really that high for us” was used. 

fundraiser:

1. One, such as a person or an organization, that raises funds.
2. A social function or activity, such as a raffle or musical concert, held for raising funds.

a raffle:
a means of raising money by selling numbered tickets, one or some of which are subsequently drawn at random, the holder or holders of such tickets winning a prize. For example: “a raffle ticket”

It started to click: Occasionally, people use click with something. This means that they like a new idea immediately or that they understand it very well and support it. The word click comes from the Dutch klikken. It has existed in English since the 1500s. It’s main meaning is the sound of a clock, which sounds like click.

trance: a state of hypnosis, the way or passage through

a suggestion: an idea or plan put forward for consideration.

Audiogram version of the Podcast:

https://share.descript.com/embed/qaje6aR7XQy

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Full Transcript:

Daniel’s Introduction to episode 99 of My Fluent Podcast

Daniel: Hello, Doug. It’s really nice to see you and to talk to you the reason why I am very thrilled is: your topic is really fantastic, right! And, and it never occurred to me that there is this possibility to support language learning with hypnosis. This was amazing when I heard that for the first time. (it sill is amazing by the way)

Yeah. welcome Doug.

Doug: Thank you so much. Thank you for having me.

Doug’s introduction – Who is Doug Sands, the hypnotist from the US

Daniel: We begin by introducing yourself.

Doug: Absolutely. Well, my name is Doug Sands and I am a hypnotist. I help people primarily with weights and anxiety, but I also see some clients for things like confidence and language learning and language retention, both things that can really help us to practice that language and really help to, cement that in our neural networks.

Daniel: As this is a language podcast. Maybe you could give us an explanation: What does hypnosis mean? Maybe you can also give some details from the etymology site?

The etymology of the word “hypnosis” – what does hypnosis mean?

Doug: Absolutely. So it hypnosis, most of us know hypnosis as this kind of stage show thing. You know, someone gets on stage and a person makes them bark like a dog or look like a chicken or some random thing, but hypnosis has a really long history of being used for therapeutic things and for change work and for memory as well, and that history extends all the way back to about the 18 hundreds and the actual history of hypnosis. And the word hypnosis comes from the ancient Greeks. In ancient Greece, they would create these sleep temples and that they would dedicate them to the God Hypnos the God of sleep. And in these temples, they would go into a different trances and they would do all funky things like play with snakes. And anyway, that was the first documented use of hypnosis. And since then it’s been, used as a tool that can help people with many different areas of language learning and other areas in their lifes.

Daniel: That sounds really interesting. And I am wondering how did you end up being a hypnotist and who or what inspired you?

How did Doug end up being a hypnotist

Doug: Being a hypnotist was not my first choice in life. I remember going to school for English writing at first and with a minor in psychology and so I

was looking for some way to deal with some mental health issues that I was working through. Things like anxiety and depression, and I’d gone to therapy and I’d had some medication and it helped, but it wasn’t the most effective use for me.

And so, I discovered hypnosis after a pretty important event in my life. I got lost on a hike in a very snowy part of the US in New Hampshire. And, I came pretty close to freezing to death, and it was that point. I realized I couldn’t keep living the way I was living, just pushing away that anxiety.

And so I discovered meditation, which for me, coming from a very rural part of the us that was mind blowing. And with meditation, I then discovered the link to hypnosis. And I discovered that it’s more than just the stage show thing that is actually used to help people. And so I used it a bit on myself and then I got interested in it as a passion project. And ultimately it became kind of the, the center of what I was doing day to day. And so I made a career out of it. And now I’m a full-time hypnotist and it’s a fantastic life.

Daniel:

Yeah, that is very inspiring because it started with a bad thing. Right. But it led to a very good thing and it made you the man who you are today. So to speak. And was it at difficult paths to become a hypnotist? I mean, is it difficult to learn all these methods.

Is hypnosis difficult to learn?

Doug: The actual process of hypnosis is actually not that hard to learn. It’s the process that happens after hypnosis in the middle of a session, after a person is in that creative trance-like state. Then we have to bring in tools from psychology and from language learning and memory and other tools like that to actually help in that state.

So learning hypnosis took about six months, I would say, to become proficient at, it took about two years of practice and continued learning. But to understand the psychology that goes into that, that is a continual process that I’m still continuing to learn.

Daniel: I think you had two mentors who helped you to become a hypnotist is that right?

Who were Doug’s mentors?

Doug: I think you had two mentors who helped you to become a hypnotist is that right?

That is true. My original mentors were two hypnotists out of Toronto, Canada, , by the names of Mike Mandel and Chris Thompson. And they have a podcast called the brain software podcast, which for anyone curious about it, curious about hypnosis. That’s a fantastic place to learn a little bit about it.

That’s where I got started.

Daniel: I think you had two mentors who helped you to become a hypnotist is that right?

Doug: That is true. My original mentors were two hypnotists out of Toronto, Canada, , by the names of Mike Mandel and Chris Thompson. And they have a podcast called the brain software podcast, which for anyone curious about it, curious about hypnosis. That’s a fantastic place to learn a little bit about it.

That’s where I got started.

Daniel: Yeah. Okay. what do you think, how exactly can hypnosis help a language learner to get fluent in a language or to get better in a specific language

How hypnosis helps language learners to get fluent

Doug: Absolutely. There are a couple of ways that hypnosis can really help. Perhaps the most important is with confidence. Oftentimes we know the words that we need to say in a new language, but we don’t feel confident to actually use that in everyday situations with native speakers. I know when I was learning my first second language, I should say, as Spanish for me.

I knew pretty much everything that I needed to say to these native speakers, but I didn’t have the confidence to actually step out and say it. And I actually had hypnosis to work with that with a fellow hypnotist. And that created one of the biggest changes in my speaking ability. And so that really kick-started my progression and really helps me to learn that language and integrate it into my life.

The second area is really about memory and about the way our brain stores. So the unconscious mind is always listening.

“the unconscious mind is always listening”

Doug Sands – On My Fluent Podcast

That’s the part of us that keeps us out of danger and records, our habits, and our learning. And with hypnosis, we are working with that unconscious mind to give us some direction. And with hypnosis, you can help your unconscious mind to pick out what is important to say.

This language is important to me. And so your unconscious mind will then start gathering little snippets of information that, you know, rules and grammar and other things that help build that structure that makes it automatic getting to that point that, you’re speaking or writing a language. And you know, that a certain phrase is correct, but you’re not exactly sure why it’s correct.

That’s the point it’s sunk into your unconscious and it’s become a habit for you.

Don’t rely only on hypnosis – keep your grammar books

Daniel: So that means that I am not allowed to throw away all my grammar books now. Right. It doesn’t work like

that.

Doug: Hypnosis is more so an accelerator, it’s a tool to use alongside the grammar books and the other tools.

Daniel: Hmm. Because iny my case when I remember back, for example, when I started with my fluent podcast, I could not at all speak fluently and I was very nervous also when I was speaking to people and I must admit this even applies to my mother tongue sometimes that I feel like I am stumbling over my own words or I have too many thoughts in my brain. (Check out for episode 1 of My Fluent Podcast)

I can’t express myself. For example, it depends on with whom I am speaking. So sometimes if I was speaking with a specific person, I can tell you beforehand that I’m gonna begin to stutter . Right. And I’m gonna feel like a fool, but I think it has to do a lot with my brain or not with my brain , with my psychology, right.

With my self-confidence , so hypnosis can help us to overcome this, um, kind of this barrier, right.

Doug: Yes. Hypnosis has long been used for many times, many types of confidence, whether it’s with language learning or if it’s relationship confidence, or even for public speaking, that kind of confidence. And when our brain is tripping ourselves up before we even start that conversation, it’s really just a fear or anxiety response. And so hypnosis helps us convince the unconscious that it is okay to make mistakes. It is okay to stumble a little bit because we know we will recover and we know that the stakes aren’t really that high for us.

Daniel: Okay, amazing. let’s focus on your stage hypnosis, right? So. What about you in the beginning, when you can remember back for the very first time when you were on stage compared to today was there kind of a transformation or is it, completely different today in terms of how you’re doing your show?

How Doug changed over the time being a hypnotist

Doug: Yes, it is when I first started doing it, shows for fundraisers and for high schools and colleges, I was extremely nervous. I remember sweating through my shirt multiple times and different shows. And, once I started to get the structure of the actual show and the interplay with the volunteers.

It started to click and I started to feel more comfortable on stage and that comfortability actually helped me to make the shows better, to make them show is more enjoyable for the audience. And, really just over time that has become a well-oiled machine so that I can, Do those shows very quickly and very effectively and still help the audience to enjoy them.

Daniel: And did you hypnotize yourself to make a better show?

About hypnotising yourself (self-hypnosis)

Doug: I did actually. I use self-hypnosis almost every morning to, work through any issues that I’ve got or to build towards goals that I’m working towards in my own life.

I did actually. I use self-hypnosis almost every morning to, work through any issues that I’ve got or to build towards goals that I’m working towards in my own life.

DanieI: I assume that making hypnosis on stage and making hypnosis for, how will you call it? Therapeutically or how do you call it?

The differences between stage hypnotising and hypnoting for therapy

Doug: For therapy and for change work.

Daniel: yeah, exactly these type of works are completely different, I assume. Right.

Doug: Yes. The actual structure of hypnotizing someone is very similar with both. But, , what you do after that person is in that trance, in that state of hypnosis, that’s the difference in a state show you are simply giving them funny suggestions, whereas in a therapeutic, state or to change work state, you are giving them suggestions that will last for life.

That will actually benefit them as they go on after the session.

Daniel: How can we think of therapeutically hypnosis? How many time does it take until the first results kick in.

How many hypnosis sessions are necessary until the results show

Doug: Most often my clients notice some very dramatic results after the very first session. And so hypnosis is extremely rapid when we actually want to make that change. I typically recommend clients come in for two to four sessions, spread out over a month. And after that, the changes are in place and they’re going to last for life.

Daniel: Are there even people who come to you and and say, I want to become a better Spanish speaker. Let’s say Is this, is this really possible. Are there even people who come to you and and say, I want to become a better Spanish speaker. Let’s say Is this, is this really possible

How hypnosis and language learning go hand in hand

Doug: Yeah. Hypnosis and language learning they go hand in hand hypnosis works with that part of our brain that really stores the ability to speak a new language and to speak it fluently. And so hypnosis is is kind of a way to fast-track language learning.

Daniel: And is it also possible to make hypnosis via the internet? I mean online hypnosis sessions, do you make them.

Doug: Yes. Yes. I actually built my business to be entirely online, but I could work with people. In Europe, in Canada, in Australia, people who couldn’t make it into a physical office. And that has helped me to, reach quite a broad audience, from people were looking for weight loss and anxiety, to confidence, to language learning.

I mean, we’re all traveling in today’s day and age, perhaps less due to COVID, but we’re all looking to interact with new cultures.

DanieL: May I ask you how much does a session cost?

How much does a hypnosis session cost?

Doug: Yeah, absolutely. So a session of hypnosis for language learning typically runs anywhere from about $150 us to about $300.

Daniel: Okay. So it would be interesting to like try it but what I assume that. It will not be very wise to just try it once because it would be much wiser to go on with the sessions to get more effective results.

How many hypnosis sessions are recommended?

Doug: Yes to get more effective results. I typically recommend two to three sessions. Um, but if someone is curious just to experience hypnosis, yeah. One session will definitely help.

Daniel: How do the people need to prepare beforehand before a session?

What to prepare before a hypnosis session?

Doug: There really isn’t much to prepare for. I have no succession. They simply need to be in a comfortable place where they’re not going to be disturbed and.

the most important part is to be willing to change because a hypnotist, unlike what many of us believe they cannot force a change, or they can not force anyone to do anything against their will.

A person who wants to change for language learning, they have to be ready to invest in themselves and ready to actually make those changes and experience the life that comes after.

Daniel: This is a really interesting point. So it is not possible to influence people that they are making bad things, right? Like, I don’t know if you knew about the movie. Get out. It’s an American movie, a horror movie, which I watched. And the, yeah, it’s exactly about that. So, so in real life that doesn’t exist.

That doesn’t exist. Yeah. And in “Get Out” the main character would have been brought out of hypnosis as soon as their mind felt unsafe. So hypnosis is an extremely, it’s an extremely client led experience, meaning that if the client doesn’t feel safe or doesn’t want to make these changes, those changes aren’t going to happen.

I see. So could you enjoy the movie nevertheless

Doug: I enjoyed the movie. I had to suspend my disbelief, but it was enjoyable.

Okay. Perfect. You mentioned that you were learning Spanish as well. What were the reasons to learn Spanish? And, maybe you could tell us a little bit about your language journey.

Doug’s language journey – why Doug learned Spanish

Doug: Yes. I was traveling for the first time over here in the US people don’t travel internationally very often. And so when I stepped out, I first went to Mexico, which is just south of us. And I fell in love with traveling as many of us do. And so I traveled extensively around Latin America and I traveled to places that aren’t quite as touristy or where people don’t speak English as often.

And I realized I was ha! I was able to communicate the basics, you know, how the price of a mango or something, but to actually communicate and to ask directions and just to enjoy my time, I wanted to learn a little bit of a language so that I could at least get around.

Daniel: And what are some tips and tricks you would give to other learners besides of taking hypnosis? What worked for you?

Doug’s tips and tricks for language learners

Doug: What worked for me is doing a small amount every day. When I first started out, I used to do a lot of practice, you know, a couple of times per week and I would get burned out. I would not have the energy to sustain that. And so just doing 15 minutes a day of language learning, it didn’t seem like much, but over time it really helped keep that language fresh and keep it moving forward for me.

Daniel: Would you also recommend to meditate on a regular basis?

Doug: I do. I recommend it. I personally use both self hypnosis and meditation every single day. I think they help to regulate my mental states and with meditation and language learning that meditative state can really help use to stay calm in those situations where you might not have a full grasp of the language, but you can stumble your way through it and still be ok.

Daniel: I was wondering, do. you have a favorite expression in English?

Doug’s favorite expression/idiom in English

Doug: I do. I think my favorite expression is the phrase. “You can have your cake and eat it too“, meaning that you can enjoy whatever it is that you’re enjoying and you don’t have to feel guilty for it. You don’t have to feel bad about enjoying it. You can simply have essentially the best of both worlds.

Daniel: Yeah, I love that one. That is cool.

Do you have any expression in Spanish maybe that you like very much

Doug’s favorite Spanish expression

Doug: I think my favorite expression in Spanish is a pan comida, which means eaten bread, which is a way of saying it’s as easy as eating bread. It’s kind of, it’s kind of fair way of saying it’s a piece of cake. And so, when I first learned that I had no idea what it meant and, now it’s something that I just drop into everyday language.

Daniel: great. Thank you very much Doug.

And maybe you want to mention where we can find you.

Doug: Yeah, absolutely. If you’re curious about hypnosis, I encourage you to check out my own website . Anywhere hypnosis. I built anywhere hypnosis to be, available for anyone, any language speaker or anyone looking to learn English as well. And they can find that at anywherehypnosis.com.

Daniel: Great. Thank you very much. And you mentioned another podcast, my question is why did you not created an own podcast?

Why Doug hasn’t created a podcast yet.

Doug: I’ve been looking into creating my own podcasts and it’s something that I’ve been interested in awhile. And I’m just looking for the time at this point.

Daniel: Do you have any favorite podcasts which you’re using for meditation or maybe other fields that you like that comes to mind right now?

Doug’s favorite meditation and language learning podcasts

Doug: I really enjoy the podcast by Headspace for meditation. And I really enjoy a couple of different Spanish speaking podcasts. One is the Duolingo podcast, a classic and another is, I think it’s learning Spanish rapidly. I think so.

Daniel: I also loved the Duolingo podcast because every episode there is another story from Spanish speaking countries. And it’s really interesting because we get to know about other cultures or about a story of other people. And, and this is right up my alley.

Doug: Absolutely. So thank you very much. It was a pleasure to have you here and yeah, thanks. It was really great, Doug!

Absolutely. Thank you so much for having me.

Have a good day.

Daniel: Bye. Bye. Doug .

Bye.