wohermiston wrote:Erickson states that to be truly under, the subject must be observed directly and tested by the 'tist. this makes audio files a little harder for success. The hope is that repeated listenings will allow you to become comfortable with the voice. there are deepners and files that help you accept hypnosis more. you could seek out those to add to a play list. I am considering experimenting with idoser.com files which can offer the same thing. don't give up now though, success could be just round the corner.
good luck
personal opinions throughout:
just for the curious, part of the reason for the test is to also convince and reinforce the trance state in the subject. While it is true testing etc is extremely useful, particularly when starting out, it is not essential.
one problem with self hypno (and audios), is most people startig out attempt to check they're in trance and consequently engage the part of the mind that is usually disengaged... bringing them out of trance.
Another issue some people have is misconceptions on what trance feels like. because they expect one thing (typically eyes closed, conscious mind off line), or they expect to go from awake to deep trance from the start.
Trance is different for everyone. some go "zombie mode" almost instantly. others remain lucid and coherent in even the deepest of trances. Some only need a few words, others need considerable work - for which general audios can't account for.
As a result, the easiest way to learn self hypnosis (which can be used at the start of an audio), is to get a one time session with a tist to give you a self trigger (and one only you can use), and personally, describe how you want trance to feel and test it out / tweak it while you're with the tist.