I Got Hypnotized To See If It's Fake

0:00 What's going on with hypnotism?

0:02 On one hand, I've heard it's real,

0:03 and I've seen some incredible videos of people

0:05 like forgetting their own names under hypnosis.

0:08 What's your name?

0:08 But on the other hand, if it is real,

0:10 I feel like we're all very nonchalant about that fact.

0:13 Like, there are just people out there that can

0:14 take over your mind for a little bit.

0:16 How does that work?

0:17 I especially want to know what's it like to be the person getting hypnotized.

0:20 Give me an interview with the person who just forgot their own name.

0:24 What happened to you?

0:24 Anyways, I'm going to try to get hypnotized like three different ways

0:27 to find out if hypnosis is real and what it feels like.

0:30 Y'all want to come?

0:32 [Music] Good, cuz I actually already did the first one.

0:35 I found this YouTube video called,

0:36 "Can I hypnotize you in 30 seconds?" And I thought,

0:39 "That sounds quick to do." So, I just did it right before I filmed this intro.

0:42 Have you ever wondered, could I hypnotize?

0:44 Am I the sort of person that's susceptible to mind control?

0:47 Well, it's not mind control.

0:48 It's just thinking about things.

0:49 And sometimes the things we think about are the things that happen.

0:52 So, if you want to try something, all you need to do is get your hands,

0:55 put your hands together like this and clasp them together like that.

0:58 Now, take your index fingers and put them parallel and just

1:01 focus your eyes on that gap between the two fingers.

1:04 Just focus your eyes really strongly on the gap.

1:06 And as you do that, imagine that the ends of your fingers are like magnets.

1:09 And the magnets are getting stronger and stronger with every second.

1:12 And the more that you imagine

1:14 that the magnets are pulling your fingers together,

1:16 the stronger they become until your fingers can get closer and closer.

1:19 And if they are moving, if they're closing together,

1:21 I can show you how susceptible you are.

1:22 If they're not moving,

1:23 maybe that's cuz you're trying really hard to make it not.

1:25 No, they're already together.

1:27 Keep imagining that those magnets are pulling them together.

1:28 They already are together.

1:29 All right.

1:30 Well, I guess that worked.

1:31 I guess I don't know.

1:33 Was that Is that hypnotism?

1:34 Is that what hypnotism is?

1:35 It kind of just felt like my fingers just wanted to be together.

1:38 Like when you hold them like this, they naturally do that.

1:41 Do they just naturally do that?

1:45 No.

1:46 I guess I can hold them like this just fine.

1:48 Okay.

1:48 Well, dang.

1:49 Maybe I got hypnotized that quick.

1:50 The second type of hypnosis is hypnotherapy.

1:53 I always kind of just assumed hypnosis was fake until I talked

1:57 to a family member who said they got hypnotized to stop smoking.

2:00 But apparently there are hypnotherapists all over the place who are more

2:03 than happy to hypnotize you for a wide variety of things like addiction,

2:07 phobias, throat lump issues, bad karma won't go away.

2:12 These are real ones from actual hypnotherapist websites.

2:15 As for myself, I'm hoping to get hypnotized

2:17 to cure my lifelong battle with my nails.

2:19 I've bitten my nails as long as I can remember.

2:21 I hate it.

2:22 Laura hates it.

2:23 I bite my nails so much I chip my tooth.

2:25 So hopefully this guy can fix it or at least

2:27 replace it with like a healthier habit like smoking.

2:29 I really want this to work.

2:30 So I've intentionally like not looked up much about hypnotherapy

2:34 cuz my instincts tell me it's one of those things

2:35 that you have to like fully buy into and I

2:37 don't want to read something that makes me doubt it.

2:39 So, the only thing I know right now is that I'm going

2:41 to be paying $450 over two sessions to get hypnotized via Zoom.

2:49 [Music] Okay, so for privacy reasons,

2:57 I can't actually show the hypnotist in the video or play his voice,

3:01 but I'm going to describe best I can what happened in this call.

3:04 To my surprise, he kind of spent the first few minutes just

3:06 giving me basic nailbiting advice that has nothing to do with hypnosis.

3:10 He recommended I get a nail file, pick one day a week that's my nail care day.

3:14 He also said I should meditate cuz that would

3:15 help with stress and reduce my nailbiting on its own.

3:18 And he taught me a self-hypnosis that I can do anytime

3:21 I feel the urge to bite my nails from here on out.

3:23 And then the last thing he told me

3:24 before he started hypnotizing was that he highly

3:27 recommends I listen to the recording of our hypnosis

3:30 session every night before I go to sleep.

3:32 And with that, it was time to be hypnotized.

3:35 For this portion, he actually hung up the Zoom

3:37 call and then called me on a regular phone call.

3:40 I don't know if he just like didn't want the visual distraction of him

3:44 on the screen or if he wanted to like put on pajamas or something.

3:46 He started by trying to get me as relaxed as possible,

3:49 focusing on different areas of my body from head

3:52 to toe and imagining that they were getting

3:54 heavier and heavier to the point where my body

3:56 felt like it was sinking into the couch.

3:58 And I'm guessing this is the point where I'm supposed to be

4:00 like fully in a hypnotic state because from here on out,

4:02 he basically tells me this kind of inspirational energizing

4:06 story that's going to change my mindset around my nails.

4:09 I followed his instructions,

4:11 imagining my body dematerializing in a ray of light that shines around me,

4:15 protecting my teeth and my nails.

4:17 And I rode the ray of light to a peaceful beach where I

4:20 laid with a different version of myself lying on either side of me.

4:23 On my left was the version of myself who bites my nails.

4:27 On the right was a calm, cool,

4:30 and confident version of myself with absolutely pristine nails.

4:35 This was all a very peaceful and relaxing experience.

4:37 I never did worry that somebody else had control over my mind,

4:41 but I did have doubts as to whether I was really being hypnotized.

4:44 It was a pretty long time that my eyes were closed,

4:46 and I had a hard time paying attention for that long.

4:48 So, I'd catch myself thinking about other stuff, and then I'd be like, "Oh no,

4:51 this is going to ruin the hypnotism." And there were a few times

4:54 the hypnotist did this alarming thing where

4:56 he would just whisper a command like this.

4:58 He'd be like, "And now you're going to stop biting your nails." Anyway,

5:02 all I had to do from here was decide

5:04 that this is the version of myself I wanted to be.

5:07 And oh, baby did I.

5:09 So, he told me to wiggle my toes and materialize myself into my ideal form.

5:15 [Music] I'm[ __] cured, man.

5:29 That night, I tucked myself into bed

5:30 and listened to the hypnosis recording as instructed,

5:33 which did feel a little silly given

5:35 that the session had only ended like 30 minutes ago.

5:38 But hey, maybe getting hypnotized back

5:39 to back will make the effects even stronger.

5:41 Again, I did feel very relaxed during this recording,

5:44 but I still didn't know if I could say I was hypnotized.

5:47 Good night.

5:47 The next morning, however, I did notice that I wasn't really biting

5:50 my nails or really even looking at them.

5:53 Maybe it was just in my head,

5:54 but they looked hard, like actually unpleasant to bite.

5:57 Was I really hypnotized last night,

5:58 or was I just discovering the placebo effect?

6:01 I don't even care.

6:02 I squealled with delight and got to work filming

6:05 for a different video I'm working on right now,

6:07 enjoying my new non-nail biting self.

6:10 Oh, wait.

6:10 What the hell?

6:13 Did I just bite my nail?

6:15 Damn it.

6:17 Well, good thing I was filming when I did it.

6:19 __] I bit my nail.

6:23 Damn.

6:23 Well, that's obviously not great, man.

6:25 I was really optimistic this morning

6:26 that it actually worked and I was hypnotized,

6:29 but then I stopped paying attention for one second

6:32 and I'm not just having the urge to bite my nails, but I already bit it.

6:35 How am I supposed to stop biting my nails

6:37 if my body just does it without even asking first?

6:40 I'm worried now.

6:41 I feel like I was just living an illusion this morning and none of it worked.

6:45 I just pulled the bottom card out of a house

6:47 of cards and the whole thing just tumbled over.

6:50 Maybe I am a nailbiter and I always will be.

6:52 And on top of that, I'm dumb for spending $250 on this.

6:56 And on top of that, I'm ugly.

6:58 Doesn't have to do with my nailbiting.

6:59 I just feel really down on myself right now.

7:01 I did do the self-hypnosis that he taught me right afterwards.

7:04 Again, still not exactly sure that that's hypnotizing me.

7:08 I'm going to continue doing everything I was supposed to do,

7:10 listening to the recording, doing the self-hypnosis as needed, and meditating,

7:15 and hopefully this was just a glitch and everything's going to be fine.

7:19 To my surprise, something did seem to change after this.

7:22 The next few days, I did have a few instances where

7:24 I lifted my hand to my mouth just out of muscle memory,

7:27 but I caught myself right away.

7:28 And after day four, I wasn't doing it at all.

7:31 I was listening to the recording every night,

7:33 following the hypnotist's advice and taking good care of my nails,

7:36 and they were actually almost starting to look normal.

7:39 I had my second session with the hypnotist, which ran me another $200.

7:43 Luckily, this portion of the video is sponsored by SoFi,

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7:48 The hypnotist checked in on my progress.

7:50 He said I was doing great, in fact,

7:52 better than most people he works with at this stage,

7:54 which I don't know if that's necessarily a good sign.

7:56 During the hypnotism, I had trouble concentrating again.

7:59 I guess I just couldn't stop thinking about how

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9:07 After 7 days, I was doing so well,

9:09 I decided I could stop meditating and listening to the recording every night.

9:12 I mean, it kind of seemed like I was done biting my nails.

9:15 Surely, I didn't even need those anymore, right?

9:20 You guys, it's been 30 days and I

9:22 haven't bitten my nails once since that first time.

9:26 [Music] Peekaboo.

9:31 It's kind of a crazy way to reveal my nails.

9:33 Look.

9:34 Now, just because I stopped biting my nails,

9:36 does that 100% mean that I for sure got hypnotized?

9:40 No.

9:41 Honestly, no.

9:41 I don't think it does.

9:42 Honestly, I think it's possible that I was hypnotized,

9:45 but I'm leaning towards I don't think so.

9:48 Honestly, I kind of feel like it was all

9:50 the other advice on top of listening to that very inspirational,

9:53 albeit non-hypnotizing recording every night that actually made the difference.

9:57 At the end of the day,

9:58 maybe I didn't need to get hypnotized to stop biting my nails.

10:02 Maybe I had it in me all along, which is kind of inspirational and also makes me

10:06 feel like[ __] in a way because then it's like,

10:08 why didn't I just do this earlier?

10:10 Regardless, I am still open to the possibility that I was in fact hypnotized.

10:13 I feel like if I can get hypnotized by the stage hypnotist,

10:16 then I'll know for sure what being hypnotized feels like.

10:18 And then I'll know for sure if I was hypnotized back then, too.

10:22 Hypnosis is a state of focus without much awareness of peripheral noise.

10:30 You're concentrated on one thing and the world kind of slips away.

10:33 This is stage hypnotist Chris Jones.

10:35 He's been on America's Got Talent.

10:37 He's performed all over the world for over a decade.

10:39 So, if anyone's going to be able to hypnotize me, it better be this guy.

10:43 Also, the GoPro on my head died the second we started getting hypnotized.

10:46 So, don't get your hopes up for any shots from this camera.

10:49 All right, fine.

10:49 You can have this one, but that's it.

10:51 Chris suggested that this would be a lot more fun with a group,

10:53 so I got some friends together and we all sat down for a night of hypnotism.

10:58 I want to know your opinions, and don't worry about hurting my feelings at all.

11:01 I want to know if you think hypnosis is real.

11:03 Shenanigans, you need more evidence.

11:05 Uh, yeah, I believe it's real.

11:07 I'm definitely I don't like saying this in front of you like a harder wall

11:11 for myself because I feel like that's a challenge

11:13 and that makes me like kind of uncomfortable.

11:15 Yeah, I would say I think it is probably real sometimes.

11:19 I think in general I'm pretty skeptical

11:21 of like supernatural stuff, but I don't know.

11:24 I really do kind of believe hypnotism.

11:26 I really want to be hypnotized, but I feel like maybe it won't work on me.

11:31 But I hope it does.

11:32 Before we got started,

11:33 Chris allowed some time for us to ask

11:34 him questions about what was about to happen.

11:36 like whether all of us would get hypnotized or just some of us.

11:39 I I've done this in 50 states and in 10 countries.

11:42 I can hypnotize 25% of any given audience.

11:46 So, one or two people are going to get hypnotized today.

11:50 And it might be the camera person.

11:51 I don't know.

11:52 I really honest to goodness don't know.

11:53 We also asked if he could tell if

11:55 someone was really hypnotized or just faking it.

11:58 When your head is up, we can tell.

12:01 people hypnotized look like they've had a few

12:03 drinks or they're going to look like

12:05 they've been riding a car with a Scooby-Doo

12:08 and Willie Nelson for a couple hours.

12:11 They're going to look real relaxed.

12:13 Okay, I was like, so like they look like Scrappy.

12:17 We also noted that Brian seemed to be the one who believed in hypnosis

12:21 the most and he was also maybe the most nervous about what was going to happen.

12:25 Well, what what's what are you going to do to me?

12:29 That's a good other question.

12:30 Like, what are you going to do to me if I get hypnotized?

12:34 Honest to goodness, I don't know.

12:38 Oh, I'm going to put my hand over all of you

12:39 and tell you who I think is most likely to get hypnotized.

12:43 I'm pointing in the direction of the person

12:45 who I think is most likely to get hypnotized.

12:48 Now, you won't see the induction often on TV

12:52 or podcast or even movies because this next part,

12:56 if you watch it in its entirety, it could hypnotize people.

13:00 So, they're going to cut it up a little bit

13:01 so folks at home don't get hypnotized while driving a car.

13:06 So, you put your hands together for me like this.

13:09 The induction lasted a few minutes and just like the hypnotherapy,

13:12 it seemed to involve getting us really relaxed.

13:15 There's different strategies getting someone hypnotized.

13:17 I have you focus on my voice and your breathing.

13:20 So, take a gentle breath in.

13:21 And it seemed to rely heavily on using our imagination.

13:24 Like, he had us imagine that our fingers were pulling together with magnets.

13:28 And you can whisper the words to yourself or out loud.

13:31 The word is magnets.

13:33 One, two, three, magnets.

13:35 And then I see who's the best candidate.

13:37 The best personality.

13:38 People have a great imagination.

13:40 Imagine I put a 10 lb brick into that empty palm.

13:43 So your palm just starts to get more heavy.

13:47 And then I make them drop and sleep

13:51 all the way down every muscle and every nerve.

13:55 Allow your eyes to open.

14:09 Take another deep breath in slowly, gently.

14:12 One, two, and three.

14:13 Eyes open.

14:17 Yes.

14:17 So, we understand.

14:20 You can see like a before and after.

14:22 You see their faces getting a little bit

14:24 of that drunky or like stony look to them.

14:26 Brian, of course.

14:28 Yeah.

14:28 What's happening?

14:29 What What are you feeling?

14:30 Tell us your wife because you are a great candidate for hypnosis.

14:33 I can totally tell you are there.

14:35 Danny's there as well.

14:36 I just want you all to interact in a moment.

14:37 But what are you feeling right now?

14:39 I just hanging out with the crew.

14:45 Is there anything that he could do or wouldn't do that' be like,

14:50 "Holy canoli, this my husband,

14:54 my partner for life is in a different headsp space." Jeez, I don't know.

15:00 I was hoping this wasn't going to happen.

15:01 I wouldn't be put on a spot like this.

15:04 I don't know.

15:04 What would you not do?

15:06 And um [Music] for whatever reason,

15:10 we couldn't seem to come up with a single thing

15:12 that Brian would never do off the top of our heads.

15:15 I guess that's just a testament to what an insane dude Brian is.

15:18 Whatever the reason,

15:19 all this uncertainty seemed to pull Brian out of his hypnotic trance.

15:23 So Chris quickly moved on to his next target.

15:26 Thank you, Brian.

15:27 Of course, and sleep.

15:29 Relax and let go from the top of your head to very very bottom feet.

15:31 Relax every muscle and every nerve and every fiber in your body.

15:34 In a moment, I want you to picture and feel in your mind's

15:36 eye that you again are holding on to a healing balloon.

15:39 So, make that right fist strong.

15:40 Now, make a fist and let that balloon I tie

15:43 after your wrist pull higher and higher towards the ceiling.

15:45 It's going to extend.

15:46 Now, let that entire arm stand up towards the ceiling.

15:49 Focus on nothingness but that feeling of lightness.

15:51 Now, three numbers.

15:52 You're going to open your eyes.

15:53 Your arm is stuck.

15:54 Cemented cast iron in that position.

15:56 You can't get your arm down.

15:57 That's just the crazy[ __] That's just how it's going

15:59 to work for the next 2 3 4 5 6 minutes.

16:01 Your arm is stuck until I unstuck it.

16:03 Eyes open.

16:05 So this again is a hypnotic state.

16:07 Everyone experiences it in different forms, shapes.

16:10 What's on your mind, please?

16:12 The show is ours.

16:14 The show is ours.

16:15 This is interesting.

16:16 I'm not sure if I'm hypnotized.

16:17 I don't think I am.

16:21 Yeah.

16:19 But but at any point,

16:24 I mean, I was really trying to go along with it and like, you know,

16:27 do as much like uh you know, mentally imaging things and I was like,

16:33 he's not focusing on me for a reason.

16:36 And it will all make sense in the end.

16:38 Yes.

16:42 Question.

16:41 Can you put your hand down or is it [Music] I think so.

16:48 It did feel stuck for a little bit.

16:50 It does feel like it wants to be up.

16:51 It's not going down.

16:52 Yeah.

16:53 Well, it did just now, right?

16:54 Is that that?

16:55 Okay.

16:56 Okay.

16:56 It's okay.

16:58 And I uh I can't help but notice we

17:00 can all see clearly that arm is back up there.

17:04 That's like the resting position for you right now.

17:06 That's that's how his arm always is.

17:13 That's how my arm always is.

17:14 Point one finger on that hand.

17:16 Mhm.

17:16 When that finger touches you on the face,

17:18 and it will you're going to go back to that state of deep relaxation again.

17:23 Cool.

17:24 This is a text message.

17:25 All right.

17:27 All right.

17:27 You can share that with your husband.

17:29 Go to sleep right.

17:40 Great.

17:38 Great.

17:38 Sometimes you get some folks.

17:47 Okay.

17:48 3 2 1 Danny wide awake.

17:50 Hey, uh, your homeboy has a text for you.

17:52 You can just read that.

17:54 Go to sleep, Danny.

17:59 I I will go to sleep.

18:02 Okay, clearly the dynamic changed here a little bit.

18:05 And I'm still not exactly sure what happened,

18:07 but somehow both Brian and I got snapped

18:10 out of whatever might have been going on.

18:12 But just when all hope seemed lost, Chris had me close my eyes one more time.

18:18 And uh Danny, you can just keep sleeping.

18:21 And I think it'll be funny if we just step away.

18:24 Danny can relax and let go.

18:26 And that's the show we'll let ourselves out.

18:31 [Music] I feel bad.

18:37 I heard you guys all along.

18:39 That's fine.

18:40 That's fine.

18:41 I didn't know if I was supposed to stay asleep or what.

18:43 What's up?

18:43 Good morning.

18:44 So, even though it wore off pretty quickly,

18:45 I think we can all agree by the look on my face,

18:48 I was in some different kind of mental state, at least for a little bit there.

18:52 So, is hypnotism real?

18:54 Maybe.

18:54 So, what does it feel like?

18:56 Well, just ask Danny from right after the hypnotist left.

18:59 I'm curious.

19:01 Did it seem like I was hypnotized?

19:04 Yes.

19:04 Okay.

19:04 A little bit.

19:05 Cuz I feel like I don't really I don't really think I was.

19:12 Really?

19:12 Naturally, what followed was about 20 minutes of the rest

19:14 of the group trying to convince me that I was in fact hypnotized.

19:17 Physically, I was shocked with how much you guys collapsed.

19:20 You two did definitely have like a very glassy

19:23 Almost feels like I'm gaslighting you about you being hypnotized.

19:26 For somebody to come up and be like, "Sleep and then you collapse is like such

19:30 a suggestible state that is not your own."

19:33 Am I just a little[ __] that'll do anything anyone tells me?

19:36 I can't believe it, but I genuinely

19:38 didn't realize I was hypnotized until the next

19:40 day when I watched the footage and realized how out of it I was.

19:46 Okay.

19:45 Okay.

19:46 No, I maybe I see a little bit of what he was talking about there.

19:49 I do look a little bit uh a little bit out of it actually.

19:53 I guess in the end hypnotism is real,

19:55 but it doesn't feel at all how I thought it would.

19:57 It kind of just felt like I was very relaxed,

20:00 maybe even a little bit tipsy or like dazed.

20:02 It honestly felt kind of good.

20:04 And I think you can tell I was a little extra giggly.

20:06 Hey, look.

20:07 It says all those things on Google, too.

20:09 That's crazy.

20:10 I didn't have to make this video at all.

20:11 Now that I know what it's supposed to feel like,

20:13 I guess I could say it's possible that I

20:15 really did get hypnotized to stop biting my nails, too.

20:17 I just didn't understand what it was supposed to feel like.

20:20 But I still don't know that I recommend it for the $450 I ended up paying.

20:24 Especially when there's a bunch of free hypnosis

20:26 sessions on YouTube you could probably just try.

20:28 Damn, I can't believe I'll never bite my nails again.

20:31 Thanks for watching, guys.

20:36 [Music]