A relaxed, focused state of concentration. That is the definition. But the
actual state of hypnosis is a
little harder to define. Until recently it was assumed that it was similar to
sleep, or that the mind was somehow unconscious. In reality, there is a specific
state that the brain enters into when it is receptive to suggestion. This has
been discovered on scans during hypnosis. It is not an unusual state of mind,
and may feel like you are not in a trance, or in hypnosis. For most people they
simply feel relaxed. There is a change in the brain wave activity, similar to
that time just before sleep when the alpha state is entered. Your brain's waking
state is a beta brain wave, just as you are going to sleep it changes to alpha
and then to delta and theta in deep sleep. The alpha state is a very dreamy,
pleasant state. During this time the mind is very open to visualizations and
creating a rich sensory experience. The more real the experience becomes in the
subconscious mind during this state, the more effect it will have on your waking
behavior.

Hypnosis is a normal state of mind, one which most people go in and out of every day. When you are watching a movie that you are engrossed in, driving down a long monotonous road, listening to music that captures a mood or engrosses you, you are in hypnosis. We experience hypnosis every day and don't even know it. When you are in a guided hypnotic trance session, or driving down the road in trance, you have an observer self, which is an actual part of you that is always aware and watching out for you. This observer self has been documented as a credible aspect of our mind, that keeps us safe, even when asleep. During hypnosis you can trust that your observer self will watch over you. This is not a guide or spiritual being, is a scientific discovery of a function of our brain. During a hypnosis session you would instantly get up and leave the room if it caught on fire, even if had previously felt like your arms and leg were too heavy to move.

In fact, since hypnosis can help make us sharper and more aware mentally, it actually may help keep us safer, by making us more aware of our surroundings during the day. If your perception of what is happening around you is better, you will notice things that are happening with greater clarity and perhaps make better decisions.