By Ljudmila Petrovic
Photos by Mark Burnham
Think of a hypnotist and you probably get an image of a pendulum and a voice crooning, “You are getting very sleepy.” But MJ Woo looks like any other SFU student, except for his hypnosis skills.
He started off as a magician, but about five years ago, he decided he wanted to try something new. And so he embarked on a still-ongoing learning experience.
He got some training in Vegas and across the States; mostly stage hypnosis to begin with. “Stage hypnosis is mostly comedy-based, and it’s what you often see on stage,” explains MJ. “It could range from all ages to just adult, content-wise. I personally like to do comedy for all ages.” He is quick to elaborate that there are different forms of hypnosis, such as hypnotherapy. Hypnotherapy is used more for education and it is characterized by the hypnotist’s role in helping to get rid of their clients’ limiting beliefs so that they will change a behavior, such as smoking.
“The thing about hypnosis is, if you know how to do one [type], you could practically do any of it pretty safely,” says MJ. “If you’re trained in stage hypnosis, actually, you’re a little moreflexible, more so than hypnosis in a therapy room.” This being said, he stresses that he is not a hypnotherapist, but a hypnotist. Another newer form of hypnosis that MJ talks about is street hypnosis, which is similar to any other form of street performance. While he has dabbled in this form of hypnosis, he prefers doing comedy shows. But what are the dangers of hypnosis?
“Contrary to popular belief, it’s actually pretty safe,” MJ insists. He is very careful to keep his eyes on everyone in the audience. If he has any doubts at all about a person or thinks that they might react strangely, he is sure to immediately get them off the stage and make sure they’re alright. For the most part, however, MJ says that negative reactions are rare; in fact, the most common reaction is that somebody will burst out laughing.
“When I talk to people, one of the biggest fears people have is what happens, can I get stuck in hypnosis?” he explains. “But honestly, there are only two things that can happen: you’ll realize I’m not talking and you’ll just open your eyes, and you’ll just walk away. Two, you’ll just fall asleep and wake up a bit later and feel like you had a nap. Those are the only two things that can happen.”
Despite what you may think, hypnosis itself doesn’t actually take long to learn; according to MJ, it’s the practice that takes years. In fact, one of the common elements used by hypnotists is progressive muscle relaxation, which SFU’s Health and Counseling Services’ website offers videos on.
“Hypnosis is just speaking to someone,” states MJ. “You’re just giving someone directions and they’re following it. That’s it. And they’re following it into hypnosis. That’s it.” He likes to host as many comedy shows as possible using hypnosis to show students that it’s not scary; in fact, it can be very useful for things such as concentration and can aid in quitting smoking.
On a personal level, MJ sees his hypnosis skills as a valuable tool that he’ll always have. Will he follow it as a full time career? “Maybe, maybe not,” he shrugs.
