Psychovisual Therapy
(PsyV)
half-hour videos relax the viewer with a calming blend of computer-generated images,
comforting music, soothing voice-over and positive subliminal messages.
Subliminal messages? "That's one of the ingredients that
makes these videos so powerful," says Dr. Knight. "Unlike audio tapes, where you
can never be sure there even is an underlying subliminal message, you see the subliminals
flash by on PsyV videos. They're too fast for the conscious mind to read,
yet they make an impression directly on the subconscious."
As an example, Dr. Knight says that many people have ended decades of
smoking after only one viewing of the Stop Smoking video. "And the
beauty of it is that if, in the future, you find yourself tempted to smoke, you simply
view the video once more and your urge to smoke vanishes."
The soothing voice of the video creator (a self-taught, self-effacing
computer and creative genius) on most of the videos brings you essential information about
how the mind works, how you can change negative messages in your subconscious and what
vital facts you need to know about the specific topic.
Dr. Knight, the first hypnotherapist in North
America to use Psychovisual Therapy, was so impressed with the ease with
which this approach brings about change that he became the distributor for the videos in
Canada and the United States. "These are not the first videos to use a light hypnotic
trance to help people change, but they are the best. The quality is superb."
Originally made in England, the videos are now produced in Canada, with
a resulting significant drop in the retail price (from $75 to the current $39.95
per video).
Thousands of people in various parts of the world attest to the
effectiveness of Psychovisual Therapy. A psychologist in New York, Dr.
Maurice Kouguell, while previewing Serenity, the newest PsyV
title, was pleased to discover that it relieved his severe back pain. In Montreal, Dr.
Ronald Jones, prosthodontist, uses Stress Control with "satisfying
results."
An exciting use for Serenity is described by Dr. Knight:
"Let's say you want to achieve something specific, such as behaving confidently when
asking for a date or giving a speech. First you prepare a positive suggestion, repeat it
slowly three times to yourself, then sit back, relax and enjoy the video. The message is
effortlessly absorbed by your subconscious."
An incidental benefit for most viewers of PsyV videos,
according to Dr Knight, is that they sleep more deeply. He recommends that clients watch
their favorite video just before going to sleep partly because "that gives the
subconscious uninterrupted time to process the positive input, and partly because the
viewer will have a more refreshing sleep than usual."
Dr. Knight will often suggest to an in-office client that he or she
could obtain a boost to their therapy by buying an appropriate video to watch at home.
"Which title I suggest obviously depends on the particular challenge facing the
client. Almost everyone in therapy can benefit from Self-Confidence but
sometimes Relax and Let Go will be more suitable, or Positivity,
for example, if the client is depressed."
PsyV videos are usually used as a complementary aid to
psychotherapy. But they are also ideal for people who are unable or reluctant to visit a
therapist, says Dr. Knight, "because the videos are designed for you to use
privately, in your own home."
If you want to release weight, for example, and keep your weight at a
particular level, then PsyV's Weight Control and Weight
Loss would be appropriate to include in your self-help package, says Dr. Knight.
"Our aim is to avoid the yo-yoing of diets. Hypnotherapy and PsyV
are an unbeatable combination to shed unwanted weight slowly and permanently."
If you are seeing a therapist an excellent way to enhance your sessions,
says Dr. Knight, is to watch Serenity while the therapist gives you
positive suggestions. Later, when you watch your own copy of the video at home, all the
therapy you did in the office, is automatically reinforced.
Is the effect of these videos simply that of a placebo ? "No,
definitely not," says Dr. Knight. "You can feel the power as you watch. But even
if all they did was harness the placebo effect, that in itself would be marvelous. It
would mean that you have an ideal way to trigger your body and mind's own healing
processes."
Here are the current PsyV titles, with a short
explanation by Dr. Knight of the main uses for each video:
Smoke.com
"Each of the ten videos has a unique focus, " says Dr.
Knight. "For example, the Self-Confidence video, as its title
implies, helps you to develop trust in your ability to do what you previously considered
impossible." 
