Brief Introduction to Clinical Hypnosis
Instructor
Amaro Laria, Ph.D.
This workshop will introduce participants to the basics of clinical hypnosis, including: historical antecedents, theories of hypnosis, assessing for hypnotizability, basic skills, and clinical applications. Some of the controversies and myths surrounding hypnotic phenomena that often trigger skepticism among clinicians and patients will be discussed. Experiential exercises will serve as demonstration of the basic techniques, as well as allow participants to experience a hypnotic state. A variety of empirically-based clinical applications for both behavioral and medical conditions will be presented.
Description
Date & Time
November 7, 2026
9:00 AM to 1:15 PM
Format
Live Workshop with In-Person (at Boston Behavioral Medicine) and On-Line Attendance (via Zoom, synchronous interactive)
Credits
4 CEs
Fee
$140 (includes cost of CE certifcate)
Learning Objectives:
Participants will identify the basic foundations of clinical hypnosis, including: historical antecedents, theories, assessment, and clinical application.
Participants will recognize a hypnotic state through first-hand experience, and will apply the basic strategies involved to induce a hypnotic state.
Participants will describe the basic elements of a clinical hypnosis therapy session.
Participants will gain beginner competence implementing a variety of clinical applications of hypnosis with demonstrated empirical validation.
Presenters Bios:
Dr. Amaro Laria, Ph.D., is a licensed clinical psychologist with over 30 years of clinical experience. Some of his areas of expertise include: behavioral medicine, clinical hypnosis, biofeedback, trauma and dissociation, culture and mental health, and integrative psychotherapy, among others. He has taught at Clark University, UMass Boston, and William James College (formerly “Mass School of Professional Psychology”). Dr Laria was a NIMH post-doctoral research fellow in the Department of Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School, and has been in the faculty of the Department of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School through his affiliation with Cambridge Health Alliance for more than 20 years. He was advisor to DSM-5 on the workgroup on culture and gender for the anxiety disorders. He has published in the areas of: dissociation, culture, and behavioral medicine, among others. He is the co-founder, with Dr. Kim Larsson, of Boston Behavioral Medicine, LLC in Brookline, MA, where he has been serving as staff psychologist, co-director of training, training instructor, and clinical supervisor for over 16 years. Dr. Laria has over 30 years of experience practicing as a hypnotherapist and offering training in clinical hypnosis.
