The Hypnosis Book I Would Recommend To Beginners - After Reading Over 800 Hypnosis Books

Added: 2026-05-11

[00:00:00]So, if you want to learn hypnosis, most of the books out there will actually teach you the wrong thing or not be suitable for beginners.

[00:00:08]So, in this video, I'm going to show you the one book I'd recommend after reading over 800 books on hypnosis because here's the problem.

[00:00:18]It's actually very easy to learn basic hypnosis, but it's also very easy to do it and have it not work.

[00:00:26]And when it doesn't work, most people don't know why. So, they assume hypnosis doesn't work or that the person can't be hypnotized.

[00:00:35]And that's not the issue. The issue is the way that they learned it. Now, I've got over 800 books on hypnosis and I've read significantly more than that. So, I want to narrow this down to something very specific. If someone said to me, "I just want one book that gives me a proper understanding of hypnosis and actually helps me to get results. What would I recommend?"

[00:01:02]So, to narrow this down, I excluded a few things straight away, obviously. Not overly academic books. So, not huge 700-page textbooks. Not books full of scripts with no understanding. And also, I'm not including the hypnotherapy books that I've written because here's the thing.

[00:01:23]There are books that teach you what to say. And there are books that teach you how hypnosis actually works.

[00:01:32]So, if all you're learning is scripts, you'll get stuck very quickly.

[00:01:36]So, when I first started learning hypnosis as a teenager, I actually used a simple self-hypnosis book, uh Self-Hypnosis by Valerie Austin.

[00:01:48]I read a script to my brother from the book and it worked.

[00:01:52]He stopped wetting the bed.

[00:01:55]So, scripts can work, but here's the problem. If it doesn't work, you don't know what went wrong, how to fix it, how to adapt to the person. And that's where most people fail.

[00:02:10]So, out of everything that I've read, the one book that I would recommend is Foundations of Clinical Hypnosis by Edwin Yager.

[00:02:22]And the reason is very simple. It gives you a proper understanding of hypnosis, practical ways to apply it, enough depth to actually be effective and adaptable without being overwhelming.

[00:02:37]A close second would be Essentials of Hypnosis by Michael Yapko.

[00:02:42]And I've got the second edition. I think I've got the first edition, and I think there's a a brand new third edition recently come out. And so, this book is also very good, but personally, I think Yager's book is just easier to read, more useful for beginners.

[00:02:58]Now, if you're thinking I don't really care about understanding.

[00:03:02]I just want something simple. Then, honestly, just get yourself a script-based self-hypnosis book and read the scripts. You can pick up second-hand self-hypnosis books for under a pound, and most new self-hypnosis books will cost under 10 pounds brand new. And it will work. But, just obviously understand that you're not really learning hypnosis. All you're doing is reading to people. Because hypnosis isn't about forcing a script onto someone. It's about adapting what you do to the person in front of you.

[00:03:35]So, if you want to actually understand hypnosis and be able to use it effectively, start with Foundations of Clinical Hypnosis from Theory to Practice by Edwin Yager.

[00:03:48]And if you've got any questions, drop them in the comments. I'm always obviously, happy to help. And thanks for watching.