Is hypnosis the same as manipulation?

A legitimate question! We go to the bottom of the question once further and can first of all assure:

A very clear no! Hypnosis is not manipulation!

We know that it is currently popular especially in hypnosis circles to equate the work with hypnosis with manipulation - to then point out that hypnotherapy is in no way more manipulative than any other form of interpersonal. So the statement is a good way to get attention at first and as such is just as manipulative as many other things. We would like to distance ourselves from it. We all know that where people interact, manipulation plays a role. This is true for classical medicine, psychoanalysis, school and television as well as for the friendly baker, the boss, the best friend or even the neighbor next door. Perhaps the real question is rather:

"Can I be manipulated in hypnosis in such a way that I do things that I would never do from within myself, that I morally reject, and without knowing what is happening?" -

The clear answer to this is - No! That can't happen! The idea that clients can be made to do things they don't want to do in hypnosis dates back to the late 19th century and fits into the conceptual world of human coexistence at that time. In those authoritarian times, it was assumed that there were weak and strong people and that the strong naturally ruled over the weak. This was evident in the relationship between father and son, doctor and client, and in some cases, hypnotherapist and client. Today we know that this is not so and we have long understood how certain things work during hypnosis. It is an attitude that we cannot endorse at our practice. Our goal for collaboration in hypnosis is an encounter at eye level.

If, for example, a client starts barking or doing similar "nonsensical" things during a show hypnosis, then he is by no means doing this against his will. Quite the contrary. This client does exactly what corresponds to his inner idea of what hypnosis is. However, if the hypnotist were to ask the client to do something that contradicts his moral concepts, then the hypnotized person will not do it. Hypnosis is not an excuse for immoral behavior. That this is so, for it the critical factor is responsible. This is diminished in hypnosis to such an extent that it allows any suggestion to pass that
"...appears emotionally and ethically acceptable to this critical factor..." (Björn Migge: Hypnosis and Hypnotherapy. p. 69).
This means old beliefs, conditioning and fears - that is, everything that has been imposed on the inner being of a person by others, becomes ineffective in hypnosis. But everything that belongs to the inner core of the client's being, including in particular the ethical attitude and the emotional state, remains as a controlling factor. One could even go so far as to say that hypnosis renders the manipulations of others ineffective. This is why, for example, hypnosis works so well against addictions such as smoking or gambling.