What do you call people who are hypnotized? There are different words that can be used. Allow me to explain my views on when it is appropriate to use different hypnosis terminology, starting with the word used most commonly:

Subjects

Subjects are people who are being used in scientific experiments with hypnosis, or who allow themselves to become the willing “subjects” for unscientific experimenting by someone with little or no professional training.

I have a strong personal preference to avoid most other uses of the word “subject” to identify one who is hypnotized; yet most books on hypnosis usually refer to the person being hypnotized as the subject. This word can be misleading as well as scary for some people, in that the every word itself implies that the person in trance becomes subject to the suggestions of the hypnotist. Therefore, this word incorrectly portrays hypnosis as a state of mind where one falls under the “power” of the hypnotist and is controlled by whatever suggestion are given. Thus, many still misunderstand and fear hypnosis today.

Clients

Clients are people who want their lives improved through the use of non-medical applications of hypnosis or are seeing a professional hypnotherapist for medical application of hypnosis (such as pain management) with written consent of an examining physician - but done at the therapist’s office rather than at the physician’s clinic. This person is the client of the hypnotherapist, and the patient of his/her physician.

Patients

Patients experiencing hypnosis are people who are 1) experiencing medical applications of hypnosis either done by their physicians or done by another person (including a hypnotherapist) under the direct supervision of the physician; 2) patients of a dental clinic hypnotized by either a dentist or a hypnotherapist at said clinic; or 3) a patient of any other licensed health care professional experiencing hypnosis specifically as part of such health care treatment.

Participants

Participants are people experiencing non-medical applications of hypnosis done with a group of people at one time, for ex. stage hypnosis. When you master the art of hypnosis, these are real people you are hypnotizing, and if you treat them with respect, you increase your probability of success.