How Hypnosis Enhances Military Training

Ryan N. Maass (BS), Ran D. Amber (MD)

In this post, we explore the potential for hypnosis to combat stress and improve performance among military personnel at the U.S. Department of Defense’s Defense Language Institute (DLI), and how this uniquely important population can reap the many benefits of tapping into their own innate power.

The life of a U.S. military linguist begins with enrollment in DLI, the most rigorous academic curriculum the Department of Defense offers.

This unique training enables graduates to reach college-level proficiency in reading, writing and speaking a foreign language in just over a year, while also gaining cultural competency. But the curriculum is so demanding for students that many do not continue to graduate.

To address the shortage of course graduates, DLI’s curriculum is constantly evolving by revising instructional methods and incorporating successful developments that address the needs of professional linguists (Savko, 2023).While significant effort is expended to improve the student experience with each class iteration, the intensive nature of the program remains the same.

If we cannot slow down the pace of language learning, the key to improving linguists’ retention in DLI may lie in mastering an equally powerful skill: harnessing the subconscious mind through hypnosis.

A history and tradition of intensity

Linguists are vital to the defense of our nation’s military. They translate highly sensitive and valuable information and communicate with military and allied forces in support of foreign missions around the world (Lange, 2018).

This unique skill set makes military linguists an in-demand asset. However, the cost of training one such linguist can exceed $200,000. Therefore, strengthening training regimens with a focus on improving retention could reduce the costs required to support DLI.

Once assigned a specific language, service members hit the curriculum with the speed and intensity of a firehose: Students are tasked with up to seven hours of formal language study per day and one to two hours of homework each night, while also maintaining rigorous physical fitness standards and adopting the military’s definition of soldierly behavior.

Additionally, most of the students are between the ages of 18 and 25 and are making the effort to leave home and family support for the first time and live with a military family.

To withstand all this stress, DLI students must exert a level of tenacity that is difficult to sustain from start to finish. Many students experience burnout, which manifests as poor performance on language tests, fatigue from long hours of study, and strained personal and professional relationships.

This equates to a relatively low course completion rate of 75% (Lange, 2018), with even lower completion rates for more challenging language curricula.

Making Space for Hypnosis

When I was at DLI in 2016, I followed this schedule: after every 50 minutes of formal class instruction, we were given a 10-minute break to recover and prepare for the next instruction.

I noticed that each student spent their 10-minute break in a different way: some who needed to move climbed the school stairs, others tried to nap in an empty room, and still others tried to call their spouses or relatives.

These responses varied, but common to all students was the hope that their 10-minute coping strategies would be enough to get them through the next 50 minutes of language acquisition.

I now wonder whether running laps around the block or turning off the lights in an empty room during my 10-minute breaks was the best way to reduce personal and collective stress. At the time, I was grateful that DLI respected my right to these precious breaks, but these free moments between classes might be perfect opportunities for resiliency training.

I believe that teaching hypnosis can provide DLI students with a useful tool that they can utilize during their 10-minute break.

Hypnosis is the conscious and deliberate entry into a trance-like state and the use of both verbal and visual suggestions to reach a desired, often therapeutic, outcome (Williamson, 2019).Hypnosis allows you to consult a multi-layered mental state called the subconscious mind to experience what you are capable of achieving, and even has the power to treat anxiety and pain.

Applications of hypnosis

Techniques such as guided imagery have proven effective in managing stress and anxiety by replacing disturbing memories with positive mental images (Sanagdol, 2020).

A commonly used induction technique in hypnosis, this form of hypnotic suggestion allows you to visualize a peaceful, calm environment in your mind, focusing your attention so that what you imagine feels real (Williamson, 2019). Inducing suggestions in this relaxed state can help you resolve stressful scenarios and redirect negative energy into positive ones.

An application in DLI would be: say during an hour-long lesson, a student receives harsh and blunt criticism from the teacher for their lack of fluency. After this criticism, if the student spends the next 10-minute break under hypnosis, they can redirect those negative words into motivational words aimed at improving fluency. Guided imagery allows the student to directly visualize reaching their goal level.

If these 10-minute breaks are implemented regularly, they will add up and soldiers will graduate not feeling bitter or burned out, but more confident thanks to months of positive self-talk.

Practicing hypnosis also has a positive effect on improving psychological skills (Zaraineh, 2024). If a student is anxious about an upcoming test, hypnosis can help them by visualizing them doing well during the test and achieving an excellent grade the day before the test. This may help counter test-day anxiety and improve language scores.

Hypnosis has been used by athletes to suppress anxiety and manage stress while improving their training results and competitive performance (Li, 2021). Similarly, hypnosis could be applied to military personnel looking to excel in fitness scores.

It doesn’t have to be expensive to have a linguist help you connect with your inner self: techniques for tapping into your subconscious, using positive self-talk, and directing powerful imagery can be taught in as little as 10 minutes, without the need for expensive equipment or repeated consultations with a specialist.

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In an environment as rigorous and demanding as DLI, a sense of control over one’s emotions is essential. Using hypnosis and the power of the subconscious mind to empower oneself holds great potential for enhancing and sustaining a positive mood. Teaching service members the power to access their inner resources in times of adversity will help prevent burnout at DLI, increase tenure, and reduce funding needs for the force.

Ryan Maass is a third-year medical student at Rocky Vista University and a 1st Lieutenant in the United States Air Force, with five years as a Sergeant and serving as a military linguist.

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