“Good. Then Esther it is. Would you like to sit down?” Hollander asked, leading Esther to a comfortable, soft-colored sofa that sat against one oak-paneled wall under the shadow of a multicolored abstract painting.
Esther accepted the doctor’s offer as if it had been an order. He watched her move mechanically to the sofa and sit, hands folded, like a wind-up toy. Shindler sat out of sight in a straight-back chair set in a corner of the room.
“That’s a nice dress you have on. Is it new?”
Esther brightened at the mention of her outfit. It was a green skirt with a matching green jacket and a white blouse. Shindler had taken her shopping when she agreed to visit Dr. Hollander and she had picked it out herself. It was the first new outfit she had purchased in years.
“Tell me, Esther, I bet you’re nervous. Am I right?”
Esther blushed and looked at the floor.
“I’m a little nervous, I guess.”
“Good!” Dr. Hollander said with a hearty laugh that startled her. “Everyone who visits me is nervous the first time. So that shows that you’re normal. Now why don’t you tell me why you’re nervous.”
Esther worried her lower lip and shrugged.
“I don’t know.”
Hollander smiled a warm, fatherly smile. She was beginning to like this nice man.
“Are you worried about being hypnotized?”
She did not answer immediately. Hollander waited patiently.
“A little, I guess,” she finally answered.
“Okay. That’s good. I’m glad you’re open and honest with me, because I will always be open and honest with you. Now, I want you to promise me something. Will you do that?”
“What?”
“Will you promise me that anytime you have a question, no matter how silly you think it might be, you will ask me that question? I mean it. I want you to know everything that is going on. We will have no secrets from one another. Is that all right with you?”
“I guess.”
“Good. Now tell me, have you ever been hypnotized before?”
“No.”
“Have you ever seen anyone hypnotized on TV or in the movies or in person?”
“Once on TV and in a movie.”
“Okay. Now I want to tell you that what you see in the movies or TV is not the way hypnosis is at all. It is a form of relaxation during which it is possible to follow suggestions more easily. There is nothing mysterious about it. It is a scientific phenomenon and perfectly natural.
“On TV you see evil hypnotists make slaves of people, rob them of their will and make them do all sorts of horrible things. Do you think I am evil, Esther?”
Esther giggled.
“No.”
“Good. Well, I can assure you I am not. And all those silly stories you see in the movies are fantastic rubbish. Hypnosis is not possible unless a person willingly participates in it. You can’t make a hypnotized person do anything he doesn’t want to, because he can refuse to do anything that is distasteful to him. Hypnosis is a way of helping people, not hurting them. It is like medicine.”
“What…what if I can’t be hypnotized?”
“Don’t worry about that. Everyone can be hypnotized if they relax and don’t resist. Just make your mind passive and unresisting and don’t try too hard and I’ll do the rest.”
Hollander suddenly became serious.
“Esther, you know that we’re here primarily to find out what you know about a certain event. Well, that is one thing, but hypnosis has more value than just finding out about something you may have forgotten. Hypnosis is a way of helping you to master yourself and your problems.
“You were recently in the hospital, because of personal problems, weren’t you?”
Esther lowered her head and nodded.
“Well, Esther, I will be serious here for a moment. We all want to find out what you know about Richie Walters’s murder, but I am also interested in you as a person.
“Roy tells me that you have raised a fine young son, all by yourself. That says something about your character. I can see that you have the potential to be a strong, confident woman. Hypnosis can help you to realize that potential. Through hypnosis, I can help you to be the person I know you can be. So, you see, you will help us and we will help you. Is that fair?”
“Yes,” Esther answered in a low voice. She was overwhelmed. No one had ever taken this much interest in her before.
“Well, now. We are getting way too serious. Let’s move to that comfortable chair near my desk and we’ll begin.”
Hollander led Esther to a large armchair. When she was seated, he placed a pillow under her head and drew a seat up in front of her.
“Are you comfortable? Good. Now I want you to relax and keep both feet resting on the floor. I am going to tell you exactly what is going to happen to you as we go along, so that there will be no surprises,” he said in a soothing, steady tone. “You will notice, as we proceed, that you will relax. You will probably begin to feel drowsy. It won’t be necessary for you to try too hard. All you have to do is make your mind passive and relax. Then you will become aware that certain things are happening to you as you relax. I want you to concentrate on these things. I will bring them to your attention.
“While we are doing this, you must remember that hypnosis is a normal experience. Each night, before dozing off, you go through a state that resembles hypnosis. I don’t want you to go to sleep, because I want you to be aware of what I say and aware of what your thoughts are. But, if you do find yourself falling asleep, don’t worry. I want you to be comfortable and I will awaken you. I want this to be a relaxing and pleasant experience. I won’t ask you any questions that will embarrass you. Make your mind passive and do not analyze your thoughts and sensations. Do you understand?”
“Yes.”
“Good. Now lean back. Are you completely comfortable and relaxed?”
“Yes.”
Hollander reached over and switched on a tape recorder that sat on a table near Esther’s head. Shindler shifted quietly in his seat.
TAPE # 1
DR. ARTHUR HOLLANDER: Okay, Esther. Why don’t you place both of your hands palm down on your thighs. No, don’t close your eyes. Keep watching your hands. If you concentrate on your hands, you will notice that you can observe them very closely.
When you sit and relax, you begin to notice things that you have never noticed before. They have always happened when you relax, but you have never been aware of them. I am going to point them out to you.
Esther, I want you to concentrate on all the sensations and feelings in your hands, no matter what they may be. Perhaps you may feel the heaviness of your hand as it lies on your thigh, or you may feel pressure. Perhaps you will feel the texture of your new skirt as it presses against the palm of your hand or the warmth of your hand on your thigh. Perhaps you may feel a tingling. No matter what the sensations are, I want you to observe them.
(PAUSE)
DR. HOLLANDER: Good, Esther. Keep watching your hand. See how quiet it is. How it remains in one position. There is motion there, but it is not yet noticeable. I want you to keep watching your hand. Your attention may wander from the hand, but it will always return to the hand, and you will keep wondering when the motion that is there will show itself.
It will be interesting to see which of your fingers will move first. It may be the ring finger or the thumb. One of the fingers is going to jerk or move. You don’t know when or on which hand. Keep watching and you will begin to notice a slight movement, possibly in the right hand. There, the thumb is jerking. It’s moving, just like that.
As the movement begins, you will notice an interesting thing. Very slowly, the spaces between the fingers will widen. The fingers will move apart and you will notice that the spaces between the fingers will get wider and wider. They will move slowly apart. The fingers will seem to be spreading wider and wider and wider. See how they spread. Slowly moving wider and wider apart.