Auto-induced cognitive trance (AICT)

Classified as a “non-ordinary state of consciousness” in the same way as hypnosis or meditation, its self-induced trance quality means it can be induced and interrupted at any time. Its practice has been made possible with only a few days of training by a methodology developed by Corine Sombrun and tested by over 3,000 volunteers as part of the TranceScience Research Institute. The richness of the experience has the advantage of reinforcing empowerment while developing resources for creativity, well-being and health, accessible in a totally autonomous way.

Considered a resource within everyone’s reach, the simplicity and rapidity of its induction (free of any substance, external stimulus or ritual context associated with so-called “shamanic” cultures) reinforce its interest as an autonomous, conscious and responsible practice. The prospects opened up by the practice of Self-Induced Cognitive Trance are therefore numerous, and are now the subject of scientific study.

Its study and demonstration as a brain potential were initiated in 2007 by Prof. Flor-Henry [1]. Two neuroscience protocols (currently being published), carried out at the University of Liège in collaboration with the TranceScience Research Institute, have demonstrated a different cerebral response in AICT trance compared to an ordinary state of consciousness.

The main effects reported during the AICT trance experience are :

• increased strength
• reduced perception of pain
• alteres perception of space and time
• altered sensory perceptions
• altered self-perception
• unitentional movements
• unintentional emission of sounds, noises, murmurs, chants, “protolanguage”, etc.
• access to information that is difficult or impossible to access in an ordinary state of consciousness.

The term “self-induced cognitive trance” has been chosen to inscribe this potential within the notion of an amplified state of cognition, accessible at will and in total autonomy. AICT is identified as a mild, non-pathological dissociative phenomenon [1].

Both an amplified state of cognition and a resource for exploring an underlying reality, this natural state of trance gives access to information which is not accessible in an ordinary state of consciousness, and facilitates access to the processes described in moments of inspiration, where the notion of time disappears, and the emergence of intuitions, ideas or original solutions is amplified and fluid.

By allowing the body to express itself through non-decided movements, AICT trance is also particularly interesting for developing our resources for creativity, well-being and health, which is why it is so powerful cognitively and therapeutically. By opening up access to insights, traumatic emotional experiences or dissociated memories, our observations suggest that this state could help to treat them, thanks in particular to reduced perception of pain (both physical and psychological) and increased strength.

It appears from the initial studies that the areas of the brain involved in the management of information from the external environment (e.g. dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, insula), as well as in the management of information related to self-awareness (posterior cingulate cortex – default mode network), function differently when the subject is in a trance state (results obtained from 15 subjects [3]). In addition, the areas of the brain involved in sensory perception (auditory and visual cortex, in particular) show a different activation when the person is in a trance state, compared to an ordinary state of consciousness (results obtained from 8 subjects, compared to 8 control subjects [4]).

The electrical activity of the brain appears to be characterised by a modification of beta rhythms particularly in frontal, parietal and occipital regions (regions particularly well-known for their involvement in self-perception) (results obtained from one expert subject [1]). There is also a shift from left hemisphere and anterior prefrontal lobe predominance to right hemisphere predominance with a specific shift from an anterior prefrontal to a posterior somatosensory mode of consciousness [1].

On the other hand, brain activity in response to magnetic stimulation appears to increase when applied to the frontal area, whereas this response decreases when the stimulation is applied to the parietal lobes (1 subject [2]). The observations related to frontal stimulation could reflect the particular attention focused on inner experience, sensory acuity and mental imagery characteristic of trance; whereas the decrease observed during parietal stimulation could reflect the decrease in awareness of the environment.

All these preliminary observations reflect the subjective sensations reported by people when they are in a trance, namely a particular state of absorption characterised by a different perception of themselves and their environment.

Finally, it is our assumption that the conscious intention prior to the onset of the cognitive trance is at the origin of a resonant amplification between subconscious and conscious activities. This resonant amplification appears as a phase transition, a discontinuous state change from ordinary consciousness to simultaneous activity of ordinary consciousness and subconscious circuits, leading to a state of weak, non-pathological dissociation.