Hypnosis and Depth of Trance

Over the years many people have developed ways to measure the depth of trance. The most useful way that I am aware of is called the 'Arons Depth Scale' named after its creator Harry Arons. It is a useful and simple list of what happens in the body/mind as you go deeper and deeper into trance.
    Stage 1: HYPNOIDAL – Very light stage of hypnosis in which most people feel completely awake. Thes stage is very similar to how you feel just before waking up in the morning and right before falling asleep at night.
    A lot can be accomplished in this 1st stage: Weight reduction, stop smoking and simple muscle control such as eyelid catalepsy.
    Stage 2: More relaxed state where larger muscle groups can be controlled and manipulated in ways such as Arm Catalepsy: being told your arm can not move and realizing it can not.
    Stage 3: Nearly complete control of the entire muscular system. Most people won’t be able to articulate a number, stuck to a chair, can’t walk and even partial analgesia.
    Stage 4: In this stage the hypnotic phenomena of amnesia can be demonstrated. Forgetting a number or even your own name - temporarily.
    Stage 5: This is considered the start of somnambulism. Hypnotic phenomena of anesthesia can be demonstrated: feeling no pain and in fact feeling nothing when undergoing dental proceedures. Stage 5 also enables the hypnotic phenomena of Positive Hallucinations - the ability to see, hear, taste and smell things which do not actually exist.
    Stage 6: Profound Somnambulism. All hypnotic phenomena are available including Negative hallucinations - which means you won’t see or hear things that actually do exist.