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Susquenita High School students get a real spell-ing lesson
Wednesday, January 26, 2005
BY DOTTIE ALDRICH
For The Patriot-News

DUNCANNON - An 8-foot-tall surfer, a famous model, a spy, a ballerina and an opera star entertained students at Susquenita High School yesterday -- and then disappeared as quickly as they had arrived.

All the performers were students, transformed by hypnosis under the watchful eye of Laura Amaroso, an advanced clinical hypnotherapist from Philadelphia.

Sophomore Jordan Himes handled an imaginary surfboard with grace and stood ramrod straight when Amaroso told him he was 8 feet tall.

"I don't remember when I was told to do things. I just remember my body wanted to do things and I didn't try to fight it," Himes said.

He was one of two dozen student volunteers, all with parental permission, who abandoned their resistance and let Amaroso guide them through dances, songs and character portrayals.

As Amaroso gave the students direction, she added hypnotic suggestions, such as, "You feel strong, calm and confident."

One of her goals is to help the students feel good about themselves, she said.

Under hypnosis, sophomore Heidi Freeland became a famous model and walked the runway as though she had done it for years.

When she was told that classmate Nate Bell was a puppy, she patted and rubbed his head until Amaroso changed the hypnotic suggestion.

Anna Zapart, a freshman, sat in the audience and laughed heartily along with the rest of the student body as she watched her friends doing things she never expected.

"It was awesome. People were not aware of what they were doing. If [Amaroso] comes back again, I will volunteer," Zapart said.

Junior English teacher Kathy Kisner couldn't stop talking about how she felt under hypnosis and what she remembered.

"That was the most bizarre thing I've done in my life. I was kind of skeptical and scared for a moment when I couldn't open my eyes, but I could hear everything," Kisner said.

Kisner said she felt as if she were coming out of anesthesia after surgery. She said she could taste tomato juice when followed the suggestion to swallow an imaginary drink.

"It's truly mind over matter," Kisner said.

Amaroso said she has been performing shows at schools, seminars, fund-raisers and social events since 1997.

"The students are absolutely so positive," she said. "They are the best audience ever. They learn all about hypnotherapy and depth levels. With the demonstration, they get to see some fun things."

High school Principal Nancy Valdez said Amaroso agreed to return next year and work her magic on another group of students.

"It fits right in with my goal of having two or three good assemblies a year," she said.