The mother of a 15year old boy called me to inquire about the effectiveness of hypnosis.  She explained that her son had been having problems in school since he was five years old.  He was disobedient, rebellious, hostile and a loner.  He had been in counseling for many years, yet seemed to continue to behave inappropriately and unable to get along with anyone.
 
As he got older his behavior became worse.  He was becoming an introvert.  He had been expelled from school because of inappropriate behavior with one of his female teachers.
 
My experience in counseling indicated that a person has to want to change, and hypnosis, a powerful tool, would not be helpful in this case because the young man was already hostile towards counselors and his behavior was getting him attention.  I was not very encouraging, although I did tell her that if he ever showed interest in learning self-hypnosis, I would be willing to take him as a client.