[Ninoushka]

Lauren, I'm not an expert but I practice self hypnosis on myself sometimes.
when you are hypnosed, you are in alpha state. However, you don't need to bring yourself to alpha state to be hypnosed; moreso, the hypnosis script that you use will bring you to that state and then will start the affirmations. So you don't really have to worry about bringing yourself to a certain state and then starting with your session.
How long you're going to have to practise self hypnosis depends on many factors : how receptive you are, how the pattern that you want to work on is deeply rooted, etc. So there is no definite answer to this question.
I don't practice self hypnosis when I'm sleeping, but when I'm awake (just like if I was going to be hypnotized by a practitionner). What are the benefits of doing it in your sleep? Could you share the link of the website you're going to use?
Thank you