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Hypnotherapy Then and Now

Keyword: Hypnotherapy

Do you know who the grandpa of Hypnotherapy is? Contrary to popular

notion, it isnt Sigmund Freud; although he is a genius himself. Who is itthen? Franz Mesmer and Milton Erickson.

Never heard of them? Well, they just inspired the famous Freud to build his

own theory and include the tenets of hypnosis as a form of therapy that is

very much related to his theory on the unconscious.

How did this came to be?

Hypnosis is not a new word. The Greeks were known to have used an old

form of this word which is hypnos meaning sleep.

And as syntax evolved, from sleep it is now more inclined to mean: induced

sleeping/unconscious state. See the evolution of words? Now, hypnosis

means sleep-like. Not much of a derivation but it certainly has something to

do at how it was practiced by its early proponents.

Mesmer, first made use of it in the 1700s as a way to treat different

disorders that he believed was caused by magnetic fluids in the body causing

imbalance. (Just a trivia: the word mesmerize came from his name).

Milton Erickson helped the practice regain popularity in mid 1900s when he

made use of hypnosis in his practice of Psychiatry. Different associations of

mental health professionals have endowed the field with recognitions as a

real scientific therapeutic approach.

They all dealt with ways to make the patients unconscious while performing

a digging and analysis of whats wrong within (thus the sleep like state). And

this too endured for decades that it still stands to this day.

Is it Really Effective?

Some experts say that not everyone may be compatible to this kind of

treatment. So the degrees of effectiveness may vary from person to person.

But whats certain is that it also has different stages and claims to improve

conditions of people experiencing: sleep, dissociative, mood, anxiety and

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substance abusedisorders. Thats like saying: it can heal people who cant

sleep, to people who have problems with drug abuse.

And as a lasting thought for skeptics, if it isnt effective then this approach

may have long died especially with the more advanced therapeutic options

that sprouted after it such as the Cognitive-Behavioral and Humanistic

approach.

Current State

Today, despite the many attacks on its effectiveness, hypnotherapy remains

to be strong as a viable option for treatment.

It faces media ridicule, ethical repercussions and a stab from other

practitioners concentrating on other fields, feeling that hypnosis is kind of

outdated.

But believe it or not, hypnotherapists are still very much part of the system,

doing a lot of improvement in empirical findings and are still sanctioned by

the enveloping American Psychological Association and many other local and

national Psychological Hypnosis organizations.

What your dedicated therapist practicing hypnosis should tell you upon your

first meeting? What hypnosis is and what it isnt. What it can achieve and

cant and what are the common misconceptions, most laymen know of this

branch of Psychotherapy.

From there, perhaps you can both start plotting the best practices and tools

to be used toward your recovery.