History of Hypnosis
The earliest use of hypnosis is understood best by use of hindsight. It is within the context of modern hypnotherapy that we are able to understand the use of relaxation, visual, auditory, and tactile stimuli to induce an altered state of consciousness (trance). This is well documented throughout history. Aboriginal dances (auditory and tactical stimuli) and American Indian campfire dances preceding war parties altered appearance with war paint (fire and paint as visual, drums and chants as auditory and dance as tactical stimuli) and acted upon the physicie of the participants in a mesmerizing (Hypnotic) way. They had effect upon the participants' future actions and gave strength to the weak and courage to the meek. There can be little question of the effectiveness in altering their state of mind.
In modern history, the now well-established definitions of hypnosis started as a theory of Dr. Franz Anton Mesmer (1734-1815), an Austrian physician, who is widely acknowledged as the 'Father of Hypnosis'. He referred to the state as "magnetism" since his creative hypothesis espoused that the human body contained magnetic fluid which was somehow blocked when humans exhibited illness.
Dr. Mesmer's chief concern was healing his patients. He initially used magnets passed over the body and later his hand to unblock them. As Mesmer treated the "animal magnetism" of his patients the process became known as Mesmerism.
It wasn't until 1842 when Dr Braid (1795-1860), most well known for the fact that he renamed Mesmerism, "Hypnotism", coined the word Hypnosis (Greek derivation from the word "hypos" meaning sleep) Later in life, Braid realized hypnotism was not a true sleep, but a concentration of the mind, and tried to change the name to monoideism. But by that time, "Hypnosis" and "Hypnotism" were words already well rooted in every language of Europe, and he finally abandoned this effort to change the name. We are now able to connect the dots in the larger puzzle of human history and label the activities of Hindus, Yogis, Fakirs, snake charmers, and Eastern magicians who induced themselves and others as "hypnotic" like trances.
Current thinking
Hypnosis and psychoanalysis appear to be joined by Dr Sigmund Freud (1856-1938) as he recognizes in his work "Studien uber Hysterie" co-authored by Josef Breuer. In a well documented case, Breuer had been treating a patient whom he called Anna O. Anna O. was a hysterical patient could drink no water. During a hypnotic session, she revealed in a fit of anger, how to her great disgust, a former governess had permitted a dog to drink water out of a glass in her presence. As soon as she awoke from the trance she immediately asked Breuer for a drink of water.
It was Breuer's work with the subconscious that led to Freud's theory that that hysterical symptoms developed as a result of repressing damaging experiences and once rediscovered and released could affect a cure.
Where Freud and Breuer differed was in the process. Freud's development of a treatment model was based on couch relaxation and un-directed treatment with free association. This was contrasted with Breuer's directed hypnotherapy model.
Of course, it was Freud's work with the unconscious mind, which is the hallmark of psychoanalysis. One of Freud's most well known works "Interpretation of Dreams" constantly refers to the minds ability to protect and imagine as part of the dream state.
As sleep is necessary and important to our health, the unconscious, according to Freud, uses the imagination thru dreams to protect our sleep. As we mature the direct reference in dreams in children (a child who is denied ice cream dreams of receiving it.) become a metaphor for the socially acceptable behaviors of the conscious mind in adult life.
The next dot to be connected in the unfolding puzzles of hypnotherapy was contributed by Milton H. Erickson who's discovery that the subconscious communication is a language of Metaphor.
Until his death in 1980 Milton H. Erickson, almost single- handedly took hypnosis off the stage and into respected medical practice. Erickson, a noted psychiatrist, who studied with some of the most influential hypnotists of modern times, including Clark Hull, among others. A contemporary of Andre Weitzenhoffer, a partner in training with Leslie Lechron (who is given credit for ideomotor signals).
From Erickson came two gentlemen by the names of Richard Bandler and John Grinder who formally modeled Ericksons genius in hypnosis on the advice of Gregory Bateson (one of the geniuses of the 20th century). This came to be known as Neuro-Linguistic- Programming, NLP. The purpose of this discipline is to model people of true genius, from hypnosis to business to psychotherapy and even to pistol shooting in the military.
Since it's beginning in the early 1970's it has grown into a popular and useful addition to our knowledge of hypnosis. One of the most important developments from NLP is the notion that you can use words to induce a hypnotic trance, and even more importantly produce change. What came to be known as the Milton Model, Bandler and Grinder modeled Erickson's ability to produce covert trance with just words. These two very capable gentlemen proved that trance didn't have to be direct, as in the stage hypnotist approach, to be useful and functional.
In the 1920's, Emil Coue, originally a pharmacist, made a study of the psychology of suggestion and operated a clinic in Nancy, France. His successes helped to make autosuggestion for self-benefit the vogue in Europe. He made an exhaustive study of the effects of suggestion. At first, he supplied extensive details with the suggestions, but later switched to generalizations in order to allow the subconscious to work out the solution. His most famous techniques are: 1) repeating every day again and again, "Every day, in every way, I am getting better and better" 2) if someone thinks that they want to do something, but they can't the harder they try, the less they will be able to (i.e., always thing positive); 3) "when the imagination and the will are in conflict, the imagination always wins" (used as a theory of why hypnosis worked); and 4) an idea always tends towards realization and a stronger emotion always counteracts a weaker one.
