About Clinical Hypnotherapy
Hypnotism has been practiced throughout the ages first as a form of medicinal therapy, much to the protestations of many on the medical field. Many thought that hypnotism was just a form of catatonia brought about by hysteria. Today clinical hypnotherapy is a recognized form of treatment for several conditions and utilized worldwide.
History of Hypnosis
Franz Anton Mesmer is called the father of hypnosis, even for a time the procedure of inducing someone into a trance-like state was called Mesmerism after Mesmer. The medical community, despite the success he gained through mesmerism, discredited him. In the 1860s, one physician who originally opposed Mesmer and his methods, took a second look and found some credibility in his work. To avoid the negative connotation associated with Mesmer, he called it hypnosis after the Greek god of sleep, Hypnos.
The Scope of Clinical Hypnosis
Clinical hypnosis is utilized in conjunction with other traditional therapies in order to treat several issues both physiological and psychological. Some of those issues include:
- Addictions
- Allergies
- Eating disorders
- Depression
- Pain control
- Some eyesight problems
- Headaches
- Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
- Dermatological problems
- Tinnitus
- Sleep issues
- Memory loss
- Snoring
- Stuttering or other speech impediments
Hypnosis is Not Sleeping
Many patients and even doctors are under the mistaken impression that hypnosis is being put to sleep. More correctly, it is compared to that “twilight time” which occurs between the awake state and the sleep state. During hypnosis, patients are aware and can hear everything that is being said to them. Some report feeling a sensation of heaviness or lightness. Patients have varying accounts of what they remember from a hypnosis session. Some say they remember everything that they said and everything the hypnotherapist says. Others say they remember nothing. Experts believe that what is not remembered during a hypnotherapy session can be a form of protection that your subconscious mind exerts.
The Risks of Hypnosis
Nothing can be done to you are required of you to do without your co-operation. You are in full control of the session. Hypnosis is a normal state that we achieve every night when falling asleep. There is nothing dangerous or risky in clinical hypnosis.