“What Is Hypnosis?” Describe The Psychological And Essay

“What is Hypnosis?” Describe the psychological and physical aspects of hypnosis and discuss the role of relaxation in Hypnotherapy.

In this essay I am going to begin by answering the question of “what is Hypnosis?” by using a brief history of hypnosis to aid in this. Following on from this, I will describe the psychological and physical aspects of hypnosis. Finally I will be discussing the role of relaxation in hypnotherapy and concluding this essay.

Answering the question of ‘what is hypnosis’ is not a straight-forward task. Hypnosis itself is a complex word which is not easily defined, and to a certain extent, still has not been given an agreed upon definition. This may be due to the fact that hypnosis itself has changed and evolved throughout history, with people claiming the success of different techniques. The history of hypnosis is vast, with suggestions of ‘trance work’ being used in cultures thousands of years ago. The grandfather of hypnosis is considered to be Franz Anton Mesmer and his theory of Animal Magnetism. Mesmer believed that a ‘cosmic fluid’ flowed through people and by using magnets; he could heal those whose flow was damaged in some way (Pintar et al). Originally, Mesmer used magnets to alter the fluid, but later believed he was the source of the magnetism and discarded such, choosing to use his hands for the work. Mesmer’s career had its high levels of success but also its lows, and it was in this time that one of his disciples adapted his work and took it further. Marquis de Puysegur noticed that some of his clients “entered a somnambulistic state as a result of being mesmerised” (Hadley et al, 1996). Puysegur also became aware of the way trances could be induced using words, not magnets, and how clients were responsive whilst in this state. He soon rejected the idea of using magnets, focusing on the use of words. Following on from Puysegur, an English doctor, James Braid, gave this phenomenon a scientific explanation, believing it to...