Book Description

Hypnosis is an interaction where a trance state of consciousness is induced and utilized to produce beneficial psychological and physiological changes by suggestions. Used since ancient times, today it is a scientific, highly effective treatment in medicine freed from authoritarian, manipulative and esoteric burden. It allows communication with the unconscious mind where otherwise unrecognized and are organized and regulated. A major advantage for patients is that after simple guidance they can use it themselves in the form of self-hypnosis. Moreover, in acute medicine such as emergencies or surgeries patients often enter a natural trance state all by itself making hypnotic induction dispensable and hypnotic communication easy and fundamental. However, the potential of hypnosis is yet widely unknown or underrepresented both in psychotherapy and somatic medicine. A deeper knowledge of clinical hypnosis and a wider distribution of relevant study results can bridge the historical living apart and bring back hypnosis to medicine. Hypnosis and suggestions provide a model to explain a wide variety of beneficial as well as harmful effects in medicine, and thus supplement the placebo/nocebo model. In addition, hypnosis and hypnotherapy opens interesting scientific insights into human brain functions, and into character and functioning of suggestions. The goal of leaving the very special setting of books and hypnosis journals and presenting hypnosis to a wide spectrum of readers in psychology and medicine is to increase its visibility, its impact and application. The application concerns both, the specific treatment of specific patients with specific complaints by an expert called hypnotherapy and the more general use of therapeutic hypnotic communication of health care personnel with all patients in all medical situations. On the other hand, hypnosis could benefit from a possible desirable stimulation of further research in this field.