Ericksonian Therapeutic Hypnosis

Milton Erickson, an American psychiatrist, suffered from severe health problems. He had attacks of Poliomyelitis and learnt auto-hypnosis for his own sake. Afterwards, he dedicated great parts of his life to experimenting with different types of hypnosis which he applied upon others and himself.

He used Hypnosis in order to allow his patients to restore or establish contact with the resources we all possess. When he died in 1980 he left a fabulous way to change to Humanity.

Hypnosis is a modified natural state of consciousness, an intermediate state between night watch and sleep, which we surpass every day without noticing. This is the state of consciousness that the Ericksonian therapist uses, and where we can see things from a different angle that moves the unconscious resources which lie in our inner.

Ericksonian Hypnosis is based on the different states of relaxation and the active participation of the patient. Through a symbolic conversation or language, the therapist guides the patient’s unconsciousness, which allows him to find solutions for his problems.

Our unconsciousness is, according to Erickson, a great reserve of resources and learning, which we can use to overcome our difficulties.

The patient’s integrity and the freedom of choice are guaranteed throughout the therapy.

The Ericksonian Hypnosis is used in Medicine and Psychiatry. It seems to be effective for letting go of certain dependencies, such as tobacco, alcohol, drugs and for treating anxiety, sexual blockages, stress, etc. We could mention a long list of problems where hypnosis achieves beneficial results. Generally, its greatest field of application is related to problems with a psychological root.

“To cure with words” ...each human is absolutely unique and therefore needs a treatment adapted to his uniqueness; to be a therapist means to invent new treatments which apply to the necessities of each patient. Hypnosis allows the patient to assimilate his lessons through “tales” (metaphors) without having to face consciously the realities he is not yet prepared to see.