Complete 6 page APA formatted essay: Hypnotherapy: Past, Present and Future.Download file to see previous pages... The practice has a rich history, is gaining notoriety in the present, and is looking

Complete 6 page APA formatted essay: Hypnotherapy: Past, Present and Future.

The practice has a rich history, is gaining notoriety in the present, and is looking forward to new and innovative methods in the future. Hypnotherapy: The Past Throughout its history, hypnotherapy has been both praised and condemned at the same time. This is perhaps the case more for this field than for any other branch of medicine in modern civilization. It is commonly accepted that modern-day hypnotherapy began in the mid-1700s under the auspices of Anton Mesmer. In addition to Mesmer, an early pioneer in this branch of medicine was James Braid. In 1855 Braid actually defined what hypnotherapy entails by, “coining the term ‘Neuro-Hypnotism’ (meaning a partial sleep or inhibition of the nervous system) which he himself abbreviated to ‘Hypnotism’” (Stubbs, 2011, p. 125). Hypnosis began out of a desire to find a way to reorganize the neural networks of the brain. This desire still forms the basis of the science today. Mesmer and Braid believed that by focusing a patient’s attention on the inner-recesses of their memory, they could recall and reshape certain memories and behaviors from their past and present. Interestingly enough, these same medical practitioners had little understanding of how hypnosis really worked in the early days of the science, but their work and dedication to hypnosis as a way to heal people in ways that traditional medicine could not be groundbreaking (Wolberg, 1948, pp. 244-246). A final important point to mention in the history of hypnotherapy centers on Braid and the reasons he became interested in hypnosis in the first place. His medical background was that of an eye surgeon. It was through this practice of medicine that he began to envision what the actual practice of hypnosis could do for patients. What he discovered over the years was groundbreaking and is what has allowed hypnotherapy to still be practiced today, even in the face of countless critics and skeptics. Over time, Braid, “Discovered that hypnosis was of great value in what was described as ‘nervous disorders’” (Stubbs, 2011, p. 127). Basically, if a disorder could not be treated in a ‘normal’ medical way, Braid looked for ways that hypnosis might be of help. This included rheumatism, skin conditions, headaches, and the list goes on (Wolberg, 1948, p. 252). Through this early research, present-day hypnotherapy has continued to develop and, some claim, flourish. Hypnotherapy: The Present Hypnotic techniques have come a long way since the days of Mesmer and Braid. Hypnotherapy is now used for a host of ailments and behavioral disorders, in addition to addictive behaviors. One such practice is the use of hypnosis to break the habit of smoking. The Cochrane Library recently conducted a study looking at the effectiveness of hypnotherapy in smoking cessation. There are actually several different methods employed in this modern day treatment for smokers. Some of these methods focus on weakening people desire to smoke, while others try to get into the inner recesses of the brain to strengthen the patient’s desire to quit. Still, other methods help them concentrate more on a program they are using to quit smoking (Barnes, 2010, p. 4). Whatever the technique, hypnotherapy is the remedy of choice today for thousands of smokers who have tried to quit, but failed.&nbsp.