Have you ever wondered why certain smells, tastes, sounds or sights can instantaneously take you out of the present moment and bring back a memory? Have you also ever experienced what seemed at the time irrational thoughts, uncontrollable impulses or repeated behaviors that seem to be in control of you? The mystery of all these phenomenon have their roots in that buried part of ourselves known as the subconscious mind; a.k.a. our inner child.

Our conscious mind reasons, rationalizes, intellectualizes, criticizes, and is our short term memory. Our subconscious mind receives and stores information, acts out images and runs our bodily functions. It contains everything we have ever experienced in our lives. The information that’s randomly stored there is not easily accessible to the conscious Mind. It does, nonetheless have a tremendous effect on our emotions as well as our judgments and is the driving force behind our actions.

Hypnosis can be traced back as far as the Egyptian sleep temples around 1000 BC. In the late 1700’s Franz Mesmer appeared in France with his “mesmerism” technique of suggestion. James Braid was the first physician to study Mesmer’s work and publicly introduced the terms “hypnosis” and “suggestion”. Hypnotic anesthesia was used in the 1800’s, reducing mortality rates in India to less than 5 percent. The rich history and success of hypnosis led the AMA to approve its therapeutic use in 1958.

Hypnotherapy has proven itself extremely effective for improving people’s lives in more areas than can be named here. The most common ones are: weight loss, stop smoking/addictions, insomnia, pain management, immune system enhancement, fears/anxiety, relaxation /stress reduction and self confidence/ self esteem.

This article was written by Sara L Payne, as a patient education resource for The Center For True Harmony Wellness and Medicine. Edited and revised by Sherry VanGoethem, Dr.Christine Brass-Jones OBGYN, and Dr. Denise Quance Grobe N.D. If you have any questions or comments contact the office at (480) 539-6646 or through email at info@trueharmonywellness.com