Hypnotherapy is the mechanism used to access the unconscious mind and hypnosis is the induction of a trancelike state, resembling sleep, usually induced by a therapist and where the subject's receptivity to the power of suggestion is dramatically increased. According to The British Medical Association and the American Medical Association hypnosis is, "a temporary condition of altered attention in the subject that may be induced by another person.” Contrary to popular belief being in a state of hypnosis is not the same as being asleep. The uses of hypnosis in medicine and psychology include the modification or elimination of undesirable behaviour, such as smoking, and the treatment of certain chronic disorders, (anxiety), and phobias towards all sorts of everyday encounters, (spiders). In order to appreciate the whole area of hypnotherapy and how hypnosis is understood in the modern sense it is important to give a brief insight its history as hypnosis has been used for thousands of years for the purpose of healing and general well being. In ancient times hypnosis took many different forms, all making use of deep relaxation and trance to aid in the healing process. It wasn’t until the 1700’s, however, that Franz Anton Mesmer (1734-1815), a Viennese scientist believed that there was a cosmic liquid that flowed between people and as this was stimulated by magnets could be transmitted to others. He called this animal magnetism and even though there was no firm evidence that this existed, Mesmer did appear to achieve a very good success rate amongst his patients. It is through his treatments that the term “mesmerism” came into being.
A second, and most notable figure in the history of hypnosis, is Marquis de Puysėgur (1751-1825), who was a French aristocrat and also a student of Mesmer. Puysėgur learned initially about mesmerism from his brother and became immersed