The History of Hypnosis: From Mesmer to Modern Hypnosis
Hypnosis has a rich and fascinating history that stretches back thousands of years – far longer than many people realise. While the word “hypnosis” is relatively modern, the use of trance states, suggestion, and focused attention to promote healing and change is woven through the earliest records of human civilisation. Understanding this history not only places our work in context, but reminds us that we are part of a long tradition of healers, practitioners and pioneers who recognised the profound power of the mind.
Ancient Roots: Sleep Temples and Sacred Trance
The earliest evidence of hypnotic-like practices comes from ancient Egypt and Greece, where priests and healers used what were known as sleep temples – or dream temples – to facilitate healing. Individuals seeking relief from illness or emotional suffering would undergo elaborate rituals involving fasting, chanting, incense and guided suggestion, before entering a sleep-like state in which they were believed to receive healing visions or divine guidance.
In ancient Egypt, these temples were dedicated to the god Serapis, and in Greece to Asclepius, the god of medicine. The priests who guided these rituals understood — perhaps intuitively — that the mind in a deeply relaxed and receptive state was capable of facilitating remarkable healing responses in the body. The practices were not so different in essence from what we do today.
Similar traditions existed across many ancient cultures, from the shamanic trance practices of indigenous peoples to the meditative and contemplative disciplines of Eastern spiritual traditions. The common thread across all of these was the deliberate use of an altered state of consciousness to access deeper levels of the mind.
“In the sleep temples of antiquity, the boundary between medicine, spirituality and the mind was not separate — they were understood as one.”
Franz Anton Mesmer and Animal Magnetism (1700s)
The modern history of hypnosis is generally considered to begin with Franz Anton Mesmer (1734–1815), an Austrian physician who developed a theory he called animal magnetism. Mesmer believed that a universal magnetic fluid flowed through all living things, and that illness arose from blockages or imbalances in this flow. He developed elaborate rituals involving magnets, iron rods, and the laying on of hands to restore what he called magnetic harmony in his patients.
Mesmer’s theatrical sessions attracted enormous interest across Europe. Patients would gather around a large tub called a baquet, filled with magnetised water, and hold iron rods protruding from it. Under Mesmer’s influence – dressed in flamboyant robes and moving through the room – patients would often enter trance-like states, experience emotional crises, and report dramatic relief from their symptoms.
Although a French Royal Commission in 1784 concluded that animal magnetism itself did not exist as a physical force, the investigators acknowledged that the effects Mesmer produced were real – they simply attributed them to imagination and suggestion rather than magnetism. In many ways, this finding planted the seeds of what we now understand as hypnosis: that the power lay not in any external force, but in the mind of the subject.
Despite the controversy, Mesmer’s work spread widely and gave rise to a movement called mesmerism – a term still occasionally used today. His legacy, complicated as it was, laid the groundwork for the serious scientific and clinical investigation that would follow.
James Braid and the Birth of Hypnosis (1840s)
The term hypnosis was coined by Scottish surgeon James Braid (1795–1860), who approached the phenomenon with a more scientific curiosity. After attending a demonstration of mesmerism in 1841, Braid became convinced that the effects were genuine but disagreed entirely with the magnetic explanation. He believed that the trance state was produced by a physiological process — specifically, fatigue of the nervous system brought on by focused attention.
Braid developed the eye-fixation induction method, asking subjects to fix their gaze on a bright object until their eyelids grew heavy and closed. He named this state neuro-hypnosis, from the Greek hypnos meaning sleep — though he later recognised that it was not actually sleep at all, and attempted to rename it monoideism (the state of being absorbed by a single idea). The name hypnosis, however, had already caught on.
Braid’s work was significant because it removed hypnosis from the realm of mysticism and placed it within a scientific and medical framework. He used hypnosis to treat a wide range of conditions including pain, paralysis and nervous disorders, and is widely regarded as the father of modern hypnotherapy.
The Nancy School and the Power of Suggestion (Late 1800s)
In the latter half of the nineteenth century, two main schools of thought emerged in France. The neurologist Jean-Martin Charcot (1825–1893) at the Salpêtrière Hospital in Paris believed that hypnosis was a pathological neurological state only accessible to those with hysteria. His demonstrations were dramatic and widely attended, but his theoretical framework was ultimately proved incorrect.
Meanwhile, Ambroise-Auguste Liébeault (1823–1904) and Hippolyte Bernheim (1840–1919), working in Nancy, were developing a very different understanding. They argued that hypnosis was a normal psychological phenomenon available to virtually everyone, and that its power lay in suggestion — not in any neurological abnormality. Their approach, which became known as the Nancy School, proved highly influential and essentially established the foundation of modern hypnotherapy.
Bernheim’s concept of suggestibility – the idea that all people are to varying degrees responsive to suggestion – remains central to hypnotherapy today. His work helped establish that hypnosis was not about control or manipulation, but about working with the natural responsiveness of the mind.
Freud, the Subconscious and a Parting of Ways (Late 1800s–Early 1900s)
Sigmund Freud studied under both Charcot and Bernheim and initially used hypnosis in his own clinical practice. His early work with Josef Breuer using hypnosis to access and release repressed memories — a process they called the cathartic method — directly prefigured many of the techniques still used in hypnotherapy today, including regression and emotional release work.
However, Freud eventually moved away from hypnosis, citing difficulty achieving reliable trance states in some patients and concerns about the temporary nature of its effects. He developed psychoanalysis as an alternative, relying on free association and dream interpretation rather than trance. This shift drew many medical practitioners away from hypnosis for several decades.
Despite this, Freud’s work on the unconscious mind — the idea that much of our behaviour is driven by processes outside our conscious awareness — is entirely consistent with the principles that underpin hypnotherapy, and his legacy continued to influence the field indirectly.
Milton H. Erickson: A Revolution in Approach (20th Century)
No figure has had a greater influence on modern hypnotherapy than Milton H. Erickson (1901–1980), an American psychiatrist and psychologist whose work transformed the field entirely. Erickson developed what became known as the Ericksonian approach – a naturalistic, indirect and deeply respectful way of working with the unconscious mind that stands in sharp contrast to the authoritative, directive approaches that had previously dominated.
Erickson recognised that each person is unique, and that effective hypnotherapy must be tailored to the individual rather than applied as a standard formula. He developed the use of therapeutic metaphor, indirect suggestion, conversational trance and utilisation – the practice of working with whatever the client brought, including their resistance, rather than against it.
Erickson’s understanding of the unconscious mind was also fundamentally different from Freud’s. Rather than seeing the unconscious as a repository of repressed trauma and conflict, Erickson viewed it as a vast reservoir of resources, creativity and wisdom — a partner in the healing process rather than an adversary to be overcome.
His work gave rise to an entirely new generation of approaches, including Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), solution-focused therapy, and much of modern brief therapy. The Ericksonian influence is present throughout the Mind-Body-Magic Method™ in its emphasis on permissive language, deep respect for the individual, and trust in the natural healing capacity of the mind.
“The unconscious mind is not a dark basement to be feared, but a garden of untapped potential waiting to be cultivated.” — inspired by Erickson’s philosophy.
Timeline Content
You can also include a simple timeline box like this:
Ancient Healing Traditions
Trance, ritual and suggestion used in many cultures for healing and spiritual practices.
Franz Anton Mesmer – 1770s
Introduced the idea of animal magnetism and mesmerism, proposing that healing involved the flow of subtle energy within the body.
John Elliotson – 1830s
A physician who supported the medical use of mesmerism and helped bring it into early medical discussion.
James Esdaile – 1840s
Scottish surgeon who performed operations in India using mesmeric trance as a form of anaesthesia before chemical anaesthetics became common.
James Braid – 1840s
Coined the term hypnosis and shifted understanding toward focused attention and suggestion rather than magnetic energy.
Modern Hypnotherapy – 20th Century
Hypnosis evolves into therapeutic methods used in psychology, medicine, coaching and personal development.
Period |
Key Figure |
Contribution |
|
Ancient Times |
Early Healing Traditions |
Trance, ritual and focused attention used in healing practices across many cultures. |
|
1770s |
Franz Anton Mesmer |
Developed the theory of animal magnetism and mesmerism, suggesting healing energy flowed through the body. |
|
1830s |
John Elliotson |
One of the first physicians to promote mesmerism within the medical profession. |
|
1840s |
James Esdaile |
Scottish surgeon who performed operations in India using mesmeric trance as anaesthesia. |
|
1840s |
James Braid |
Coined the term hypnosis and began explaining the phenomenon through focused attention and suggestion. |
|
20th Century |
Modern Hypnotherapists |
Development of therapeutic hypnosis used in psychology, medicine and personal change work. |
The 20th Century and Growing Acceptance
Throughout the 20th century, hypnosis continued to gain legitimacy as a clinical and scientific discipline. In 1955 the British Medical Association officially recognised hypnosis as a valid therapeutic tool, and in 1958 the American Medical Association followed suit. Research into the nature of hypnotic trance, suggestibility and its clinical applications expanded significantly.
Researchers such as Ernest Hilgard, who developed the neodissociation theory of hypnosis, and Theodore Barber, who explored the role of expectation and imagination, contributed important theoretical frameworks. Dave Elman, a lay hypnotist and teacher, developed highly efficient induction techniques – including the now widely used Elman Induction – that brought rapid and reliable trance induction into clinical practice.
The second half of the 20th century also saw the emergence of rapid and brief therapeutic approaches, including techniques such as EMDR, the rewind technique for trauma, and EFT tapping – many of which draw on similar principles to hypnosis in their use of altered states, focused attention, and the body’s natural capacity for healing and integration.
Hypnosis Today: A Maturing Field
Today, hypnotherapy is a well-established and respected therapeutic modality practised worldwide. Advances in neuroscience have begun to provide a deeper understanding of what happens in the brain during trance states, lending further scientific credibility to practices that practitioners have observed clinically for centuries.
Research using neuroimaging has shown that hypnosis produces measurable changes in brain activity – particularly in the prefrontal cortex and the default mode network – that are distinct from both ordinary waking consciousness and sleep. We are beginning to understand, at a neurological level, why hypnosis is so effective at bypassing the critical, analytical mind and facilitating change at a deeper level.
Contemporary hypnotherapy draws on an ever-expanding range of influences, integrating insights from neuroscience, trauma research, somatic psychology, attachment theory and energy medicine. The field has moved well beyond simple symptom management to embrace a more holistic understanding of the human being – one that recognises the inseparable connection between mind, body, emotion and the deeper patterns that shape our lives.
The Evolution Continues
While hypnosis has evolved enormously over the centuries, modern practitioners are continuing to expand and refine the work even further.
Through my own clinical practice over the past 20+ years, I’ve seen that lasting transformation often happens most powerfully when traditional hypnosis is combined with an understanding of the mind-body connection, emotional healing, subconscious reprogramming, nervous system regulation, and energy awareness.
This became part of the inspiration behind the development of the Mind-Body-Magic™ Method, which integrates traditional clinical hypnotherapy with modern transformational approaches, energy psychology concepts, subconscious change work, parts work, regression techniques, and holistic mind-body principles.
The foundations of hypnosis remain as powerful today as they were in the time of the early pioneers. What continues to evolve is our understanding of human consciousness, healing, emotional patterns, and the incredible capacity people have to create change from within.
As we move into the future, hypnosis continues to bridge science, psychology, personal transformation and human potential in exciting new ways.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this excerpt from our Mind-Body-Magic Method™ Practitioner Training Module.
Namaste
Carol xo