THE HISTORY BEHIND HYPNOTHERAPY
Hypnotherapy has a longer history than most people realise.
The first recorded distinction between sleep and hypnosis was made around 900AD by the Persian physician Avicenna. Since then, it has been developed, debated, and refined by some of the greatest minds in medicine and psychology.
The modern story of hypnotherapy begins with Franz Anton Mesmer in 18th century Vienna, whose theories on energy and influence - controversial in his time - sparked a movement that would eventually lead to the clinical hypnotherapy we use today. James Braid, a Scottish surgeon who first demonstrated hypnosis in 1841, is widely regarded as the father of modern hypnosis and wrote the first recorded book on the subject. In the twentieth century, Dave Elman - an American performer turned medical trainer - brought hypnosis into hospitals and dental surgeries, training doctors and dentists in pain management. His induction technique is still used by practitioners today.
ERICKSONIAN HYPNOTHERAPY
The most influential figure in modern hypnotherapy is Dr Milton Erickson -regarded by many as the greatest hypnotherapist who ever lived. Erickson's approach was built on working with a client's own behaviour and unconscious patterns rather than against them. His early life, marked by polio and a lisp, forged a practitioner of extraordinary patience and ingenuity.
Dominic draws heavily on Ericksonian hypnotherapy in his work with clients. The results - from addiction and anxiety to phobias and confidence - speak for themselves, with clients often getting in touch years later to share how much their lives have changed. Hypnotherapy is not what you see on stage. It is a clinically grounded, highly effective method for accessing the part of the mind where real change happens.