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Good Books

Hopefully this is the correct place on the site to ask some questions from the perspective of a novice. I am about half-way through "The Art of Hypnosis" by Roy Hunter (as recommended by the amazing Scott Sandland) and am wondering what book I should read next. Ideally, I would love to learn how to hypnotize myself for pain management and a few other things. I have tried to watch a few online videos, but they don't seem to do the trick for me. However, besides self-hypnosis, I am hoping to learn more about hypnotherapy in general and how to begin helping others. So, any suggestions? Thanks!

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Permalink Reply by JOHN NICE on July 17, 2008 at 1:00pm: Hi Erica a good place to start may be Milton Erickson try and god speed; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Lisa Mills on July 17, 2008 at 7:48pm: Erika, all those suggestions are great; I've learned a lot from many of them. One thing I'd like to bring up is that many of those titles are intended to deepen a hypnotist's skill at her craft. A craft that, presumably, she has already been trained in and is actively practicing. I'm not sure how effective they'll be in helping you with self-hypnosis to control your own pain. Brian may be right: mp3's, cd's and videos might work better.

But, for my nickel, I'd rather spend my money on a good hypnotherapist who is experienced in pain work. Your results will be faster and better, IMHO. By all means, pursue learning hypnosis/self-hypnosis as a career, an avocation, a passion! Heaven knows that's why we're all here on this board, and you'll be hard pressed to find anything as rewarding.

To use an analogy Roy Hunter gave me:
If I want to lift a chair (eg. simple habit change), I can do that by myself. If I want to lift a couch (eg. pain management), I need someone on the other end to help me.

Best of luck, Erika, and enjoy the journey!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Don Gibbons, Ph.D. on July 18, 2008 at 5:20pm: The most comprehensive source of information I ever read on hypnosis is D. Corydon Hammond (Ed.) Handbook of Hypnotic Suggestions and Metaphors, W. W. Norton & Co., 1990. It isn't cheap, but it has instructions and scripts for everything I can think of, and it's a treasure house of information that will never go out of date.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Erika Berg on July 18, 2008 at 5:23pm: I just wanted to thank everyone for their great suggestions! This is such a phenomenal resource and I hope to hear from even more of you. :) Thanks again! Happy hypnosis!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Mark Tracten on July 30, 2008 at 9:26am: There is a new book out by Bruce Eimer, "Hypnotize Yourself Out of Pain Now!" It makes for a really good read and included is a CD that has exercises and self-relaxation techniques.

Mark Tracten; ▶ Reply to This