About Our Medical Hypnosis Course

Medical Hypnosis Course Description

This course in medical hypnosis is unique because it includes the unpublished reports of Dr. August Forel and his confidential conversations with Dr. Hippolyte Bernheim. These men were two of the leading medical hypnotists of all time. It is important to understand the influence they had on Medical Hypnosis because current and future studies of the treatment of various illnesses will be compared to the extensive case studies of Bernheim and Forel. The inclusion of these works will prove beneficial on the course as Bernheim and Forel treated more diseases and had a much higher success rate than any other medical hypnotist.

The course work and research covers many proven and modern day protocols throughout the two-year study period. The student will be able to work to an accepted model within the medical field and will attain a practical standard of expertise that far exceeds general hypnotherapy training.

Background History - August Forel

August Forel was a professor of psychiatry at the University of Zurich and the director of the Burgholzli hospital (Jung later held this post).

However, it was Forel who built the Burgholzli up to the reputation it has today. When he took over the directorship it was a poorly run local mental asylum.

Forel had heard of the spectacular success of Bernheim’s treatment with hypnosis in Nancy, France. So he traveled there to learn Bernheim’s methods. When Forel returned to Zurich, he began using hypnosis, not only on the patients of the Burgholzli, but on the staff as well. For example, the nurses were always tired because they had to do night duty outside the rooms of mental patients, always vigilant for some crisis with the patients. So, Forel hypnotised the nurses so that they could sleep in the halls and not be disturbed by the ordinary loud noises or screams the mental patients during the night. But if they heard something unusual, that was an indication a patient was in trouble, the nurse would awaken at once.

This method worked very well. On one occasion, a nurse awakened in the middle of the night, just in time to help a pregnant patient who had gone into labour prematurely.

Forel was so interested in hypnosis that he traveled throughout Europe visiting all the outstanding practitioners of medical hypnosis. Much of what he learned was later published in his book Hypnotism or Suggestion and Psychotherapy, 1906, which quickly became one of the leading books on medical hypnosis.

Forel, Hitler & Passing on of knowledge, Oscar Forel & James Pool

Some of the methods of medical hypnosis that Forel witnessed, convinced him more than ever of the awesome power of hypnotism. But, he was worried that hypnosis would seem like a panacea and would incur the wrath of the medical profession and the drug companies. He was also afraid to mention the most powerful techniques in his book for fear they would fall into the hands of demagogues or unscrupulous politicians.

There was some information he decided not to reveal to the public, only telling it to his son, Dr Oscar Forel, who was also a psychiatrist and experienced in medical hypnosis. In the 1920’s August Forel’s worst fears were realised when he witnessed Hitler’s use of hypnotic techniques to stir up racial hatred in Germany.

After his fathers death in 1931 Oscar Forel kept the information his father had told him secret, as Hitler conquered one country after another. In the mid 1970’ James Pool met Dr Oscar Forel while traveling in Switzerland. Forel was interested in learning about Pool’s research on Hitler and the two became friends. Forel invited Pool to his home, a beautiful chateau on the shores of Lake Geneva. In a series of private conversations, Forel, who was then in his 80’s, told Pool all the things his father had learned from the best medical hypnotist in the world, men like Bernheim, Janet, Delboeuf, Moll, Van Renterghem, and Wetterstrand. Oscar Forel wanted to share his fathers’ discoveries with someone before he died. He was no longer hesitant about betraying his father’s wishes to keep the knowledge secret from the public, since Hitler's use of hypnosis had already created the ultimate catastrophe.

From the beginning of his studies of hypnosis, August Forel was fascinated with the work of Hippolyte Bernheim, who was to become the most renowned medical hypnotist of his day.

Hippolyte Bernheim - World Renowned Medical Hypnotist

Bernheim was a professor on the faculty of medicine, respected neurologist, and director of the hospital of Nancy. When Bernheim first heard of hypnosis he was skeptical. On learning that an old country doctor named Liebeault had cured a man of sciatica, that the hospital had treated with no results, Bernheim decided to visit Liebault’s clinic. After careful observation, Bernheim was convinced of the medical usefulness of hypnosis.

Because of his medical reputation Bernheim’s book on Hypnosis: De la Suggestion became the most popular work in the field. Furthermore, due to his position as the director of the modern Nancy hospital, Bernheim was able to test hypnosis on thousands of patients over the years. He kept detailed records of his cases and was honest enough to publish his failures as well as his successes. His success rate for treating patients with a wide variety of illnesses was far greater than anyone reports today. Indeed, in one of the later editions of his book he states that he put fifty percent or more of his patients into somnambulism, the deepest stage of hypnosis. Normally, if over ten percent of the patients were somnambulists it would be considered good (somnambulism is correctly defined as patients who have complete post hypnotic amnesia for the events of the trance after awakening).

All acknowledge that Bernheim was a very effective hypnotist. He was willing to treat many illnesses with hypnosis alone. Doctors came from all over Europe to study with him. One doctor recalled that in the few days that he was at the Nancy hospital he saw Bernheim treat cases of heart disease, kidney disease, paralysis, rheumatoid arthritis, sciatica, and pneumonia. Bernheim's book on hypnosis was translated into German by eager young doctor Sigmund Freud. Why Freud later abandoned the use of hypnosis, is a story that will be included in the course.

If you have any questions about our Medical Hypnosis Course, contact us today.