Product reviews for The Wisdom of Milton H. Erickson

There can be no self-respecting therapist who has not heard at least mention of Milton Erickson. Even many people in the street may well be familiar with his name even though they may not go into details about him. Milton Erickson was, arguably, the most effective, creative, challenging and dynamic hypnotherapist that the world has ever had the good fortune of seeing.

Where Paul McKenna is the people's hypnotist in the sense of being well known and well followed, Milton Erickson was, and foreseeable always will be, the therapists' therapist.

He is largely responsible for shaping the modern view of hypnosis and hypnotherapy that we are familiar with today. Few, if any, would fail to acknowledge his enormous contribution to the body of knowledge and practice that is hypnotherapy.

Erickson endured two serious bouts of polio in his life and was confined to a wheelchair for much of his later years. This did not prevent him from using his active, creative and unique mind. He learned to use the healing methods of self-hypnosis to deal with his personal handicaps and to discover and uncover and then promote ways of experiencing life at more profound levels.

He delighted in his work and was never happier than when he was able to share his knowledge with others, realising that much of what he was sharing would be life transforming for many of his listeners ( I almost said, disciples).

I have read many books during my time as reviewer and some I have found as exciting as seeing paint dry. Some have been as easy to digest as a tough beef steak would be for a vegetarian with no teeth. Not so with this book!!!! This book has been wonderfully crafted by the author to ensure that the essential spontaneity and creativity of Erickson is maintained. As a book it is a work of art in its excellently put together content. As a tribute to Erickson it is unequalled and as a “good read” for the practitioner it is top of the list! From beginning to end the book is inspirational and challenging. It encourages the reader to think and then challenge his/her own thoughts Erickson would have been a good dinner guest. This book allows us the privilege of his company, humour, intelligence and inspiration at any time and for that I thank the author and publisher most sincerely.

We have all had difficult clients from time to time. Erickson did too, and he was able to hypnotise even the most resistant of people. He could do so either with or without the client actually being aware of the fact.

In all his work he was challenging and creative, searching for and exploring new methodologies making the foundation upon which we now build today.

There is no doubt that his methodology was innovative and he may well have been looked upon as a renegade by many of his practitioner peers. However, as people saw the results of his labours his innovations became more appreciated and many of his patients were actually sent to him by other therapists whose own methods were not getting the desired effects.

He has become the therapist's therapist ever since his early days and was awarded the Benjamin Franklin Gold Medal of the International Society of Hypnosis:

The medal is inscribed - To Milton H Erickson, MD - innovator, outstanding clinician and distinguished investigator whose ideas have not only helped create the modern view of hypnosis but have profoundly influenced the practice of all psychotherapy throughout the world.

Indeed, I challenge you to read this book and not be influenced or changed by it in some way.

Milton Erickson would have made a wonderful dinner guest. In this one volume we have his wit and wisdom, guidance and gravitas, inspiration and encouragement. It is a book which in a short space of time will be well used and reused but never abused. Some books fill a gap on the shelves. Some look imposing! Some even keep that shelf from bowing in the middle. This one will be in the shelf so little. It will be in constant use.

It is like a treasure chest of inspiration and encouragement and, above all else, sincerity and honesty, that we can never tire of dipping into and being happy to learn from.

With his death we lost a living force and ever emerging challenge from a man who was only too pleased to be able to feel that he was teaching us to become more effective in our work.

Dr Havens has given us the chance to have in one volume what one could almost call the ” essential Erickson”, and I feel that we all will discover we owe him and the publishers a debt of gratitude in keeping the Ericksonian ethic alive and accessible. Erickson can , should we choose, be our motivation and guide. One thing he can't be is the answer to all our questions. He would be the first to say that these essentially lie within each one of us. He is not the provider of simple solutions. He is not the idol to imitate. What is is the source of much wisdom which makes us think.

As the author says ” We owe it our patients to use Erickson's wisdom wisely. More importantly, we owe it to ourselves”.

This book is a work of art. It is truly a tribute to a great man. In itself it is an academic milestone which will be difficult to equal let alone better. It is a book to be read. As Dr Havens said, ” We owe it to ourselves.