In one form or another, hypnosis has existed since the beginning of time. For example, animals that hibernate are practicing one type of hypnosis. They are practicing self-hypnosis by closing down their bodies while allowing their mind and physical being to renew.

Prior to the 1400s, when a person was sick it was thought to be intentionally caused by the gods as punishment to mortal man. The healers of the time would have rituals that involved an altered state of mind, either in the sick person or the healer. Every ritual was different, but they typically involved natural remedies from the rainforest, fire, music and chanting. A common thread in these treatments is that the ill person would be trying to reach a mental place where the mind would take over the body. This would begin the process of body healing. By believing they were being healed, the power of the mind was unleashed.

There was mention in written documentation of hypnosis as early as the 3rd century in Egypt. The 18th century was a popular time for hypnosis, when Franz Anton Mesmer, an Austrian doctor, found he was capable of healing people of illnesses without surgery or medicine. His studies led him to believe that the body was regulated by a magnetic force, and the use of magnets and hypnosis healed people. This type of hypnosis was called “Mesmerism”, and was very successful.