Hypnotically Informed Psychotherapy: Erickson and Beyond

As Milton Hyland Erickson told us, "Each person is a unique individual. Hence, psychotherapy should be formulated to meet the uniqueness of the individual's needs, rather than tailoring the person to fit the Procrustean bed of a hypothetical theory of human behavior." Erickson's mastery and creative genius have invited clinicians to imitate and emulate his style of working and identify themselves as "Ericksonian." But what does it mean to be Ericksonian? Utilizing the microdynamics of trance induction, and the six "core competencies" Ericksonian therapy as the foundation, this paper notes how the confluence of embodiment, influence, vivification, unconscious thought, spread activation, gestures, and "being hypnotic" rather than "doing hypnosis," form what is here being defined as, Hypnotically Informed Psychotherapy. Hypnotically Informed Psychotherapy (HIP) is offered as an alternative to the poorly defined, yet frequently employed, term, "hypnotherapy." In its most rudimentary form, the hypnotically informed clinician is attuned to the impact of the palette of communication - verbal, nonverbal, and paraverbal - and harnesses it with strategic intent. Understanding and appreciating the ways in which we respond without being aware of what it is that invites our responsiveness (i.e. influence) is at the core of hypnotically informed psychotherapy. Inherent in this approach is a recognition of both conscious and unconscious "thinking." How the clinician utilizes the domains of self, other, and circumstances, to facilitate what has been characterize as a movement from the "rational system" to the "experiential system," is central to HIP. Being hypnotically informed is independent of one's theoretical orientation. When one begins to engage in the therapeutic encounter from a posture of utilization and with an eye towards the microdynamics of the moment, one is engaged in or poised for Hypnotically Informed Psychotherapy.