Hypnotherapy is effective in treating stress, sleep disorders, and mental health problems such as anxiety, fear, phobias, and depression. Hypnotic techniques can also help a person stop smoking, overcome alcohol and substance abuse, and reduce overeating. 

  For thousands of years the power of suggestion has played an important role in curing in cultures as varied as ancient Greece, Persia, and India. Hypnotherapy uses both the power of suggestion and trancelike states to access the deepest levels of the mind to effect positive changes in a person's behavior, and to treat a range of health conditions, including migraines, ulcers, respiratory conditions, tension headaches, and even warts.

  In 1955, the British Medical Association approved the use of hypnotherapy as a valid medical treatment. The American Medical Association (AMA) followed suit in 1958, and its Council on Scientific Affairs continues to encourage more research on the subject of hypnotherapy. At the same time, the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis, a professional association of physicians, psychologists, and dentists, has grown from twenty members in 1957 to over 4,300, and attendance at hypnotism courses by physicians and other medical specialists is steadily increasing. About fifteen thousand doctors now combine hypnotherapy with traditional treatments, and recent studies show that 94 percent of patients benefit from hypnotherapy, even if relaxation is the only benefit.