Occupational Marks and Other Physical Signs

MEDICAL HYPNOSIS. Vol. I. The Principles of Hypotherapy. xi + 449 pp. $5.50. Vol. II. The Practice of Hypnotherapy. x + 513 pp. $6.50. By Lewis R. Wolberg. Grune & Stratton, New York, 1948. This text presents an orientation to modern dynamic psychotherapy as an integral part of its discussion of hypnosis. It assumes that hypnosis as a medical tool will be employed only by psychologically trained therapists. Volume I, after a discussion of the historical and theoretical aspects of the subject, goes on to a concrete presentation of hypnotic technic. The last and longest section of this volume is concerned with the application of hypnotherapy to specific psychiatric conditions. These are considered in the context of other methods of treatment and management as they apply to the dynamics of the specific psychiatric syndromes. An important chapter is concerned with dangers, limitations, and failures of hypnosis. Volume II is divided into three sections. The first is concerned with the use of hypnosis in direct symptom removal. The second, after a general discussion of "psychobiologic therapy," gives a detailed presentation of psychobiologic treatment (desensitization, reconditioning, re-education, persuasion, reassurance, and guidance). The final section is concerned with hypnosis in psycho-analytic therapy. The author emphasizes throughout that the inclusion of the hypnotic state in the psychiatrist's armamentarium is justified only by its employment as a means of augmenting and reinforcing psychotherapy based on thorough knowledge of the dynamics of the patient's emotional problem. Research workers will find the text useful for its comprehensive review of the literature in the field, and therapists for its detailed accounts of technics and actual treatment experiences. It is recommended to professional workers in psychiatry rather than to general readers. -e. B. BRODY