Hypnosis, and the way our minds project our self image, is a very powerful way to lose weight. Hypnosis itself is a very powerful technique.The latest research shows that it eases pain, speeds healing, increases fertility, even fights cancer. Most of us are not even aware of how powerfully the mind controls us. From it's postion of protecting us, it manipulates and causes behaviors, even the negative ones, with the overall result of keeping us safe and alive. All of this, of course, happens without our conscious knowledge. Hypnosis is a way of accessing the mind directly. It is a tool that allows us to change negative behaviors "behind the scenes" so to speak, and, where it really matters - in our mind. Most of us also know nothing about hypnosis, except that it's a bad Vegas act. Most of us think it's a magic trick. Most hypnotists are practicing psychologists. They can help the patient put themselves into a deep state of relaxation. And this is the important point, no one does it to anyone. The patietn either allows themselves to be hypnotized or hypnotizes themselves. Most patients state it is similar to the feeling you get right before you go to sleep. Deep, relaxing breathing techniques and quiet sense of fluidity simply instill relaxation a sense of peace and quiet. A funny thing is happening to hypnosis, long a feature of vaudevillian routines: it's becoming respectable, working its way into the nation's premier research hospitals, medical journals, and doctors' offices. An increasing number of physicians are using hypnosis to ease patients through childbirth, angioplasty, chemotherapy, breast biopsy—even full-on surgery. Hypnosis is helping people get over fractures, burns, migraines, asthma, fibroids, peptic ulcers and skin disorders. The same techniques practiced by ancient Egyptians 2,000 years ago and "discovered" by Austrian physician Franz Anton Mesmer in the late 1700s are now scoring impressive results in medical experiments across the United States, Europe, and beyond. Mind, it seems, really can overcome matter. If somebody told you there was a medication that could treat 100 different conditions, didn't require a prescription, was free, and had no bad side effects, you wouldn't believe them," says Harvard Medical School psychologist Carol Ginandes, Ph.D. "I don't want to sound like a snake oil salesman, because hypnosis is not a magic wand. But it should be made available as a supplementary treatment for all patients who could benefit. Right now."