Milton H. Erickson, MD: A Hypnotic Personality

Perhaps one of the greatest American born thinkers and healers is Dr. Milton H. Erickson, MD. Born in 1901, in Aurum, Nevada, to a gold miner and housewife, Erickson, came from humble origins. When Erickson was several years old, he returned with his parents to the family farm near Lowell, Wisconsin. Although it became clear in his early childhood that he had a brilliant mind and would be the first of his family to attend university, Erickson worked the farm no differently than his parents and siblings.
Two stories are told of Erickson during this stage of his life. The first is that his father was attempting to force a stubborn horse into the barn by pulling on its reigns, but to no avail. Erickson, at eight years of age asked his father to let him have a try. His father was amused and at his son’s suggestion stepped out of the horse’s way. Young Erickson then went behind the horse and yanked at its tail. Needless to say, the horse ran into the barn. His father was amused, impressed, and glad he hadn’t been in the horse’s way.
The second story told of Erickson during the early years of his life is when he found a stray horse near the Erickson family farm. Young Erickson adeptly mounted the horse, gave it a gentle kick, and let it begin walking. When the horse began straying off the road, Erickson gently nudged it back on track. Several hours, and about 13 miles later, the horse walked into the yard of its owner. The owner asked how Erickson, a boy of no more than 14, knew to whom the horse belonged and how to get there? Erickson explained that he did not know, but he knew the horse did, and it was simply a matter of his keeping the horse focused and moving along.
At the age of 17, Erickson contracted severe polio that paralyzed him. Late one night, as he lay in his hospital bed, he overheard three doctors telling his parents that he would be dead by morning. Erickson was incredulous. He was determined not to die without seeing the sunrise and proving the doctor wrong. Semi-delirious and with slurred speech he asked his mother to remove the dresser from in front of the window. He then spent the next several hours staring out the window determined not to shut his eyes (for that would be fatal) and to behold the sunset and the recovery it would bring. Indeed, Erickson said that sunset remained with him for the rest of his life and taught him an important lesson in the vast power of mind over matter, and of mind as a healing resource.
Leaving him too weak to continue farming, Erickson decided he might do better as a medical doctor. Unable to move for many months, Erickson entertained himself by watching people. He learned to read body language and amused himself by watching people say one thing verbally while conveying something else with their body language. Indeed, Erickson was so astute at watching body language and movement that he taught himself how to walk again by observing his infant sister as she learned to walk.
In the summer of 1922, as part of his recovery from infantile paralysis which he contracted three years earlier, Erickson set out on a 1200 mile canoe trip, which began at Lake Mendota outside of Madison, Wisconsin and finished somewhere along the Mississippi River. At the beginning of his journey, still weak from polio he was unable to carry the canoe, butat the end of his voyage he had no difficulty paddling up current and porting his canoe without help from others.
Erickson worked as Director of Physicians at a community hospital in Michigan where he experimented with the metaphoric and hypnotic approaches to communication for which he is best known. In one case, a patient , thinking he was George Washington, spent his days walking aimlessly around the hospital grounds. Erickson, finding this patient’s lack of societal contribution most disturbing, approached him and asked, “Is it not true that you are President George Washington?” “Yes, it is true” came the reply. “That begin the case,” said Erickson, “you most certainly know a great deal about farming and landscape, as that was your occupation prior to entering into politics.” The patient was forced to admit that he did indeed know a great deal about farming. “The hospital is looking for an accomplished gardener to serve as a grounds keeper, I would like to appoint you to that position.” Although the patient continued to hold fast to his belief that he was President Washington, due to Erickson’s intervention the patient became a productive member of the hospital “staff” for many years thereafter.
In his fifties Erickson developed post-polio syndrome, leaving him with chronic pain and weakness of muscles,and as a result moved to Phoenix, Arizona. It was in Phoenix that he began his private psychotherapy practice and teaching seminars. He developed hypnotic techniques to block out pain and discomfort and taught these techniques to his students and patients. At a time when long term insight oriented psychoanalysis was the norm in the field of psychotherapy, Erickson developed short term ways of empowering his patients and getting them back on their feet. Among these ways was his unique way of helping people to see things in a different light. For example he might ask a patient of his to go for a walk in the desert and notice something they have never noticed before. In so doing his patients were forced to see things differently and inevitably began to see their problemsin a different light..
Erickson’s life, aside for being a lesson in tenacity and perseverance, is a lesson in seeing things differently. Erickson taught us that if we are willing to see our problems in new and different lights, more often than not, with surprisingly little effort, we will find the solutions we seek as close as our own hearts and minds.

Binyamin Klempner, MSW is a psychotherapist and life coach. He lives in Ramat Beit Shemesh Aleph with his wife and two children. He can be reached for consultations and appointments at 02-9999-764.

*Information for this article was gathered from: Milton H. Erickson: An American healer (2006); Betty Alice Erickson, M.S., Bradford Keeney, PH.D.; Ringing Rocks Press: Sednona, Arizona and My Voice Will Go With You (1982); Sidney Rosen, M.D.; W.W. Norton & Company Ltd: New York and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milton_H._Erickson