hypnotherapy /hip′nəther″əpē/ [Gk, hypnos + therapeia, treatment] , the induction of a specific altered state (trance) for memory retrieval, relaxation, or suggestion. Hypnotherapy is often used to alter habits (e.g., smoking, obesity), treat biological mechanisms such as hypertension or cardiac arrhythmias, deal with the symptoms of a disease, alter an individual’s reaction to disease, and affect an illness and its course through the body.
