Teaching Erickson in America
It has been a long time since I have been on the faculty of the National Guild of Hypnotists’ annual convention. It has been a great experience seeing old friends and making a few new ones along the way.
I have the privilege of teaching my Ericksonian Certification course again as a post convention programme. I always feel a bit humbled teaching about Milton Erickson in his homeland.
I have been a student of Milton Erickson for more than 25 years, and whilst I do not agree entirely with his philosophy I do believe that his approaches have made me a much better therapist in many contexts. Erickson was a true innovator, but more than that he was a truly integrative therapist.
As a non-schoolist myself, I believe that all branches of psychotherapy have a lot to offer but no one method has all the answers. To be a well rounded therapist, I believe that we need to embrace the largest possible view of therapy. We need to move away from and add to what we have learned in our early careers in order for our therapeutic voices to resonate with our clients. I believe that Erickson gives a great template to develop our voice.
