Neurypnology James Braid May 2026

Experts and historical archivists highlight Braid's unique contribution to the transition from occultism to medicine:

The second half of Neurypnology details Braid’s use of hypnosis to treat conditions like paralysis, rheumatism, and aphasia. NEURYPNOLOGY James Braid

“I regard this book as THE fountain head of hypnosis. Braid not only gives us the word we now use for our subject, but brought to it a clarity of thought and an energy of experimentation which is unparallelled.” Ragged University In it, Braid moved the field away from

James Braid | Health and Medicine | Research Starters - EBSCO the Rationale of Nervous Sleep (1843)

James Braid’s seminal work, Neurypnology; or, the Rationale of Nervous Sleep (1843), is considered the foundational text of modern hypnotism. In it, Braid moved the field away from the mystical "animal magnetism" of Franz Mesmer toward a physiological and scientific understanding of trance as a state of "nervous sleep". Core Principles of Neurypnology

Braid coined the terms "hypnotism" and "hypnosis" in this book, though he later preferred "monoideism" when he realized the state was not actually sleep.

He argued that hypnosis is triggered by the fixation of attention on a single object or idea.