Editing Milton H. Erickson (section)

== Early life and education ==
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Biographical sketches have been presented in a number of resources, the earliest being by [[Jay Haley]] in ''Advanced Techniques of Hypnosis and Therapy''<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Hayley|first=J.|title=Advanced Techniques of Hypnosis and Therapy: Selected Papers of Milton H. Erickson M.D.|publisher=Grune and Stratton Publishers|year=1968|isbn=978-0808901693|location=New York|pages=1–6}}</ref> which was written in 1968 and in collaboration with Erickson himself. Though they never met Erickson, the authors of ''The Worlds Greatest Hypnotists''<ref>{{Cite book|last=Hughs|first=J.|title=The World's Greatest Hypnotists|publisher=University Press of America|year=1996|isbn=978-0761805045|location=New York|pages=22–238}}</ref> wrote a biography. The following information about his life is documented in that source. 

Milton Hyland Erickson was the second child of nine of Albert and Clara Erickson. He was born in a mining camp in [[Aurum, Nevada]] where his father mined silver. The family moved to the farming community of [[Beaver Dam, Wisconsin]] when he was quite young and settled on a modest farm. The children (two boys and seven girls) all attended the one-room schoolhouse in nearby [[Lowell, Wisconsin|Lowell]]. The family farm demanded a great deal of physical labor.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Hayley|first=J.|title=Advanced Techniques of Hypnosis and Therapy: Selected Papers of Milton H. Erickson M.D.|publisher=New York|year=1968|isbn=978-0808901693|location=New York|pages=1–6}}</ref>

Erickson was late in learning to speak and had difficulties in reading, which he described as [[dyslexia]]. He was also [[color blind]] and [[tone deaf]]. Later in life, when he explained what seemed to be extraordinary abilities, he stated that the disabilities ([[dyslexia]], color blindness, being tone-deaf) helped him to focus on aspects of communication and behavior which most people overlooked. This is a typical example of emphasizing the positive, which is characteristic of his overall approach.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|last=Hayley|first=J.|title=Uncommon Therapy|publisher=Norton|year=1973|isbn=0-393-01100-3|location=New York}}</ref>

Though the family valued education, books were scarce. Erickson's desire to learn led him to repeatedly read the dictionary from front to back, along with the few other texts that the family treasured. He claimed to have overcome his dyslexia and described the pivotal moments in a paper entitled "Auto-hypnotic Experiences of Milton Erickson," which is found in ''The Collected Works of Milton H. Erickson, MD.'' He later characterized his early moments of creative change (which he described as a "blinding flash of light") as an early spontaneous auto-hypnotic experience.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Erickson|first=M. H.|date=1977|title=Autohypnotic Experiences of Milton H. Erickson'|journal=American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis|volume=20|issue=1|pages=36–54|doi=10.1080/00029157.1977.10403900|pmid=331929}}</ref>

Erickson became interested in [[hypnosis]] at an early age when a traveling entertainer passed through the area. According to his later description, he felt that hypnosis was too powerful a tool to be left to entertainers. He decided to bring this tool into the realm of scientific evaluation as well as into the practice of medicine. Erickson already admired the local community doctor and had committed himself to becoming a physician.<ref name=":0" />

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At age 17, he contracted [[polio]] which left him with additional lifelong disabilities. Having long been interested in hypnosis, the year of his recovery gave him the opportunity to explore the potential of self-healing through hypnosis. He began to recall "body memories" of the muscular activity of his own body. By concentrating on these memories, he claimed to have learned to tweak his muscles and to regain control of parts of his body, to the point where he was eventually able to talk and use his arms. Still unable to walk, he claimed to have trained his body by embarking on a thousand-mile canoe trip with only a few dollars, following which he was able to walk with a cane. He continued to use a cane throughout his adult life, requiring a wheelchair only in his last decade of life. Erickson attributed his own self-healing to giving him additional insight into hypnosis.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":11">{{Cite book |last=Zeig |first=J. K. |title=An Epic Life II: Milton H. Erickson Personal Perspectives |date=2022 |publisher=The Milton H. Erickson Foundation |year=2022 |isbn=978-1-932248-98-2 |location=Phoenix AZ |pages=127-128, 274-276 |language=English}}</ref>

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After recovering his ability to walk Erickson attended the [[University of Wisconsin-Madison]], where he attained graduate degrees in both psychology and medicine. There he also embarked on formal studies of hypnosis in the laboratory of [[Clark Hull]]. However, because his ideas were somewhat different from Hull's, Erickson independently embarked upon rigorous scientific explorations regarding the nature of hypnosis.  He received his M. D. degree from the [[University of Wisconsin School of Medicine]] with an emphasis on Neurology and Psychiatry in 1928. Between 1929 and 1948, Erickson then took a series of positions at state hospitals that facilitated active research. He continued research in hypnosis as he refined his practical therapeutic skills. He was already a prolific writer focusing primarily on case studies and experimental work. These earlier writings greatly advanced the general understanding of hypnosis and are included in ''The'' ''Collected Works of Milton Erickson, M.D.''<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":11" />

During [[WWII]], Erickson conducted physical and mental examinations of soldiers. Eventually the U.S. intelligence services asked him to meet with other experts in an effort to better understand the psychological and mental factors involved in communications relating to combat. In this capacity, [[Margaret Mead]] and [[Gregory Bateson]] were among those with whom Erickson worked and with whom he developed lifelong friendships. Over the subsequent decades these scholars collaborated on numerous projects.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book|last=Baker|first=M.|title=A Tribute To Elizabeth Moore Erickson|publisher=Alom Editors|year=2003|isbn=968-6513-22-1|location=Mexico}}</ref>

In his late 40s Erickson developed post-polio syndrome. This resulted in additional muscle loss and pain.<ref name=":2" /> At that time Erickson, his wife Elizabeth, and his family of five children left [[Detroit]] and his position at Eloise State Hospital and relocated in [[Phoenix, Arizona]], where they believed the weather conditions would be conducive to his healing. There Erickson established himself in private practice, working out of his home for the remainder of his life.<ref name=":0" />

In Phoenix, Erickson became active in the Society for Clinical and Educational Hypnosis (SCEH). This organization promoted research and taught physicians how to use clinical hypnosis. Due to personality clashes and strong feelings regarding the most effective ways in which to bring clinical hypnosis into the hands of practicing physicians and dentists, Erickson broke away from the SCEH and formed the [[American Society of Clinical Hypnosis]] (ASCH) in July 1957. For a decade he was the founding editor of the ''American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis'' and had at least one article in every issue. He dedicated the next two decades of his life to professional writing, teaching other professionals, and maintaining a private practice. This was a productive period during which he developed and refined his own unique style of [[hypnotherapy]], which caught the attention of other notables.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Rossi|first=E.|title=The Collected Works of Milton H. Erickson|publisher=The Milton H. Erickson Foundation Press|year=2010|isbn=978-1-932248-37-1|location=Arizona|pages=105–106}}</ref>

His ongoing relationship with Gregory Bateson led some to take an interest in Erickson's unique communication skills and therapeutic approaches. In 1973 [[Jay Haley]] published ''Uncommon Therapy'', a book that first brought Erickson and his approaches to the attention of those outside the clinical hypnosis community. Erickson's fame and reputation spread rapidly, and so many people wished to meet him that he began holding teaching seminars. These continued until his death.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book|last=Zeig|first=J.|title=Ericksonian Approaches to Hypnosis and Psychotherapy|publisher=Brunner-Mazel|year=1982|isbn=0-87630-276-2|location=New York|pages=XV-XX}}</ref>

Throughout his professional career Erickson collaborated with a number of serious students. Colleagues who recognized the uniqueness and effectiveness of Erickson's approaches collected his publications into many volumes. His weekly workshops remained popular until his death. Towards the end of his life, Erickson's students began to formulate conceptual frameworks for his work and to explain and characterize it in their own way. Those efforts have influenced a vast number of psychotherapeutic directions, including [[brief therapy]], family systems therapy, [[neuro-linguistic programming]], among others.<ref name=":3" />

Milton H. Erickson died in March 1980, aged 78, leaving behind his wife Elizabeth, four sons, four daughters.<ref name=":3" />