The Indianapolis journal., 1899-08-03
MENTAL SUGGESTION.
A Potent Influence Over the Body In
Cases of Illness.

Medical Record.
Every physician is well aware of the po:
tent influence for good or Ill that the mind
exerts over the body in sickness. In health.
too, the effect of mental suggestion Is with
many persons powerful TO an extraordinary
degree Upon this notorious psychological
fact the Christian Scientists and faith curers
of all kinds base their treatment, and IN
virtue Of some indisputaoie cures orougnt
about by these means have been so long aOlo
to gull the public into the belief that their
healing powers are effective in any case
of disease or injury: Patent medicines % ana
teal reasons II an individual has faith
in a medicine or treatment, he viii assured
ly derive more benefit from tnat medicinS
its merits. There can be little doubt that
the sympathetic physician Is the one best
Again. in many diseases the good that may
be wrought TO the sufferer by the agency
of mental suggestion is undeniable Prof
j. NJ Baldwin. referring 10 this fact In
Connection with insomnia, says: I'm experi-
menting upon the possibility or suggesting
sleep to another. have found certain strong
condition Such an effort which involves the
picturing OF another as asleep Is strong
auto-suggestion Of sleep taking effect In
my own case in about five minutes III the
conditions be kept constant. The more
clearly the patients sleep Is pictured tns
stronger becomes the subjective feellng or
drowsiness. An unfailing cure for tnsom.
MIA, speaking for myself, Is the persisteny
effort to put some one else asleep Dy haro
thinking or the end In view, Win continued
gentle movement such as stroking the
ether with the hand"
DR.. Z. c. Spitzka, of New York. has re-
Gently given some really remarkable In
stances of the power of mental suggestion.
He cites the well-known fact that the NOR
tality from wounds and diseases In q de-
feated army compared with a victorious
army is as four TO three. and even as three
to two. He also refers TO the incontrovert-
ible fact that persons in robust health have
been known to die apparently OF starva-
ton after being without food for from three
to five days DIR. Spitzka is of the opinion
that these individuals did not die of actual
starvation, but from the physical effects OF
hunger The proof of this contention lies
in the fact that persons have been known
to fast of their own free will for more than
forty DAYS without injuring their constitu-
tions to any appreciable extent. Many
amples establishing the truth Of this state
ment might be given. but IL will be suffi-
cient to quote one from DR.. SpitZka's paper.
He says: I'm the graver forms Of hysteria,
when loss OF sensation occurs In exactly
one-half of the body, you can lay piece
OF tinted paper on the sensitive side; then
suggesting IL 10 be mustard plaster. a red
area viii appear on the corresponding un-
sensitive side. Blisters OF such a character
that scars have permanently remained from
them have been produced In similar cases
by the same method" The medical pro-
fession. II appears more than likely, have
not as yet wholly appreciated the advan-
tages to be derived from the employmens
of mental suggestion.