This is a book about how William James and Milton Erickson have helped shape the modern conceptualization of human consciousness and its care. With both men cast from the archetypal mold of a wounded healer and a coming-of-age odyssey, it should not surprise us that James and Erickson converge on the central idea that "...the secret to the care of human consciousness is the utilization of who we are toward some practical end."
It does not matter if you are a serious student of James and Erickson or someone who is freshly introduced to their work; this book offers clarity and a deeper understanding of what Jamesean psychology looks like when masterfully applied to clinical care. While numerous books have been written about Erickson, they often revolve around spectacular success stories-making Erickson somewhat of a myth and therefore inaccessible. By learning more about the stories and principles that informed young Erickson, we are better able to appreciate and learn from the common sense nature of his work.

Dan Short, Ph.D., is a practicing clinical psychologist who teaches classes on medical hypnosis at the Southwest College of Naturopathic College of Medicine. He is known for collaborating with two of Milton H. Erickson's daughters, Roxanna Erickson-Klein and Betty Alice Erickson, in writing Hope & Resiliency: The Psychotherapeutic Strategies of Milton H. Erickson M.D. In that classic text, he summarizes his learning from a two year-period as the chief archivist for the Milton H. Erickson Foundation. He lives with his wife and two children in Scottsdale, Arizona.