I allayed the patient’s fear. I strongly impressed her with the groundlessness of her fears, and also with the fact that everything was well with the children, and that her husband will be good and gentle with her. The patient was permitted to see her family. The husband was made to realize that he must treat her with more consideration. He came often to visit her, and learned to treat her well. He soon found a better position, was advised to remove to a healthy locality and to more cheerful surroundings. The children were well cared for. The patient found deep satisfaction in the midst of this family happiness. The fear state abated,--the patient became more confident, more hopeful for the future, and began to improve. The infant was weaned so that the strain of nursing was removed. The patient’s appetite began to improve; she gained several pounds in a few days. Long periods of examination and investigation of her nervous and mental state no longer exhausted or terrified her. Her concentration of attention could be kept up from a quarter to half an hour at a stretch without giving rise to fatigue, headache, or to a seizure with its consequent psychomotor effects. The haunted look of fear disappeared, and along with it were also gone the fatigue and dread of physical and mental exercise or work. She could work and walk with ease the whole length of the room and of the hall. She began to take more and more interest in her appearance and in dress. For many minutes at a time she looked out on the street taking an interest in all that was done and what was going on. The case was discharged, and was sent home. She continued to stay well. FOOTNOTE: [12] In fact from my long experience with cases of stammering, stuttering and mutism I may say that where no organic lesion may be suspected, the disturbance is one of self and fear. CHAPTER XXIV SUGGESTED HALLUCINATIONS The servility, the state of fear of the subconscious, the source of neurosis, in its relation to the master hypnotizer is well brought out in the mechanism of hypnotic and post-hypnotic hallucinations. Before we proceed with our discussion it may be well to give an analysis, however brief, of the normal percept, of the abnormal percept or hallucination, and then compare them with hypnotic and post-hypnotic hallucinations. The understanding of perception, normal and abnormal, is, in fact, at the basis of normal and abnormal psychology.