Chapter 9, The Pain of Old Age Summary and Analysis

This chapter addresses those challenges most closely associated with the last phase of life. The manner in which people face old age depends in part upon themselves but is also influenced by the attitudes of others towards the aged. For those who glorify youth culture, older years may have a more difficult psychological impact. However, for people who have a healthy and integrated sense of every stage of life, are surrounded by friends, and well enough funded, this final phase of life can be quite pleasurable and goes on for decades.

The use of hypnosis is used in this chapter to alleviate pain. This is also the first chapter in which Haley shows how others misused techniques that Erickson had used properly. Erickson relieves a severely-injured old man of pain but...