-ism, -ismus

The presence of too many fingers and/or toes.

Excessive growth or activity of the sexual organs; used especially in reference to precocious puberty.

1. Excessive internal secretion of gonads.
2. A clinical state resulting from enhanced secretion of gonadal hormones.

Excessive salivation.

1. The overproduction of thyroid hormones at dangerously high levels.
2. The condition in which basal metabolism increases as a result of over activity of the thyroid gland.

It affects women far more frequently than men, with peak incidence between 30 and 50 years of age.

The words hypnosis and hypnotism are derived from the Greek word hypnos, meaning sleep. Hypnotism is a means of bringing on an artificial state of sleep to the participant; more accurately described as a state of reduced consciousness while one is still a awake.

Following the challenges about the validity or accuracy of Mesmerism by the medical profession, few reputable physicians practiced mesmerism until the middle of the nineteenth century, or early 1840's, when James Braid, a Manchester, England, surgeon, experimenting with the phenomenon, decided that it was not at all due to "animal magnetism" or to any other mysterious influence that passed from the physician to the patient.

Braid noticed that a trance produced by "fixing attention" was similar to that of animal magnetism but at first thought it was a different condition.

Later he concluded the two were identical. Early in his work, he believed that the fixation of the eyes on a bright object brought on a trance but, with more experience, he concluded that suggestion was the real explanation.

It was Braid who coined from the Greek element hypnos, meaning "sleep", the words hypnotism and hypnosis to describe this new science and the trance condition that was produced. He maintained that through the aid of hypnotism important physical and psychical effects could be obtained.

So, it was James Braid (1795-1860), a Scottish surgeon and hypnotist, who inaugurated modern hypnotic techniques in his book, Neurypnology, studying the subject with a seriousness that led to the inclusion of hypnotism in the treatment of nervous disorders by his successors.

At first he called the procedure "neuro-hypnosis" and then, believing sleep was involved, he suggested "hypnosis". Realizing that hypnosis was not really "sleep", he later tried to change the name to monoideaism (or monoideism, "a marked preoccupation with one idea or subject"), but the term hypnosis has remained ever since.

For many years, Braid practiced in London, using suggestion therapy and performing operations by using hypnotic anesthesia (typically anaesthesia is the British spelling).

There is an informative article about hypnotism or "sleep" words at Hypnotism, sleep wonderful sleep.

The practice of or the obsession someone has for going to bed and sleeping without wearing any clothing.

1. A pet name; especially, a diminutive or abbreviated form of someone's full name: "We called him Billy as a hypocorism for William."
2. The use of a pet name to address someone, instead of his or her full name.
3. A name of endearment; a pet name.
4. Etymology: from Late Latin hypocorisma, from Greek hupokorisma, from hupokorizesthai, "to call by endearing names".

1. Names of endearment.
2. Pet names.

The congenital absence of part, or all, of one or more fingers or toes.

1. Decreased or reduced secretion of saliva.
2. Abnormally decreased salivation, as in xerostomia; also termed, hyposalivation and hyposialosis.

A tendency to be overly emotional or having a neurosis resulting from repression of emotional conflicts from the conscious; characterized by immature, impulsive, dependent, and attention-seeking behavior.

Intoxication caused by the ingestion of ichthyohemotoxin, characterized by gastrointestinal and neurological disturbances.

Intoxication caused by the ingestion of toxic fish roe, characterized by gastrointestinal and neurological disturbances.