Americans were in love with ...

Americans were in love with mesmerism because it was something that you could do in your own home. You could mesmerize or hypnotize your aunt or your mother or your father and people would go into these trance states and you could introduction autosuggestions tot hem or as some people saw it, you could cure them of illnesses.
 Mitch Horowitz

Quotes from the same author

I think spiritualism, mesmerism, the mental healing movement, provided some people with the most meaningful experiences of their lives.
 Mitch Horowitz