change in the hidden recesses of his own being. Outwitting nerves
means first and foremost changing one's mind, an inner and spiritual
process very different from the kind of change which used to be
prescribed for the nervous invalid.

As Putnam says, the slogan of the suggestion-school of psychotherapy
has always been, "You can do better if you try"; while that of the
psycho-analytic school is, "You can do better when you know." Refuting
the old adage, "Where ignorance is bliss 'tis folly to be wise," the
best methods of psychotherapy insist that the first step in any
thorough-going attempt to change oneself must be the great step of
self-knowledge. As the conflicts which result in "nerves" are always
far beyond those mental regions which are open to scrutiny, a real
self-knowledge requires an examination of the half-conscious or wholly
unconscious longings which are usually ignored. A real understanding
of self comes only when one is willing, to analyze his motives until
he sees the connection between them and his nervous symptoms, which
are but the symbolic gratification of desires he dares not
acknowledge.

Although these deeply buried complexes are the real force behind a
nervous illness, the material out of which the symptoms are
manufactured is taken largely from superficial misconceptions
concerning the bodily functions. It is therefore a great help, also,
to possess a fund of information,--not technical nor detailed but
accurate as far as it goes,--about the more important workings of the
bodily machinery. A little knowledge about the actual chemistry of
fatigue and the way it is automatically cared for by the body is
likely to do away with the idea of nervous exhaustion as resulting
from accumulation of fatigue. A simple understanding of the biological
and physiological facts concerning the assimilation of food and the
elimination of waste material leaves the intelligent person less ready
to convert his psychic discomfort into indigestion and constipation.
Chapters IX to XIII in this book, which at first glance may seem to
belong to a work on physiology rather than on psychology are designed
to give just such needed insight.

But knowing the truth is only the first half of the way out. Every
neurosis is a deliberate choice by a part of the personality.
Self-discovery is helpful only when it leads to better ways of
self-expression. The final aim of psychotherapy is the happy
adjustment of the individual to