Hypnosis techniques

The term “hypnosis” stems from the Greek word “hypnos,” meaning “sleep.” Hypnotherapy employs a number of techniques that create a feeling of deep relaxation in patients, which then leads to an altered state of consciousness known as a trance. Therapists use hypnosis techniques to open a gateway into the mind, where they can actually influence people on how to change their embedded behaviors. While it has not been proven beyond reasonable doubt, a number of patients have reported the use of hypnosis sessions to quit smoking, lose weight, overcome obstacles in their marriage and find a sense of empowerment.

In a hypnotherapy session, the patient’s body relaxes, blood pressure decreases, heart rate decreases, oxygenation of the blood increases and brain wave activity may be altered. By contrast, the mind becomes more attentive, more focused and more awake. While patients are in this deep concentration, they are more in touch with their emotional side, the left and right brain hemispheres are communicating better, mental gatekeepers open up and they are highly responsive to suggestion. A patient may be given a list of reasons to stop smoking or convinced to eat smaller portions. Perhaps a series of coping mechanisms can be directed into the subconscious realm to help a person calm down and overcome anxiety, anger disorders, stress or depression.

Hypnosis therapy is used to treat a wide host of ailments from mental to physical. Most recently, researchers discovered that the mind plays an important role in pain management, particularly with cancer patients or those undergoing surgery. Studies show that hypnosis meditation can lessen one’s need for medication and shorten recovery time. Thinking negative thoughts can lead to stress, which has powerful ramifications on the body.

It can disrupt a woman’s menstrual cycle, create a cold sore, make a person ill with a cold, disrupt sleep patterns, generate ulcers, facilitate hair loss, exacerbate psoriasis, lead to heart disease and contribute to obesity. Today, hypnosis sessions are used in treating obesity, asthma, anxiety, pain, sleep walking, thumb sucking, nail biting, smoking, inflammatory bowel disease, insomnia, addiction, warts, bedwetting, fibromyalgia, irritable bowel syndrome, eczema, psoriasis, acne, migraines, stress, tinnitus, cancer pain, obesity, anorexia, bulimia, indigestion, phobias, depression and the pain of childbirth.

For hypnotherapy training, most people obtain a doctorate degree in medicine or psychology. Others receive a master’s in social work, psychology or therapy and have at least 20 hours of ASCH-approved hypnotherapy training. Six to eight week courses provide licenses to mental health professionals as well. To find a professional who practices hypnotherapy, one can look at a number of websites, including: The American Society of Clinical Hypnosis at www.asch.net, The Society for Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis at www.sceh.us/index.htm or The American Association of Professional Hypnotherapists at www.aaph.org.

Hypnosis meditation

Clinical hypnotherapy is an amazing study where a person is induced into a state of trance so he or she can better manage painful sensations or emotions. Therapists use this treatment to prepare for surgery, to recover from trauma or to deal with chronic pain related to cancer or something like fibromyalgia. Hypnosis meditation has been a popular study since the seventies, when New Age philosophy bloomed. Yet many maintain that it is this “occult” or “mystical” application that hurts the credibility of hypnosis as a legitimate scientific study.

Let us look at the application of clinical hypnotherapy to treat chronic pain such as fibromyalgia or cancer patients. In one study, 35 cancer patients were assigned to three groups: clinical hypnosis, cognitive behavioral training and placebo (Syrjala, 1992). During hypnosis, patients were relaxed and received a post hypnotic suggestion to reduce pain, nausea and anxiety, while given healing phrases and imagery aimed at helping them cope. The behavioral therapy group was relaxed and explored the meaning of their illness, while working toward cognitive restructuring. The placebo group saw a normal physician/therapist. Compared to the other two groups, the hypnosis group saw a significant decrease in pain and used less medication.

Another type of clinical hypnotherapy is known as “hypnoanesthesia,” a practice which dates back to the 1800s, before modern day anesthesia was developed. In 1990, researcher Eron Grant Manusov found that hypnoanesthesia (without chemical induction) is feasible in only 10-16% of the population, but works surprisingly well in suggestible patients. Other tests showed that patients given chemical anesthesia were able to receive hypnotic suggestions while in a state of trance, so that they had reduced hospital stays, needed less medication and required less anesthesia in future procedures.

A 2005 clinical hypnotherapy study done at the University of Iowa found similar findings using magnetic resonance imaging, that there is “reduced activity in areas of the pain network and increased activity in other areas of the brain.” The primary sensory cortex, the brain’s pain center, showed limited functioning. On the other hand, the left anterior cingulate cortex and the basal ganglia lit up with overwhelming activity. The left anterior cingulate cortex is the area of the brain associated with heart rate, blood pressure, reward anticipation and decision making processes. The basal ganglia, which are a group of nuclei in the brain, comprise the motor control, cognition and learning center of the brain. No wonder clinical hypnosis can change a person’s beliefs and behaviors! The researchers concluded that these regions may be an inhibition pathway to block pain signals from reaching higher cortical areas responsible for pain perception. The limitation of hypnosis techniques is that it’s believed only 10% of the population is highly hypnotizable, another 80% may be hypnotizable and another 10% cannot be hypnotized at all.