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The Art of Hypnonsis
Understanding Hypnosis Hypnosis is an ancient art - almost as old as civilization itself. Medicine men, magicians and priests of ancient traditions practiced a primitive form of hypnosis. It was not until the 18th century, however, that any attempt was made to turn hypnosis into a science. The need for rapid treatment of shell shock during World Wars I and II led to a rekindling of interest in hypnotism.
Because of its astonishing effectiveness, hypnosis became the treatment of choice as a shortcut psychiatric therapy. In 1955, the British Medical Association approved hypnosis for the treatment of psychoneurosis, and for hypnoanesthesia to relive the pain of childbirth and in surgery.
Three years later, in 1958, The Council on Mental Health of the American Medical Association reported its approval of hypnosis. More recently, the field of hypnotherapy has become an emerging profession, separate and distinct from others, but still complementary to the major healing arts. With heightened public awareness of the crucial link between a person's state of mind and his or her state of health, people are turning to hypnosis as a short-term, non-invasive therapy.
Many people are surprised to learn that they have frequently encountered hypnotic trance states throughout their lives. While early theories of hypnosis were based on mystical "mesmeric fluid" or "animal magnetism", a modern understanding of the field treats hypnotic phenomena as a process that utilizes natural shifts in our language and perception.
There is no hard and fast definition for a hypnotic experience or 'trance'. The best that can be said is that a trance state is an altered state of consciousness, one that represents a shift from 'ordinary' waking consciousness.
Some emphasis has been given to the ideas that a trance state represents a more internalized experience, a narrowing of focus, 'dissociation', increased suggestibility, or automatism. While any of these can come into play in a hypnotic experience, none of them are either necessary or universal. The late Dr. Milton Erickson, the 'grandfather of modern hypnosis', said "Trance permits the operator to evoke, in a controlled manner, the same mental mechanisms that are operative spontaneously in everyday life." With this in mind, it may be easier to understand that our minds have the ability to shift from one state of consciousness to another very easily.
We have all experienced trance-like states while daydreaming, while bored in a lecture or class, while driving on a long highway, getting a massage, sitting in a hot tub, when we shift our attention in order to read a book, to watch television, or to go inside our own minds to think about something. There are many methods of hypnosis and self-hypnosis.
For a period of time, some researchers used a kind of statistical approach to studying hypnosis in that they would take one method of inducing a trance and apply it to large group of test subjects.
The results, invariably, would 'prove' that only a percentage of the population were "good hypnotic subjects". In fact, all that was really demonstrated was that that particular method of hypnosis was effective with a percentage of the population.
"For this is the great error of our day
that the physicians separate the soul from the body"
Hypnosis in the News
Self-Hypnosis is Aid in Chemotherapy - According to the Duke Dialogue, which is published by Duke University Medical Center, there is a place for the use of self-hypnosis in helping young cancer patients avoid some of the harrowing side-effects of chemotherapy.
Although researchers have found some positive results, they point out that the technique does not work for every patient, but has helped an average of three out of five young patients between the ages of 9 and 21 who participated in the study.
"Results vary" said Pat H. Cotanch, Ph.D., "However, even those who do not show an objective improvement tend to do better with later courses of chemotherapy when they are compared to the control group that receives no relaxation training."
Psychologists' Group Sets Limits For Use of Hypnosis - The American Medical News reported on a resolution adopted by the American Psychological Association in which it declared that non-professionals should not use hypnosis or be trained to use it.
Hypnotherapy For Pain Relief - Pediatric News reported on the work of Dr. Karen Olness, director of research and behavioural pediatrics at Minneapolis Children's Health Center, who says that hypnotherapy can reduce anxiety pain in children undergoing treatment.
Children with malignancies who are undergoing long, stressful periods of uncertainty about their fate can receive benefit from hypnotic relaxation, as well as using it for pain control during diagnostic workups and cancer therapies. Hypnotherapy is useful in removing fear during emergency situations and for inducing relaxation of the bronchi in asthmatics.
Fibromyalgia Research - In one study, published in the Journal of Rheumatology, 40 Fibromyalgia patients were randomly assigned treatment of either Hypnotherapy or Physical Therapy. The therapy lasted 12 weeks with a follow up at 24 weeks. The patients in the Hypnosis group showed a significantly better outcome with respect to pain reduction, fatigue upon awakening, sleep patterns, and global assessment at 12 and 24 weeks.
The authors concluded that hypnosis was effective in relieving the symptoms of Fibromyalgia -"Every client using hypnosis for FMS has gained a significant reduction in symptoms. Many have become symptom free during the course of therapy and have remained that way after the sessions have ended. They have been able to reduce their dependence on medications and return to a more active lifestyle."
Hypnosis for Pain and Anxiety - A prospective, randomized trial described in the April 29, 2000 Lancet evaluated the effectiveness of hypnosis - termed "nonpharmacologic analgesia" - in easing pain and anxiety associated with undergoing minimally invasive surgical procedures such as angiograms an angioplasties (which require catheterization of arteries), nephrostomies (kidney drainage), and liver biopsies.
The researchers randomly assigned 241 patients treated in a radiology unit at a university hospital to one of three groups: standard treatment, structured attention, and hypnosis (or self-hypnotic relaxation). Patients rated their pain and anxiety before surgery and every 15 minutes during it. The researchers - Elvira Lang, M.D. Director of Interventional Radiology at Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Boston, and colleagues - found several indications that hypnosis was more effective and safer than either of the controls. Procedures in the hypnosis group needed less time to complete than those in the attention group and even less time than those in the standard group. Patients in the hypnosis group used less than half the amount of drugs as the standard treatment group and about the same as the attention group. After an hour of procedure time, pain and anxiety were lowest in the hypnosis group. And finally, in a surprising finding, only the hypnosis group remained "hemodynamically stable", meaning blood pressure and heart rate did not increase or decrease to levels that caused concern or required extra attention in the procedure room.
In addition, hypnosis cut procedure room time by 17 minutes, even though the self-hypnotic relaxation technique itself required 10 minutes to administer. Additionally, hypnosis had a long-lasting effect on pain and anxiety. This study did verify that hypnosis might be used to procedures that cause pain and anxiety such as angioplasties, colonoscopies, and MRI.