Hypnosis A More Effective Therapeutic Technique

Researcher Explores Ways To Make Hypnosis A More Effective Therapeutic Technique Date: 2005-03-04 Hypnosis can serve as a valuable adjunct to certain kinds of psychotherapy, says Steven Lynn, professor of psychology at Binghamton University, State University of New York. But not everyone responds to it equally well. In the popular imagination, a person who submits to hypnosis falls into a trance. The subject slavishly follows the hypnotist's commands, perhaps to squawk like a chicken, re-enact events from childhood or develop a lasting aversion to cigarettes. When the subject "awakens," he or she forgets everything that happened during the session. Actually, hypnosis is not like that at all, said Lynn, who has devoted much of his career to establishing a clear, scientific understanding of hypnotic suggestion. A person who responds well to hypnosis takes an active rather than a passive role, working in partnership with the hypnotist. "Hypnosis involves the participant thinking and imagining along with whatever is suggested, in an expectant manner," he said. In some of his latest work, Lynn tries to pinpoint what makes certain people especially good hypnotic subjects and determine if it's possible to raise others to their level. One project, supported by a $376,000 grant from the National Institute of Mental Health, explores the idea that the ability to respond to hypnotic suggestions "can be changed and enhanced when participants are instructed," Lynn said. Janet Ambrogne, assistant professor in Binghamton University's Decker School of Nursing, is working on this study along with Lynn and his team of graduate students. The research team tests subjects to determine how well each responds to hypnotic suggestions. Then researchers provide information about how hypnosis works, trying to eliminate the subject's misconceptions-for example, that people under hypnosis are gullible and easily led. "We try to encourage them to use their imaginations, rather than to passively respond to the suggestions, and to actively immerse themselves in the experience of whatever is suggested," Lynn said. Researchers also teach subjects how to interpret hypnotic suggestions, so that a misunderstanding won't lead to an inappropriate response. Two years into the three-year project, the research indicates that instruction does indeed help people respond better to hypnotic suggestions. By speaking with subjects and letting them watch how others perform under hypnosis, "we can get at least half of initially low-hypnotizable subjects to test as high hypnotizing subjects," Lynn said. The team still needs to figure out, though, which elements of the training do the trick. "Is it telling people they should make an active response? Is it the imagination part of it, when we ask people to vividly imagine what we've been suggesting? We don't know what components are responsible for the effectiveness." Lynn will also investigate the malleability of hypnotic response in a new study of "mindfulness"-the ability to stay non-judgmentally aware of one's fluctuating thoughts and feelings. "Many psychotherapies are now recognizing that people try to suppress or conceal feelings," but the more they try to push away unwelcome mental experiences, the more those experiences come back to trouble them, Lynn said. By learning to observe and accept whatever flows through their minds, "individuals can come to desensitize themselves to unsettling thoughts and feelings." Lynn and his graduate students are working to develop scales that measure a person's aptitude for mindfulness and see how one's ranking on those scales correlates to other traits. "Initial results suggest that the ability to be mindful is associated with a variety of positive characteristics, such as positive self esteem and the ability to be absorbed in different experiences, from watching a sunset to reading novels," he said. Along with other traits, they want to determine if mindfulness correlates to strong hypnotic response. "If we had scales where we could pre-select people who tend to be mindful, and contrast them with people who in everyday life tend to not be especially mindful, we could see whether, for example, there were differences in the way they responded to hypnotic suggestions," Lynn said. "Or we could ask the question, 'Would combining a hypnotic induction with suggestions to be mindful increase people's suggestibility?'" If the researchers can figure out what sort of instruction or encouragement helps subjects gain greater benefit from hypnosis, this knowledge could help therapists put hypnosis to better use for clients who want to manage anxiety, lose weight or make other positive changes. It might also settle certain theoretical controversies. Along with the general public, some schools of psychologists also contend that hypnosis is a state apart from ordinary consciousness, Lynn said. In their research, he and his team "try to consistently debunk that position and show that the same variables that account for non-hypnotic behaviors and experiences account for hypnotic behaviors and experiences." "My way of thinking," Lynn said, "is that hypnotic responsiveness is associated with attitudes, beliefs, expectancies, motivation, using your imagination and the kinds of strategies people use." If he is correct, and if therapists can help subjects fine-tune those variables, that could increase the value of hypnosis as a therapeutic tool. This story has been adapted from a news release issued by Binghamton University

Non-smoking Information

Finding the hypnotherapist with the most effective, Non-smoking sessions. Smoking and other addiction are someone of the most difficult problems for a health care professionals to treat. The review of clinical data on smoking censation, reveals there is an average success rate of about twenty-five percent. This clinical data is comprised from all information available on current stop-smoking programs and over the counter pharmaceuticals. This success rate is based on both a six and  twelve month follow-up with smokers. Far too many of the reports on the use of hypnosis to stop or prevention smoking censations, some reports are anecdotal. Most reports are not published papers based on research. There is enough research available to evaluate the usefulness of hypnosis to aide one in the process to be a non-smoker. In most studies the authors find that a single session approach with the hypnosis results about seventeen to twenty-five percent success. Although, another study of the single session approach programs had a forty-five percent success rate reported for the first few months and a thirty-one percent abstinence at six months. It is autors suspicion that a single hypnosis session fares no better than all current stop-smoking programs including the approach with pharmaceuticals. (e.g., like the Spiegels, Berkowitz, Ross Townsend, & Kohberger, Hhewchuck, Dubin, Burton, Clark & Javelin; Spiegle, Standton, Grorosz) However, when the authors examine hypnotic treatment programs with a four or five session formats, the success rate is found to be dramatically increased. Research conducted by Crasilneck and Hall reported over sixty-four percent success rate using programs with a four or five session formats. This success rate is based on a one year of follow-up. Watkins research concluded using hypnosis programs with a five session approach, have a seventy-six percent success rate. A comparable abstinent rates of sixty percent were found by researcers Neiwland & Field, when using a hypnosis session for four consecutive weeks. In planning to participate in a multi-session treatment program, is recommended that a second hypnosis sessions be conducted approximately two or three weeks following first appointment. This council is offered by Marlatt because, research data has proven the average number of days between initial abstinence and relapse for smokers has been seventeen days. Kline and Sanders researched areas where group hypnosis has also been utilized, have positive effects, but not in all cases. The effectiveness may be enhanced in group hypnosis, by using individualized suggestions and by extending the length of time of the group session. (Barkley, Hastings, & Jackson, Grosz, Machvec & Man, Watkins, Holroyd). All hypnotherapy is more effective when Individualizing hypnotic suggestions to the unique motivations and concerns of the patient. Also, reasearch of individualizing hypnotic suggestions are prominently related to more effective outcomes. (Nuland &Field, Watkins, Sanders). In fact, a review of these studies found the five most successful hypnosis stop-smoking programs, emphasized the use of individualized suggestions. When the same standards suggestions are used with every client, the success obtained, is less than forty percent. Consequently, the authors wanted to re-emphasize the importance of personalized tailoring to the motivation and the needs of the client.  The information presented above, is taken the from the handbook of the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis. (Copywrite 1990) In summation, if you are looking for a hypnotist and a program to become a non-smoker. It is highly important that you seek someone who offers a four or five session program. The Hypnosis Institute of Overland Park offers these smoking programs.  In addition, we offer a six month and one year follow-up sessions.  It is our intent and commitment is to aid you in becoming a non-smoker.

Pain Management

Evaluation informBrain imaging studies investigate pain reduction by hypnosis 15 Mar 2005            Although hypnosis has been shown to reduce pain perception, it is not clear how the technique works. Identifying a sound, scientific explanation for hypnosis' effect might increase acceptance and use of this safe pain-reduction option in clinical settings. Researchers at the University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine and the Technical University of Aachen, Germany, used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to find out if hypnosis alters brain activity in a way that might explain pain reduction. The results are reported in the November-December 2004 issue of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine. The researchers found that volunteers under hypnosis experienced significant pain reduction in response to painful heat. They also had a distinctly different pattern of brain activity compared to when they were not hypnotized and experienced the painful heat. The changes in brain activity suggest that hypnosis somehow blocks the pain signal from getting to the parts of the brain that perceive pain. "The major finding from our study, which used fMRI for the first time to investigate brain activity under hypnosis for pain suppression, is that we see reduced activity in areas of the pain network and increased activity in other areas of the brain under hypnosis," said Sebastian Schulz-Stubner, M.D., Ph.D., UI assistant professor (clinical) of anesthesia and first author of the study. "The increased activity might be specific for hypnosis or might be non-specific, but it definitely does something to reduce the pain signal input into the cortical structure." The pain network functions like a relay system with an input pain signal from a peripheral nerve going to the spinal cord where the information is processed and passed on to the brain stem. From there the signal goes to the mid-brain region and finally into the cortical brain region that deals with conscious perception of external stimuli like pain. Processing of the pain signal through the lower parts of the pain network looked the same in the brain images for both hypnotized and non-hypnotized trials, but activity in the top level of the network, which would be responsible for "feeling" the pain, was reduced under hypnosis. Initially, 12 volunteers at the Technical University of Aachen had a heating device placed on their skin to determine the temperature that each volunteer considered painful (8 out of 10 on a 0 to 10 pain scale). The volunteers were then split into two groups. One group was hypnotized, placed in the fMRI machine and their brain activity scanned while the painful thermal stimuli was applied. Then the hypnotic state was broken and a second fMRI scan was performed without hypnosis while the same painful heat was again applied to the volunteer's skin. The second group underwent their first fMRI scan without hypnosis followed by a second scan under hypnosis. Hypnosis was successful in reducing pain perception for all 12 participants. Hypnotized volunteers reported either no pain or significantly reduced pain (less than 3 on the 0-10 pain scale) in response to the painful heat. Under hypnosis, fMRI showed that brain activity was reduced in areas of the pain network, including the primary sensory cortex, which is responsible for pain perception. The imaging studies also showed increased activation in two other brain structures - the left anterior cingulate cortex and the basal ganglia. The researchers speculate that increased activity in these two regions may be part of an inhibition pathway that blocks the pain signal from reaching the higher cortical structures responsible for pain perception. However, Schulz-Stubner noted that more detailed fMRI images are needed to definitively identify the exact areas involved in hypnosis-induced pain reduction, and he hoped that the newer generation of fMRI machines would be capable of providing more answers. "Imaging studies like this one improve our understanding of what might be going on and help researchers ask even more specific questions aimed at identifying the underlying mechanism," Schulz-Stubner said. "It is one piece of the puzzle that moves us a little closer to a final answer for how hypnosis really works. "More practically, for clinical use, it helps to dispel prejudice about hypnosis as a technique to manage pain because we can show an objective, measurable change in brain activity linked to a reduced perception of pain," he added. In addition to Schulz-Stubner, the research team included Timo Krings, M.D., Ingo Meister, M.D., Stefen Rex, M.D., Armin Thron, M.D., Ph.D. and Rolf Rossaint, M.D., Ph.D., from the Technical University of Aachen, Germany. University of Iowa Health Care describes the partnership between the UI Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine and UI Hospitals and Clinics and the patient care, medical education and research programs and services they provide. Visit UI Health Care online at uihealthcare.com. STORY SOURCE: University of Iowa Health Science Relations, 5135 Westlawn, Iowa City, Iowa 52242-1178

Hypnosis Now

Self-hypnosis might help you get through challenging times By Cynthia Lambert Nehr / Special to The Detroit News Wednesday, February 23, 2005              Perhaps you're eight and a half months pregnant and you're starting to wonder how this "natural" childbirth decision of yours is going to play out. Are you actually going to be able to withstand the pains and pangs of intense labor and delivery without the assistance of medication? Or maybe you're a college student who didn't do too well on your midterm exams. You knew the material, but when it came to test time, you froze up and couldn't recall many of the answers. Or maybe you're a high school basketball player who can sink free throw after free throw at practice and even before a game. But when the eyes of teammates, opponents and fans are on you, you can't seem to sink a shot. You might be a prime candidate to learn self-hypnosis. Cheryl Beshada, a certified medical hypnotherapist, says that self-hypnosis is a wonderful tool to learn in order to tackle some of life's tougher moments, or even those consistently challenging ones that may drag you down. "Hypnosis goes much further than does visualization," says Beshada, who practices out of her Clinical Hypnosis Institute office in Warren and at the Valade Center for Healing Arts at the VanElslander Cancer Center at St. John Hospital in Detroit. "You can open your eyes and study and retain more. Actually, you can recall everything you studied much more readily. "We also teach self-hypnosis for sports. The person can picture in their mind what they want to accomplish and then do that." But as Beshada says, hypnosis goes much deeper than just visualization. It's not just about hitting that cross-court winner on the tennis court. Instead, during self-hypnosis training, the subject learns how to recall a touch sensation, a word or a color to access the post-hypnotic suggestion. "I practice this myself," Beshada says. "For our clients we guide them into a level of hypnosis and then we anchor it into them. Once we anchor in that level of feeling, we give them a posthypnotic suggestion that they can carry out by accessing one of three methods -- kinesthetically (touch), auditorily (word) or visually (imagining a color). Using these modalities, you can recall in seconds what you want."

Picking a Hypnotherapist

Patient beware: Check first that your hypnotherapist is licensed. By Cynthia Lambert Nehr / Special to The Detroit News Wednesday, February 23, 2005 So, you're interested in using hypnosis in your quest to lose weight, stop smoking or deal with the ever-mounting stress in your life. How do you find someone who truly knows what they are doing, and someone who can handle your exact needs? According to Wayne State University professor Arnold B. Coven, it is essential that you do your research. "If you're going to use hypnosis to help you, make sure you go to someone who has the proper credentials," Coven says. "I know I'd feel safer with someone who is a fully licensed psychologist, counselor or social worker." Certified hypnotherapist Cheryl Beshada says that underlying issues or medical conditions must be taken into consideration before hypnosis can work as effectively as possible. It is important that you remain aware of this as you seek out a qualified hypnotherapist. "There are many situations where we consult with the patient's physician first," says Beshada, who practices hypnotherapy at the Valade Healing Arts Center at the VanElslander Cancer Center at St. John Hospital. "This way, we are sure they have the appropriate diagnosis so that, through hypnosis, we aren't masking anything. We don't want to take the pain away if there is something that needs medical attention. "That's why you need to make sure you are working with a certified hypnotherapist. You may be suffering from appendicitis. In that case, you don't want hypnosis masking your symptoms. Each situation is unique." Kevin Sloan, a licensed psychologist who works for the Beaumont Weight Control Center in Royal Oak, agrees that it is important to use a hypnotherapist qualified for your particular need. This can be especially true for someone using hypnosis to assist in weight loss. "Most hypnotherapists are trained in the area of hypnosis," Sloan says. "My guess is they don't have specialization in health and nutrition. I don't think many of them have an in-depth understanding and appreciation for the nuances of weight loss. Just keep that in mind when you are looking for someone to help you."