Medical Hypnosis (Hypnotherapy)

 What is Hypnosis?

Hypnosis is a state of deep relaxation, focused attention and heightened suggestibility. This state is often characterized by changes in perception, enhanced memory, and a reduction in awareness of external stimuli.   In this receptive (suggestible) state, the subconscious can be accessed through which therapeutic, constructive, and positive concepts can be introduced, leading to positive changes in thought (cognition), emotion, behavior, and even brain and body physiology.   
 
Myths about Hypnosis
Contrary to its dramatic depiction in movies and media of various forms, leading to some persistent myths about hypnosis, hypnosis never involves mind control, and a person can never be made to do anything they do not want to do; or reveal anything that they do not want to reveal, during a hypnosis session.  Hypnosis, isn’t a religious practice, and a person can never become “stuck” in a hypnotic state.  Rather, the process is typically deeply relaxing with the hypnotized person being fully aware of everything that is happening, at all times during a session.
 
Contrary to its Hollywood depiction as a mysterious and magical practice, Hypnotherapy actually has a long history as a medical therapy. 
 
What is Medical Hypnosis?

Hypnotherapy (the therapeutic application of hypnosis) is utilized by a variety of practitioners, including ‘hypnotherapists’ who are not medical providers.   However, Medical Hypnosis (Medical Hypnotherapy) refers to the therapeutic application of hypnosis in medical settings to treat diagnosable psychologic and physical conditions.  In this regard, medical hypnosis has demonstrated benefit in a range of conditions, including stress (12), anxiety (2, 7-9), irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) (10), phobias (11), chronic pain (incl. chronic low back pain and fibromyalgia) (1, 4, 8), especially when combined with other psychotherapies (6).
 
The practice of medical hypnosis is recognized by psychiatry, psychology, and medical organizations in the United States, including the American Psychiatric Association (APA), which recognizes hypnosis as a therapeutic tool, as well as its potential applications in a range of mental health conditions (22);  the American Psychological Association (APA), which similarly  recognizes hypnosis as a legitimate therapeutic technique that can be used by trained professionals for such applications as the management of phobias, anxiety, and trauma-related disorders; and the American Medical Association (AMA), which has a history of recognizing hypnosis as a legitimate medical treatment, dating back as far as 1958 (23), when the AMA formally recognized hypnosis as a valid therapeutic tool, which laid the foundation for its use in modern medical practices. 
 
How Does Hypnosis Work?
Hypnosis has existed in various forms for thousands of years, tracing back to the "sleep temples" of ancient Egypt; the practices that resembled hypnosis by Greek physicians like Hippocrates; the 18th Century work of Franz Anton Mesmer, an Austrian physician; the methods of 19th Century Scottish surgeon, James Braid, who coined the term "hypnosis" in 1843; and the work of 20th century psychiatrists like Milton H. Erickson, who developed many of the hypnosis techniques still widely used today.  
 
However, hypnotherapy has enjoyed a recent resurgence in popularity, bolstered by modern brain imaging studies, which have demonstrated that hypnotherapy creates detectable changes in brain function and structure (3).  Observed changes in the brain following hypnosis include enhanced connectivity in areas associated with executive function and self-reference (13); alterations in areas associated with sensory processing, leading to changes such as reduction in pain intensity (14); and changes in areas responsible for emotional processing and memory function (15,16).
 
Hypnosis in Brain Rehabilitation

Owing to hypnosis’ effects on brain function, including in its demonstrated capacity to promote nerve growth (neuroplasticity) in key areas of the brain, which is potentially valuable in instances of brain injury associated with anxiety, depression, and mood changes, Neuregen utilizes medical hypnosis as a powerful clinical tool to "boost" brain rehabilitation.  
 
While we feel that our clinical approach and utilization of hypnosis in brain rehabilitation is uncommon and somewhat unique, the idea of using hypnosis as a therapeutic intervention for brain injury has been explored in other research studies.  
 
For example, hypnosis has been shown to help reduce anxiety and manage pain in patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) (17, 18).  Hypnosis has also been demonstrated to enhance cognitive and emotional recovery in post-concussion and post-concussion pain syndromes (17-19).  In brain injury, hypnotherapy has been utilized to increase motivation for recovery (20) and cognitive processing (21). 
 
We strongly believe that hypnosis can be a highly valuable, supportive therapy for brain injury rehabilitation.
 
Hypnosis for Personal Change

While we utilize hypnosis to treat diagnosed medical conditions, a person does not need to suffer from an injury or illness to benefit from hypnosis.  Many people utilize hypnosis to create positive changes in their lives, ranging from weight loss to improving their golf game!

The simplest way to describe the potential for hypnosis to create changes in a person’s life is to first point out that it is never hypnosis that is creating the change – it is the person!  
 
Think about it this way: Any change, action, project, effort, or accomplishment first starts in the imagination.   This might be described as ‘an image in the mind’, a ‘visualized goal’, or a ‘vision of the future’.    By accessing the subconscious mind, hypnosis "installs" a vivid image into the subconscious, like a seed in fertile soil, that grows into a clear vision, which leads to actual, motivated action, which produces actual measurable results in the “real world”.  

This is the simplest way to describe how hypnosis can help to start “rolling snowball effect” that starts in the imagination and flourishes in actual changes in a person’s life.     
 
Hypnosis utilizes many of the same brain networks as meditation, though arguably much more robustly, such that many of the benefits of meditation are potentially boosted in hypnosis but whereas meditation is a generally a passive process of awareness (i.e., calming the mind), hypnosis not only silences the conscious mind but also adds the valuable step of activating the imagination (subconscious mind, at the level of one's underlying beliefs & concepts about self and the world).   So if a person enjoys or benefits from meditation, it is likely that they will experience even greater benefits from hypnosis. 
 
Hypnosis and Anxiety
Hypnosis has demonstrated promise as an effective treatment for reducing anxiety, especially when combined with other psychological interventions (25), as it is typically applied at our clinic.  It has also demonstrated effectiveness in reducing anxiety in specific contexts, including as a pre-operative therapy (to reduce anxiety associated with surgery) (26), test anxiety among students (27), and reducing anxiety in cancer patients (28). 
 
Hypnosis and Depression
Hypnosis has demonstrated the capacity to alleviate depressive symptoms (29,30).  Additionally, it has been demonstrated to enhance improvements derived from psychotherapy in depression, anxiety, and hopelessness, compared to therapy alone (31), as well as to prevent relapses of depression after it has resolved (33).  That is, hypnotherapy can serve as a sort of 'defense against depression'.  Medical hypnotherapy has also demonstrated benefit in depressed children and teens by improving emotional and cognitive management, sleep, and social connections (32). 
 
Are you ready to try Hypnosis?
The best way to understand the benefits of hypnosis is simply to try it.   Neuregen offers medical hypnosis therapy near Phoenix and Scottsdale, AZ at our Integrative Psychiatry and Neurologic Health Center. 
 
References:
1. Jensen MP, Patterson DR. Hypnotic approaches for chronic pain management: clinical implications of recent research findings. *Am Psychol.* 2014;69(2):167-177. doi:10.1037/a0035644
2. Montgomery GH, Schnur JB, David D. The impact of hypnotic suggestibility in clinical care settings. *Int J Clin Exp Hypn.* 2011;59(3):294-309. doi:10.1080/00207144.2011.570656
3. Oakley DA, Halligan PW. Hypnotic suggestion: opportunities for cognitive neuroscience. *Nat Rev Neurosci.* 2013;14(8):565-576. doi:10.1038/nrn3538
4. Adachi T, Fujino H, Nakae A, Mashimo T, Sasaki J. A meta-analysis of hypnosis for chronic pain problems: a comparison between hypnosis, standard care, and other psychological interventions. *Int J Clin Exp Hypn.* 2014;62(1):1-28. doi:10.1080/00207144.2013.841471
5. Tan G, Hammond DC, Gurrala J. Hypnosis and irritable bowel syndrome: a review of efficacy and mechanism of action. *Am J Clin Hypn.* 2005;47(3):161-178. doi:10.1080/00029157.2005.10401508
6. Valentine KE, Milling LS, Clark LJ, Moriarty CL. The efficacy of hypnosis as a treatment for anxiety: A meta-analysis. *Int J Clin Exp Hypn.* 2019;67(3):336-363. doi:10.1080/00207144.2019.1613863
7. Chen PY, Liu YM, Chen ML. The effect of hypnosis on anxiety in patients with cancer: A meta-analysis. *Worldviews Evid Based Nurs.* 2017;14(3):223-236. doi:10.1111/wvn.12215
8. Ozgunay SE, Kasapoglu Aksoy M, Deniz KN, et al. Effect of hypnosis on pain, anxiety, and quality of life in female patients with fibromyalgia: Prospective, randomized, controlled study. *Int J Clin Exp Hypn.* 2024;72(1):51-63. doi:10.1080/00207144.2023.2277853
9. Provençal SC, Bond S, Rizkallah E, El-Baalbaki G. Hypnosis for burn wound care pain and anxiety: A systematic review and meta-analysis. *Burns.* 2018;44(8):1870-1881. doi:10.1016/j.burns.2018.04.017
10. Black CJ, Thakur ER, Houghton LA, et al. Efficacy of psychological therapies for irritable bowel syndrome: Systematic review and network meta-analysis. *Gut.* 2020;69(8):1441-1451. doi:10.1136/gutjnl-2020-321191
11. Malik S, Mirza M, Ahmad F, Malik A. Treatment of severe anxiety and social phobia by hypnosis and neurolinguistic programming: A case report. *Ann Psychophysiol.* 2021. doi:10.29052/2412-3188.v8.i2.2021.107-111
12. Karrasch S, Bongartz W, Behnke A, Matits L, Kolassa I. The effects of a single relaxation hypnosis session on mental stress in chronically stressed individuals. *Z Klin Psychol Psychother.* 2022. doi:10.1026/1616-3443/a000679
13. Landry M, Lifshitz M, Raz A. Brain correlates of hypnosis: A systematic review and meta-analytic exploration. *Neurosci Biobehav Rev.* 2017;81:75-98. doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2017.02.020
14. Jensen MP, Adachi T, Tomé-Pires C, Lee J, Osman ZJ, Miró J. Mechanisms of hypnosis: Toward the development of a biopsychosocial model. *Int J Clin Exp Hypn.* 2015;63(1):34-75. doi:10.1080/00207144.2014.961875
15. Oakley DA, Halligan PW. Hypnotic suggestion: Opportunities for cognitive neuroscience. *Nat Rev Neurosci.* 2013;14(8):565-576. doi:10.1038/nrn3538
16. Iani C, Ricci F, Baroni G, Rubichi S. Hypnotic suggestion modulates cognitive control: Evidence from the go/no-go task. *Psychol Res.* 2014;78(3):434-446. doi:10.1007/s00426-013-0496-6
17. Moss D. I hurt so: Hypnotic interventions and palliative care for traumatic brain injury. *Ann Palliat Med.* 2017;7(1):151-158. doi:10.21037/apm.2017.08.16
18. McGrady A, Moss D. A pathways model approach for traumatic brain injury. In: *Handbook of Clinical Health Psychology*. 2018:239-250. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-89313-6_14
19. Lindeløv J. Hypnosis and brain injury: Four cases and three predictions. 2019. doi:10.31234/osf.io/e78vk
20. Crasilneck H, Hall J. The use of hypnosis in the rehabilitation of complicated vascular and post-traumatic neurological patients. *Int J Clin Exp Hypn.* 1970;18(3):145-159. doi:10.1080/00207147008415914
21. Laidlaw T. Hypnosis and attention deficits after closed head injury. *Int J Clin Exp Hypn.* 1993;41(2):97-111. doi:10.1080/00207149308414541
22. American Psychiatric Association. *Practice Guidelines for the Psychiatric Evaluation of Adults.* 3rd ed. Arlington, VA: APA Publishing; 2016. Available from: https://www.psychiatry.org/File%20Library/Psychiatrists/Practice/Clinical-Practice-Guidelines/Psychiatric-Evaluation-of-Adults-APA-2016.pdf
23. American Psychological Association. Hypnosis for the treatment of pain and pain-related conditions: Evidence and considerations for clinical practice. Available from: https://www.apa.org/pubs/journals/releases/cfp-a0037172.pdf
24. American Medical Association. Council on Mental Health report: The use of hypnosis in medical practice. *JAMA.* 1958;168(2):186-189. Available from: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/323877
25. Valentine K, Milling L, Clark L, Moriarty C. The efficacy of hypnosis as a treatment for anxiety: A meta-analysis. *Int J Clin Exp Hypn.* 2019;67:336-363. doi:10.1080/00207144.2019.1613863
26. Saadat H, Drummond-Lewis J, Maranets I, et al. Hypnosis reduces preoperative anxiety in adult patients. *Anesth Analg.* 2006;102:1394-1396. doi:10.1213/01.ane.0000204355.36015.54
27. Pachaiappan S, Tee M, Low W. Hypnosis interventions for reducing test anxiety among students: A systematic review. *Cogent Psychol.* 2023;10. doi:10.1080/23311908.2023.2281745
28. Chen P, Liu Y, Chen M. The effect of hypnosis on anxiety in patients with cancer: A meta-analysis. *Worldviews Evid Based Nurs.* 2017;14:223-236. doi:10.1111/wvn.12215
29. Shih M, Yang Y, Koo M. A meta-analysis of hypnosis in the treatment of depressive symptoms: A brief communication. *Int J Clin Exp Hypn.* 2009;57:431-442. doi:10.1080/00207140903099039
30. Milling L, Valentine K, McCarley H, LoStimolo L. A meta-analysis of hypnotic interventions for depression symptoms: High hopes for hypnosis? *Am J Clin Hypn.* 2018;61:227-243. doi:10.1080/00029157.2018.1489777
31. Alladin A, Alibhai A. Cognitive hypnotherapy for depression: An empirical investigation. *Int J Clin Exp Hypn.* 2007;55:147-166. doi:10.1080/00207140601177897
32. Lyons L. Hypnosis with depressed children and teens: Building skills, creating connection. *Am J Clin Hypn.* 2023:1-13. doi:10.1080/00029157.2023.2208624
33. Yapko M. Hypnosis in treating symptoms and risk factors of major depression. *Am J Clin Hypn.* 2001;44:108-97

​

​