USES OF HYPNOSIS
Sometimes prospective clients call me expressing an interest in hypnosis without being sure what kind of issues it can help with. As I have mentioned in other blog posts, hypnosis is an altered state of consciousness similar to daydreaming, meditation and other relaxation techniques or even driving on autopilot. Hypnotherapy involves using hypnosis for a goal beyond relaxation to focus concentration on an issue in the client’s life.
Hypnosis has a long history of therapeutic use going back to the “sleep healing” of ancient Greece. It was used in the fourteenth through mid-nineteenth centuries for what practitioners called a “mind cure” Through and after the world wars of the twentieth century, hypnotherapy was used as a treatment for what was then called battle fatigue and is now called post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In the later twentieth century, hypnotherapy became popular for habit modification such as quitting smoking and overeating.
Today hypnotherapy is gaining a wider acceptance in working with mental, emotional and physical healing. Dr, Andrew Weil has noted, “In general, I believe that no condition is out of bounds for trying hypnotherapy on.” I often see clients on referral from their psychotherapist for a session of hypnotherapy as an adjunct therapy to their work to deal with anxiety and depression. Studies have found that hypnotherapy is particularly useful for those suffering dermatological and gastrointestinal problems. This makes sense as the skin and gut are areas of the body which often express stress. Pain management, erectile dysfunction when no known organic cause is shown, preparing for surgery, and easing the side effects of chemotherapy are other ways hypnotherapy is being used at this time.
If you are interested in exploring hypnotherapy, ask for a referral from your doctor or mental health practitioner. It is important to find someone you feel comfortable with. I offer a free consultation to every client that would like to learn more. I tell all clients that two things are necessary for hypnosis to be a viable option for change. 1) They have to be open to making a change. I can’t make them do anything they don’t want to do, and 2) They have to feel comfortable with the person they are working with.
If for any reason, you do not feel comfortable with the hypnotherapist. Leave and find another therapist. Listen to your gut. A good hypnotherapist can help you to harness your mind-body skills to BE WELL.