Hypnosis, also called hypnotherapy or hypnotic suggestion, is a technique that involves placing a person in a trance-like state in which they have heightened focus and concentration. During this period, when the patient is in a calm and relaxed state, the hypnotherapist uses verbal repetition and mental images in order to suggest changes to a person’s behavior or otherwise promote desirable actions.
Some people believe that hypnosis can be used to control certain behaviors as well as to minimize feelings of stress and anxiety. It has also been studied as a method for pain control, alleviating symptoms of menopause, to alleviate cancer treatment side effects and for other mental health conditions. Hypnosis is not effective for all people leading some to ask ‘Does hypnosis work?’.
During hypnosis a trained hypnotist (or hypnotherapist) induces a state of intense calm or focused attention through a process that uses certain specialized verbal cues and repetition. Once a person enters the desired state (in which a person may appear to be asleep but is actually fully aware) the therapist makes certain guided suggestions to help a person overcome certain issues or achieve other therapeutic outcomes. The idea is that since a person is in a heightened state of focus they are more likely to be open to these suggestions than when in their normal mental state.
There is no conclusive scientific evidence that the suggestions made during this focused state are effective; hypnotherapy may place thoughts into a person’s mind when they are in a receptive state which are then acted upon subconsciously and may clear the way for acceptance of them when a person is fully conscious. Some medical professionals are skeptical of the method and question whether it can help a person improve their mental health or deal with conditions such as physical pain.
Medical doctors are not trained in hypnotherapy as a technique and even in psychology, not all mental health practitioners believe in its efficacy. While there is some anecdotal evidence of the effectiveness of hypnosis (to help with quitting smoking and weight loss, for example) there remains doubt and misunderstanding about its effectiveness among medical practitioners. More research is required to verify the treatment impact that does hypnosis work has on various conditions. In addition, it needs to be considered that only about 10% of the population is susceptible to hypnotic suggestion with the remainder being unlikely to be receptive to the technique.
No Comments