Hypnotherapy at Radiant Flow can be used to treat a wide range of health issues. Most hypnotherapists, who are licensed doctors, social workers, psychologists, nurses or other professionals, have received additional training in this field.
According to research, hypnosis can reduce anxiety and pain after surgery. It also helps with smoking cessation and weight loss.
What Is Hypnosis?
Hypnosis, also known as a deep relaxation state, is similar to meditating and daydreaming. The hypnotist, who is trained to induce this state, may use calming language and music and count you down from 100, telling you to slow your breathing and relax. Once you enter the hypnotic condition, your brain activity shifts from the right side to the left, where it processes information without your conscious awareness. This allows you to respond to the hypnotist’s suggestions in a non-critical and automatic way.
People who have experienced hypnosis have reported feeling a sense of increased concentration, focus, and well-being both during and after their experience. While hypnosis isn’t always helpful for everyone, the most successful patients are highly motivated to overcome their challenges and willing to work with the therapist over time.
During hypnotherapy the therapist will guide through a series steps to ease your openness to changing. They will use imagery and carefully chosen language, which can be symptom focused (to resolve a particular symptom) or exploratory, encouraging you to explore experiences that may have started your symptoms.
Hypnosis and hypnotherapy can address many physical health issues, including stress or anxiety related to a medical procedure, nausea or vomiting caused by cancer chemotherapy or radiotherapy, pain control (including following surgery, childbirth and fibromyalgia), and behavioral changes, such as quitting tobacco, losing weight, and preventing bedwetting. Hypnotherapy can be used in conjunction with psychotherapy or conventional medicine.
If you’re considering hypnosis as a treatment, it is important to find a certified practitioner. It’s a good idea also to tell your therapist about any other medical conditions you may have, including any prescription or over the counter medications that you take. The hypnotherapist will then be able to ensure that your treatment plan is fully coordinated with your other treatments.
How Does Hypnosis Work?
Hypnosis is a state of altered consciousness, and the hypnotherapist is able to suggest changes in sensation, emotion, thought or behavior. Hypnosis can be used to treat a variety of medical conditions, such as pain, anxiety and stress, and it can be a useful complement to psychotherapy. Hypnosis is also effective in helping people stop smoking and lose weight. It is important, however, to work with a mental health licensed therapist.
Most hypnotherapists start the session by explaining to you that you are fully aware of what is going on around you and can ignore or refuse suggestions. The hypnotherapist will ask you to count, or use relaxation techniques, to help you enter the hypnotic mode. The hypnotherapist will then give you suggestions that are based upon your goals, like quitting smoking or reducing pain. The hypnotherapist will also help you emerge from the hypnotic state when the session is over.
Researchers believe that hypnosis alters brain activity, but it hasn’t yet been proven. A few studies show that hypnosis reduces heart rate and blood pressure and increases certain types of brain waves. Other research shows when you’re hypnotized the activity in your left side of the brain, which is associated with logic and reasoning, decreases. Meanwhile, the right side becomes more active. This could indicate that you are more open to suggestions if you’re hypnotized. It may also explain why some people respond to hypnotic suggestions better than others.
Other research has shown that hypnosis is able to reduce the anxiety and stress some people feel prior to medical or dental treatments. It can also increase the threshold for pain in some people, and it has been used to treat a range of medical conditions, such as burns, childbirth, fibromyalgia, jaw problems and dental procedures, and hot flashes associated with menopause.
Can Hypnosis Help me?
Hypnosis can be used in many clinical settings. It is often used as part of a larger program to treat anxiety, weight loss or smoking cessation. Hypnosis is a powerful tool that can help people overcome bad habits and phobias. It can also help them confront past traumas and recall things they “forgot”. It can also ease chronic pain and reduce emotional and physical stresses. It can also reduce the need for medications and help some patients deal with illness or surgery.
When a person is under hypnosis, they are relaxed and focused on the therapist’s words. The therapist can guide the patient through visualizations based on their goals for therapy. For example, if the person is trying to overcome a fear of flying, the therapist can get them to imagine floating with the plane through the sky. When someone is under hypnosis it can be easier to accept suggestions which will help them achieve goals, such a changing their diet, or quitting smoking.
You will never be forced to do anything against your wishes by your therapist. Even though you might be more relaxed and focused on the therapist’s messages while under hypnosis, you will remember what happens and still have free will. Before beginning hypnosis, it is important to inform your therapist of any conventional medical treatments you are receiving. This includes prescription or over-the counter medications.
What Can Hypnosis Help Me With?
Hypnosis is an effective treatment for conditions like anxiety, pain and irritable bowel syndrome, and even helps some people stop smoking. But hypnosis isn’t a magic cure for mental health issues, such as depression or PTSD. If you’re experiencing such issues, it’s important to talk to your doctor or therapist.
In its most basic sense, hypnosis refers to a deep state of relaxation and concentration, similar in nature to meditation or mindfulness. Your brain responds differently under hypnosis and you are more receptive towards suggestions. This makes hypnosis a useful tool for changing your behavior such as eating healthier or exercising more or changing the way you think.
To induce hypnosis, a hypnotist talks to you in a soothing voice that creates a feeling of safety and well-being. Your hypnotist may then ask you to imagine or visualize specific things that relate to your goals for the session, such as relaxing your muscles or letting go of a fear.
In the first phase of hypnosis you will be guided through relaxation and focus by a hypnotherapist. They may use visual imagery such as counting or walking down stairs, or sinking into a comfortable mattress. During this stage, your mind is more open to changes in perception, sensation, emotion or behavior, such as changing a certain symptom.
Next, your hypnotist will move to the suggestion stage, which is more targeted to your desired changes. The hypnotist will give you specific, measurable, achievable and time-bound suggestions that help you reach your goal. The hypnotist might also encourage positive actions such as breathing deeply and imagining a solution to your problem. This can reinforce your commitment to the behavior changes suggested.
It’s important to note that only licensed mental health professionals can use hypnosis to treat clinical mental health issues, such as anxiety and depression. Hypnosis is an important part of any treatment plan, particularly when combined with other forms such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Neuro-Linguistic Programming.