Hypnosis For Pain Relief

Hypnosis is very effective in many clinical settings and this has been proven in studies. Hypnosis has been applied in relation to pain, burn injuries, surgery, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and even for coma patients. It can also be useful for stress surrounding labor and delivery and other obstetric areas.

In relation to those patients with burn injuries, a study involving those dealing with the aftermath of burns found that patients in a group undergoing hypnosis experienced less pain the control set. This study replicates earlier ones and displays the need to provide this particular type of patient with motivation.

Hypnotherapy is of great use in therapy for pain, according to one study from the International Association for the Study of Pain.

Patients suffering with fibromyalgia were subjected to tests that measured blood flow in the cerebral area during their normal waking state and relaxation induced by hypnotism. It was found that the subjects endured more pain in their normal state than while undergoing a restful hypnosis.

Pain Hypnosis Study

This study of the flow of blood suggests that there is an interaction between the cortical and the sub-cortical brain areas.

Similarly, hypnosis has been proven to have an effect on chronic pain. A 2003 study from a Seattle Department of Rehabilitation Medicine in the School of Medicine found that the studies done on reducing pain in laboratory settings have been applied in a useful way to patients in a clinical setting.

The activity in a patient’s central nervous system was examined during hypnosis and offered a tentative result on the physiological workings of the hypnotized state. Random studies have given indication that hypnosis can reliably affect acute pain occurring during procedures.

Not only that, hypnosis can also reduce symptoms for those with chronic pain. Methods that might allow for more use of hypnosis to treat pain are being discussed. This could mean hypnosis would be further integrated into the treatment plans of many patients, allowing a reduction in overall pain.

Interestingly, hypnosis can be useful not just for established pain but also for those suffering from phantom limb issues. Pain in this instance occurs in a limb that is no longer physically there and more research is needed into how hypnotism could be of help for patients in this area, in addition to the methods that are already clinically established.

Patients who are undergoing a surgery and receive hypnosis have reported improved comfort. Generally, a patient having surgery will receive local anesthesia which means they remain conscious for the entire procedure with just that area sedated. The use of hypnosis in addition to this can reduce pain and anxiety for the patient, as well as lessening the need for analgesic drugs. A less anxious patient also means better condition for the surgeon and a quicker recovery for the individual in question.

Overall, analyzing the data on hypnosis shows that it results in reports of pain reduction far more often than it does in reports of unpleasant pain. Hypnosis warrants further research and investigation in a clinical setting, for the benefit of both the patient and the medical establishment.