Did you know that hypnotism is believed to have been used therapeutically for thousands of years, maybe even by the ancient Egyptians?
Hypnosis and hypnotherapy have really come a long way. The medical community now largely accepts them as a valid and effective treatment for many disorders.
Is it time for you to seek out a professional hypnotist?
There are many good reasons to try out hypnotherapy, from quitting smoking to losing weight!
Excellent Reasons to Visit a Professional Hypnotist
There are a lot of misconceptions and myths about hypnosis. Don’t be fooled by the cultural image of hypnotism left in your head by movies and TV shows. Being placed into a hypnotic trance could be the way you solve some of your most troubling problems.
1. Addiction
Hypnotherapy can treat many addictions, including smoking, drugs, alcohol, shopping, and gambling.
A 2007 study compared hypnosis therapy to other cigarette smoking cessation methods. It found that hypnosis was far more effective than quitting cold turkey or using nicotine replacement therapy. Six months later, only 16% of the nicotine replacement therapy group were still nonsmokers. In comparison, 50% of the hypnotherapy group hadn’t fallen off the wagon.
2. Sleep Problems
Getting enough quality sleep is such an important part of maintaining overall health. If you have difficulty falling asleep or wake up many times through the night, you might benefit from visiting a hypnotherapist.
A 2008 study showed that hypnotherapy benefited children and teenagers who suffered from insomnia and other sleep issues. After hypnosis treatment, 87% of participants said their sleep issues had either significantly or completely resolved.
3. Stress Relief
While stress in itself is a real downer, experiencing consistent and long-term stress can lead to a long list of other health problems.
Research from a 2013 Swedish study supports the idea that hypnosis can help people reduce their stress. This study instructed patients to undergo two weeks of self-guided hypnosis. After the two weeks were up, the results showed that the hypnotherapy had a “medium-to-large beneficial effect” on their experience of burnout, stress, and well-being.
4. Overcoming Fear
Many people are turning to hypnotherapy to help overcome a wide variety of fears and phobias. Whether you’re claustrophobic, agoraphobic, afraid of flying or spiders, hypnosis might help you face and move beyond your crippling fears.
A lot of the studies dealing with the potential benefits of hypnosis for phobias are single case studies, meaning they only consist of one patient. There is still a lot of room to do more research on the topic. The single case studies that have been done have been promising. In one involving a teenager with Phagophobia (fear of swallowing) and another involving a woman with Aerophobia (fear of flying), both improved due to hypnotherapy.
5. Pain Relief
This one might be a shock because pain is a physical sensation. How could something like hypnotherapy help you manage your pain?
Scientists don’t understand how hypnosis works yet. But a 2008 study found that it affects your brain chemistry and not just the participant’s experience. This means that it’s not simply the placebo effect.
Several studies have examined the efficacy of hypnotherapy for pain management in cancer patients. One compared hypnosis to alternative pain therapies such as meditation, yoga, and cognitive behavioral therapy. Out of all the alternative pain therapies, hypnotherapy was found to be the most effective.
Another study from 1998 found patients undergoing therapy felt less pain and anxiety afterwards, recovered more quickly, and experienced less discomfort during the surgery.
6. Depression and Anxiety
Both depression and anxiety can be crippling conditions that make even the most everyday activities nearly impossible.
Most studies that research the effects of hypnosis on anxiety are in cases where the patient is undergoing surgery. These studies showed that hypnosis lowered not only patients’ anxiety levels but also their blood pressure. Those receiving hypnotherapy recovered faster, stayed in the hospital for less time, and were less likely to experience complications.
There is much more room in scientific research to explore the potential positive effects of hypnosis on depression, anxiety, and mood disorders. This peer-reviewed article by Barbara S. McCann, Ph.D. and Sara J. Landes, Ph.D. discusses the many difficulties faced in studying the potential benefits of hypnosis on depression through the standard research methods. At the same time, they point to the fact that there are “several compelling arguments for the use of hypnosis in the treatment of depression.”
7. Weight Loss
While this one doesn’t have a bunch of scientific studies to back it up, hypnosis is known to be able to help specifically with the issue of compulsive eating.
Because many of our bad habits are rooted in the subconscious, visiting a hypnotherapist can help you find faulty thinking patterns and associations compelling you to act in ways you would rather not.
