At least twice a month, I’m going to feature readers’ questions.  All readers are also welcome to give your thoughts about the question in the comments!

Marc asks:  “What do you think of using hypnosis to deal with pain?”

Great question!  I teach about ½ of my patients to use hypnosis and feel it’s a great tool for people in pain to learn.

When you say “hypnosis,” people think a lot of different things… often remembering that caricature of hypnosis and imagine they’ll walk like a duck or instantaneously fall deeply asleep.  I actually consider hypnosis to be along the same continuum as relaxation and guided imagery.  I believe it’s a special state in which it’s easier for your mind to hear and absorb suggestions.  In the case of pain, these can be suggestions of your pain decreasing or becoming more comfortable.

I first teach my patients relaxation, visualization and guided imagery.  If they find those helpful, I talk with them about what hypnosis is and how it may be useful to them.  It’s a skill that the more you practice, the more useful it is for you.  And I make sure that people understand it’s not something mysterious that I’m doing to them, but rather a technique they can learn and use for themselves… sometimes called “self-hypnosis.”

Some people respond to it more than others.  And it’s usually not miraculous, in that after 1 session, people don’t walk out pain-free.  But it can be very effective to help with chronic pain.

A few cautions…

1. Be sure to find someone reputable and experienced.  I recommend that a therapist have membership or training from a national hypnosis association.
2. Hypnosis should be part of an overall treatment plan, not just 1 “cure” that a hypnotherapist offers.
3. If you try it, be aware of your own expectations.  It’s not a miracle cure.
4. The person using hypnosis should teach you how to use it, rather than something only they do to you.
5. One subtlety with the suggestions that you use… you want to minimize pain which isn’t useful, but not all pain.  You still want to experience pain which is useful in your body, for example, if there’s an underlying physical problem that needs attention and treatment.  I incorporate this into suggestions, saying any excess pain will decrease or you’ll be more and more comfortable, but that your body should continue to notify you of a problem if needed.
6. There are certain people for whom hypnosis should only be used cautiously or not at all, including those with dissociative disorder (“multiple personality disorder”), a history of significant physical or any sexual abuse, or who are emotionally quite fragile.
7. If you have a legal case, talk with your lawyer about hypnosis.  Although medically not necessarily true, having undergone hypnosis can make your future testimony problematic, as it can be used against you saying your memory has been “altered.”

So overall, an important and effective treatment.  Thanks for the question, Marc.  If you’d like to submit a question, you can submit it here.

Other articles you might be interested in:

• Relaxation Exercise
• Visualization Exercise
• Guided Imagery

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