Hypnosis for Pain Relief
Wikeperia states that ‘Hypnosis has long had a role in anaesthesiology and pain management. James Esdaile, a Scottish surgeon, utilized hypnosis (then known as “Mesmerism”) having performed approx. 260 painless surgeries using hypnosis, described in his book, Mesmerism in India, and its Practical Application in Surgery and Medicine.
However the introduction of chloroform and ether into medical practice in India in 1848 reduced the impact of Esdaile’s discoveries. Nevertheless, hypnosis continued to be used as sole anesthetic and in combination with ether and chloroform. In 1906, Magaw reported on 14,000 surgeries completed at the Mayo Clinic, utilizing a combination of hypnosis and chemical anesthesia
Since the time of Esdaile, hypnosis has been applied widely for pain relief and to facilitate patient cooperation in medical procedures’ (2022).
So following on from evidence it can be agreed that Hypnosis is a mind-body technique that has a positive impact in help relieving painful symptoms and conditions
Hypnosis is highly effective and helpful nondrug therapy aiding the reduction pain in chronic conditions like arthritis and fibromyalgia.
I myself am proof that it diminished my excruciating pain levels for Endometriosis. Studies show that more than 75% of people with arthritis and related diseases experience significant pain relief using hypnosis. It is now becoming widely established that people can use the additional tool to help manage their pain.
Learning to Relax with Hypnosis
Hypnosis isn’t about convincing you that you don’t feel pain; it’s about helping you manage the fear and anxiety you feel related to that pain. It relaxes you, and it redirects your attention from the sensation of pain. In a hypnosis session I will help you by starting to focus on your breathing to help you relax. Just one of the ways that I can help you is to make positive changing by re-focusing your attention from something that triggers negative emotions to something that will activate positive emotions, such as being at the beach. Or it maybe helping to reduce the pain levels to a level that is safe an acceptable to you.
What is the primary purpose of pain?
An important function of pain is to alert the body to potential damage. That is accomplished through nociception, the neural processing of harmful stimuli
Our pains can be subjective due to how long we have been chronic, any other additional health issues we may have, and ultimately how much we are able to push through despite the pain. “Something that's painful for one person may not be for another.
It is therefore important to ascertain if there are any underlying health conditions, other factors, stresses in life, others things that were happening around the time you began experiencing the pain. If you have any anxiety and fears around the pain. All of this can be established in our first session. I will work with you to certain what is the most important aspect of you pain management to deal with first.
As an Occupational Therapist I am very experienced with a wide-ranging knowledge of health issues such as Cancer, Arthritis, Neurological conditions, and how pain impacts every area of our lives. Not just from my own personal experience of chronic pain but also working with hundreds of people over the course of twenty-five years in the health sector. Using this knowledge and the powerful techniques of Hypnotherapy I aim to help to work with you with your own personalise pain management plan.
Unlike medication Hypnotherapy generally has no little to no side effects Many people report significant reduction in pain, and at the very least you could gain a simple and highly effective tool that you can use any time to ease your symptoms and even eliminate them if safe to do so. I say safe to do so as there are elements where as previously mentioned pain is there to alert our bodies that pain is severing a purpose e.g., broken bone. If someone was to get up and start walking about on a broken leg this is highly likely to cause more issues and complications.
Hypnosis has been highly effective in treating many types of acute and chronic pain including: “chronic oncological pain, pain associated to physical trauma, joint pain, phantom limb, fibromyalgia, pain in childbirth”
