The healing power of hypnosis

That hypnosis can do a lot for your psyche has long been known, but that's not the only thing hypnosis is good for. Research has been conducted since the 1980s on the usefulness of hypnosis for healing wounds. Of course, you still need stitches after surgery and you won't get your body back scar-free after a wound, but there are theories that hypnosis can speed up the healing process.

In this article, I discuss the healing power of hypnosis after suffering a wound, surgical or otherwise.

Let’s be honest: your brain can’t heal everything. Serious illnesses can simply run their course no matter what you think or do. If you think meditation and self-hypnosis can stop a serious illness, you’re in for a rude awakening. That’s why it’s not surprising that people question the healing power of hypnosis when it comes to the body, as opposed to emotional and other psychological aspects.

I also really don't want you to think that hypnosis or self-hypnosis can set your broken arm by itself. That idea alone is ridiculous, so you get the point. You should always see a doctor if something is wrong. It's not for nothing that if you take a big fall with scrapes and wounds that need stitches you can also get a tetanus shot to make sure you don't get any scary diseases from the dirt on the street.

Hypnosis supports the medical process

When I talk about the healing power of hypnosis, I’m referring to the support hypnosis can offer in healing your wound. For example, is it possible that hypnosis could help you get your stitches removed sooner? That you won’t pick at the scab, thereby reducing the chance of a scar? In what ways is hypnosis healing?

In a study conducted in 2003 among women who underwent breast surgery, the effect of hypnosis on post-operative breast healing was measured. Photographs were taken to assess the actual healing of the surgical wounds, and participants in the study were also asked questions to measure their subjective experience.

The actual study showed that the group of women who had also received hypnotherapy had faster wound healing than those who had not received hypnosis. This was the case in the first week after surgery and in the seventh week after surgery.

The subjective results reported by the patients themselves also showed a significant difference. The women who had undergone hypnotherapy experienced less pain, healed more quickly in their own estimation, and were back to normal functioning sooner after surgery. This meant they were able to resume their daily activities sooner after surgery.

Research has also been conducted on whether hypnosis can help accelerate healing in cases of burns; this study was conducted as early as 1983. The study included participants who had burns on both sides of their bodies; one side received hypnotherapy while the other did not. The hypnotherapists therefore focused their mental attention primarily on, for example, the left side and not on the right side. Five people participated in this study, so the group was too small to generalize the results. Of course, the subjects knew which side was receiving “hypnotherapy” and which was not, but the medical staff who did not administer hypnosis were unaware of this. At the end of the study, it turned out that in four of the five patients, one side had indeed healed faster than the other. The fifth patient experienced rapid healing on both sides, but it was not immediately clear whether this was due to the hypnosis or not. In any case, the results are promising regarding the support hypnosis can offer in the healing of burns.

Going back to those broken bones for a moment. In 1999, a study was conducted on the effect of hypnosis on healing broken bones. It was only a small study so the results could not yet be classified as generalizable, but this study found that people with ankle bone fractures healed faster if they received hypnotherapy than those who did not. Pictures of the bone fractures showed this. This was especially evident in week nine. Thereby, people who had hypnotherapy at week one, week six and week nine could get by with less pain medication.

By week 9, people could also already use their ankles better than those who did not receive hypnotherapy after surgery to reset the bone fracture. For example, they could already walk down the stairs again.

What hypnosis exercises work for healing

It should be clear that hypnosis works—or at least that there is strong evidence it does—but hypnosis in and of itself primarily promotes deep relaxation. Performing exercises during hypnosis can enhance the effect. Therefore, the question now is which exercises are effective in supporting your body to accelerate the healing process.

As early as 1988, research was conducted on the effects of relaxation exercises enhanced by visualizations created for you by the hypnotherapist. I’ll refer to these as guided visualizations—you are, as it were, guided through a visualization by the hypnotherapist. This study found that participants who used this method had lower levels of stress hormones, less anxiety, and less redness around the wound after hypnosis than people who did not receive these exercises.

Relaxation Exercises

One relaxation exercise you can perform is to lie down somewhere and breathe in deeply through your nose and out through your mouth. When you lie down, your breathing automatically goes through your abdomen. You notice this when you put your hands on your belly. These come up automatically when you inhale and then go down again when you exhale.

For example, take a breath for three seconds. Hold the breath for a count and then exhale for three seconds. Repeat this breathing. You can stay focused on your belly and breathing during this exercise. How the fresh air entering your nose fills your lungs, providing fresh oxygen to your blood. As you exhale, you let go of all the gases, such as CO2, that your body cannot use. All waste products that your blood cannot use from the air are removed from your body this way.

Guided visualizations

If you are breathing in and out properly and relaxing wonderfully, the hypnotherapist can help you with a visualization that promotes healing of your body. This can also be an mp3 file that the hypnotherapist has given you that you can turn on if you want to apply self-hypnosis at home.

The guided visualization applies to your situation. For example, if it involves a broken bone, the hypnotherapist can help you visualize the healing process. How the bone becomes intertwined again and comes closer and closer together until it becomes a strong whole again as strong as all the bones that are not broken.

How the bone can carry the weight of your body again when you are better and what fun things you can then do with your body, such as walking, swimming and more.

Guided visualization has the advantage that you don't get distracted by your own thoughts and your visualization goes in a direction you don't want. Because you stay with the hypnotherapist's story, anxieties are much less likely to interfere with the visualization.

Suggestions

A 1991 meta-analysis also shows that, in addition to relaxation exercises, hypnotic suggestions help shorten the length of a hospital stay following surgery .

For example, a suggestion might be: After surgery, you feel relaxed and rested. You feel confident that your bone will heal itself quickly and have no trouble getting the rest you need.

The suggestion depends on your own beliefs about the severity of the injury and your fears regarding the healing process. To receive effective suggestions, it is therefore wise to consult a hypnotherapist.

Hypnotherapy for wound healing in children.

The use of relaxation exercises and visualizations was also tested in children. The visualizations included suggestions about the desired outcome of the operation. In the process, the children learned how they could also perform visualizations themselves without the hypnotist being present. This study found that the relaxation exercises and visualizations also helped children feel less pain after surgery and they did not have to stay in the hospital as long as those who did not receive hypnotherapy.

In short

Hypnosis is not a substitute for medical treatment for a wound. Hypnosis does speed up the healing process of wounds treated in the hospital or resulting from surgery. Relaxation exercises, guided visualizations and suggestions are considered effective in accelerating the healing process.

Would you like to learn more about how hypnosis works? Then check out the events and training programs offered by the Hypnosis Institute of the Netherlands.

Sources:

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00029157.2003.10403546

http://search.proquest.com/openview/0125e69dba69bb76743d56b1ac2aff39/1?pq-origsite=gscholar

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/nur.4770110405/abstract

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00029157.1983.10404132

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00029157.1991.10402927