Hypnosis

Hypnotherapy helped my husband stop smoking. Would it help me prevent migraines?

It could help you learn how to control some of the factors that may have an effect on your migraine threshold. Different people find different therapies work for them and you have little to lose in trying hypnotherapy.

How does hypnosis work? My brother found it helpful for coping with pain after he was injured in an accident.

Hypnosis is a way of giving you coping strategies while you are in a relaxed state, or what is called an altered level of consciousness.

These coping strategies work at a subconscious level to help you manage your pain. Relaxation and self-suggestion may bring about behavioral and emotional changes.

Changing your behavior is about modifying or altering how you respond to pain, as this may change how the pain progresses and builds or settles. Your emotional state also has the ability to affect how you feel and experience pain. Anything that can modify your behavioral or emotional response has the potential to raise your headache threshold.

Hypnosis is unlikely to be helpful after a single session, though. It takes time to translate the subconscious feeling of control into a conscious level of self-hypnosis that will help you control the pain of your headache when it is developing. If you decide to give hypnosis a try, you should use a qualified, able and competent therapist.

What training do doctors have before being able to do hypnotherapy?

There are basic, intermediate and advanced courses for doctors and dentists as well as regular scientific meetings. These are run by the British Society of Medical and Dental Hypnosis, for example in United Kingdom.

Is hypnotherapy safe? I wouldn’t want to try it if there might be problems afterwards.

Hypnotherapy is, by and large, safe, unless there is a pre-existing significant psychiatric or psychological problem that might be affected or modified.

If I decide to try hypnosis, how do I find a reputable hypnotherapist?

The British Psychological Society, for example, will be able to suggest a reputable hypnotherapist, who will be a Chartered Psychologist who works within a recognized code of conduct.