Hypnosis is the term for the use of both verbal repetition and mental imagery to cause a state of being in a kind of “trance”. This best understood as an enhanced form of focus or concentration.
People hypnotized normally describe a sensation of unusual calm and relaxation. This is why people under hypnosis become susceptible to the power of suggestion.
The benefits of hypnosis for our health, hypnosis can bring us to a “state of inner absorption, concentration and focused attention” that is rare in our hectic world of easy distractions.
1. Deeper Sleep
In many studies into hypnosis benefits, it has been suggested that participants who had undergone hypnosis reported that they had slept well.
However, since then, the scientific research into the subject has advanced. Nowadays, research on hypnotherapy by scientists at the University of Zurich introduced monitoring of brain activity into the study.
The tests were carried out on a group of young and healthy women. After listening to a hypnotic suggestion recording, the participants went to sleep for a period of 90-minutes.
The results found that participants that were found to be receptive to hypnosis spent over 80 percent more time in a state of “slow-wave sleep” than if they listen to a non-hypnotic recording. The “slow-wave sleep” is the deepest stage of sleep that allows for the greatest restorative potential.
The results of the study are of “major importance for patients with sleep problems,” according to the researchers. In addition, unlike other solutions to sleeping problems, such as drugs, hypnosis has no “adverse side effects.”
2. Halts Hot Flashes
Hypnosis has also been found to help halt hot flashes.
Hot flashes (also known as hot flushes) is a sudden and intense sense of warmth across the body that is particularly common among menopausal women. In fact, 4 in 5 women experience hot flashes during menopause and post-menopause.
According to Mayo Clinic, “how often hot flashes occur varies among women and can range from a few a week to several an hour.”
In one study from Baylor University’s Mind-Body Medicine Research Lab, participants found that after undertaking five hypnosis sessions per week, hot flashes reduced by almost three-quarters in number per week.
According to the researchers, only hormone therapy was more effective at alleviating the symptoms of hot flashes and sweats.
This has resulted in researchers starting to provide menopausal women with self-hypnosis training and urged to carry out the treatment on a daily basis.
3. Reduce Effects of Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Medical studies have shown that hypnosis can also reduce the effects of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
In a study into the hypnosis benefits for sufferers of IBS, it was found that by listening to one-hour sessions of hypnosis, up to 71 percent of participants reported improved symptoms of IBS.
However, the effects were even greater than the researchers imagined possible. 81 percent of the participants were experienced improvements reported a continued reduction in the effects of IBS over a period of six years after the hypnotherapy treatment.
The incredible results of such research suggest that hypnosis benefits are an essential part of treatment against IBS. Another overlooked item on the list of hypnosis benefits is the cost-effectiveness of it.
As one researcher puts it, “hypnotherapy could reduce both the consumption of healthcare and the cost to society.”
4. Alleviate Anxiety
According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, one-in-five Americans report anxiety.
But hypnosis can help with this too. This reflects the incredible power hypnosis has over the mind. While it has been suggested that this is merely a placebo, as Melinda Beck writes, “clients’ expectation play a major role in how they feel.”
While the science on this is in its early stages, it’s thought that the hypnosis benefits could help calm nerves and alleviate anxiety.
Furthermore, there is also increasing research being done to examine the links between hypnosis alleviating depression.
5. Reduce Pain
Even though much of the scientific research on hypnosis benefits is in the early phase, there is plenty of studies demonstrating the potential of the treatment to reduce and manage pain.
According to a meta-analysis of scientific journal articles published between 2000-2010, hypnosis has consistently been shown to reduce pain effectively. This relates to a variety of conditions, notably, cancer, arthritis, and fibromyalgia.
