Hypnosis can promote healing.

Donna Gray for the Calgary Herald
Thursday, October 13, 2005

It used to be regarded as a captivating parlour trick -- sparking images of magic, mind control and lack of free will -- and was relegated to side shows and pub venues.

But behind the entertainment lies tangible benefits of hypnotism, particularly in the quest to increase health and healing, says Claire Bramham, clinical hypnotherapist with Mind & Body Therapy in Calgary.

"All hypnosis is self-hypnosis," she says. "It's like a journey in getting to know yourself, especially if you're seeking help in relieving pain or gaining mental control over a disease.

"Many people have gone through a long process with doctors and referrals and are frustrated. Hypnosis is not a cure, but a complement to regular medical therapies."

She suggests that many symptoms or pain from illness can be due to emotional incidents that potentially leave an indelible mark on neural pathways in the brain. Hypnosis can help lead the patient to the moment that sparked the illness. Then healing can begin.

"There is an emotional component to pain and discomfort as well as physical," Bramham says. "Hypnosis is a powerful tool in getting to the underlying cause.

"People are still not really sure what to expect when they come for a session. I begin by using a combination of guided imagery, eye fixation, relaxation and a suggestibility test.

"The more responsive you are, the better the results."

For Jessica Watson, 21, the power of suggestion has paid off in fighting the symptoms of fibromyalgia, which she has lived with since the age of seven. She visits Bramham on a regular basis and finds the therapy has improved her outlook and reduced her sensitivity to pain.

"I was very skeptical before I walked in," she says. "My only exposure to hypnosis was watching people acting like a chicken on stage. But after my first session, I was surprised at how incredibly relaxed and happy I was afterwards. The results were immediate."

Watson was able to sleep better and became more positive.

"It's changed my outlook on life and my condition," says Watson, who admits the hypnosis hasn't cured her ailment, but it has given her some surprising insights into how she can thrive along with it.

I know the fibromyalgia's still there, but is has been improving along with lots of other parts of my life," she says. "I used to feel guilty about things I didn't need to feel guilty for."

Dr. Henderikus Stam, professor of psychology at the University of Calgary, has spent more than 15 years researching the effectiveness of hypnosis in various scenarios. Some of his most rewarding work was offering the therapy to cancer patients from the Tom Baker Cancer Centre to curb pain, nausea and vomiting after treatments.

"One young woman, a terminal cancer patient, meditated, so hypnosis came easily for her," Stam says.

"She suffered a fair amount of pain, and it seemed to help. This kind of technique fit very well for many patients, but it doesn't work for everyone -- a small percentage of people don't seem to benefit from it. It all depends on your level of imagination."

Stam says other researchers are finding ways to use hypnotherapy in various clinical contexts, such as dentistry, pain control in child cancer and in brief strategic therapies.

"Academic hypnosis really is a part of a movement to understand altered or unusual states of consciousness and there's nothing magic about it," he says. "It's much like a pill or some other kind of treatment. There's no limit to the way you can investigate its uses."

Hypnosis Facts:

- The word "hypnosis" means "nervous sleep" and was named after the Greek god of sleep Hypnos by British physician James Braid in 1841.

- Before the 15th century, most illness was regarded as a punishment from other-worldly sources. To combat this, shamen and healers would invoke themselves and/or their patients into a trance-like state to banish or lessen symptoms. The patient's subconscious would absorb the suggestions and hopefully be cured or relieved.

- Hypnosis was a popular method of anaesthesia until the 1800s.

- Ancient Egyptians and Greeks also built structures to induce suggestive healing messages through sleep.

- In the mid 1700s, Franz Anton Mesmer created clinics to study the effects of guided suggestion and healing. This is where the term "mesmerize" was linked to the practice of hypnosis.

- Shell-shocked Second World War soldiers used hypnosis to release their stress triggers so they could return to the front lines.
© The Calgary Herald 2005

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