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Medical
Applications of Hypnosis and Imagery
by
Linda Clements-Urick, C.Ht.
Although
hypnosis techniques have been accepted by the AMA as a therapeutic
tool since 1958, many health professionals are unfamiliar with
their numerous applications which include dermatological
disorders, sleep disorders, pain control, asthma, tinnitus and
autoimmune disorders, to name only a few. I have personally had
good success with the elimination of genital warts and insomnia as
well as pain reduction in clients with migraine headaches, back
discomfort and cancer related pain.
Today
I will be addressing hypnosis and specifically the use of imagery
techniques as they relate to chronic pain management, as an
adjunct to conventional treatments for disease and pre and
post-operative healing treatments.
The
first step is to define hypnosis and imagery. Hypnosis is an
altered state of mind that occurs when the conscious mind becomes
overloaded with information, triggering the fight/flight mechanism
and bypassing the critical mind resulting in a state of
hyper-suggestibility.
Imagery
is a technique that is often used while a client is experiencing
this hyperaware state of hypnosis. Martin L. Rossman, M.D., who
has written extensively on imagery and healing, defines imagery as
a “flow of thoughts you can see, hear, feel, smell or taste.”
Understanding
the true scope of hypnosis and imagery as therapeutic tools is
facilitated by a review of the way the brain processes
information. The Nobel prize winning work of Dr. Roger Sperry
showed that the two sides of the human brain think in very
different ways and are simultaneously capable of independent
thought. The left brain is primarily responsible for speaking,
writing, and understanding language. It houses our reason and
logic and is the seat of the conscious mind and the source of the
little voice in your head that is constantly talking to you.
The
right brain, on the other hand, processes information in pictures,
sounds, spatial relationships and feelings. It is more creative
and intuitive and is the seat of the unconscious mind. Dr. Rossman
explains this difference very well in his book Healing
Yourself...
Imagine
a train coming around a curve in the track. An observer is
positioned on the ground, on the outside of the curve, and he
observes the train to be a succession of separate, though
connected cars passing him one at a time. He can see just a
little bit of the cars ahead of and behind, the one he is
watching. This observer has a left brain view of the train. (The
brain is processing sequentially.)
The
“right brain” observer would be in a balloon several hundred
feet above the tracks. From here he could not only see the whole
train, but also the track on which it was traveling, the
countryside through which it was passing, the town it had just
left, and the town to which it was headed. (The right brain
is processing simultaneously)
So
changing ones’ perspective of a situation, changes the
experience of the situation. Herein lies the key to the success of
imagery in pain control and healing.
Dr.
David E. Bresler, an innovator in the field of therapeutic
imagery, demonstrates the difference in a more experiential way
that you can try yourself right now.
Using
verbal language, the left brain, order yourself to salivate. Just
think about this command and see how much saliva you can
manufacture. Perhaps you are able to produce a little, but
probably not a lot. This is because the parts of the nervous
system that regulate salivation don’t respond readily to verbal
commands.
Now
try this. Imagine you are holding a big, juicy, yellow lemon in
your hand. Feel it’s nubby texture and smell it’s fresh aroma.
Imagine taking a knife and slicing it open. The juice runs down
your fingers as you raise it to your lips and take a big bite out
of the lemon. Taste the delicious tartness as you roll the juice
around in your mouth and feel your mouth begin to pucker and
water.
If
your were able to put your senses to work during that illustration
then you were probably able to produce substantially more saliva
the second time around.
If
thinking about a lemon can create a physiological change, what
happens when you think of yourself as a helpless victim of a
disease? Or imagine yourself in pain that is hot, burning,
tearing, stabbing or gnawing? When we focus our attention on
thoughts like this, we are unconsciously utilizing imagery and
hypnosis to our own detriment.
Many
people who suffer chronic pain are in a state of hypnosis because
of the information overload occurring in the conscious mind. They
are unconsciously visualizing images that interfere not only with
their ability to tolerate pain, but to heal. During a hypnosis
session, utilizing imagery of an opposite nature, we can alter the
persons’ perception of the experience and thereby reduce their
discomfort and promote the healing process.
Pain
Reduction Techniques
One symptomatic technique for pain control that is particularly
effective when the patient or client finds it difficult to
concentrate, is glove anesthesia. This involves inducing hypnosis
using a progressive relaxation. Starting with the head or the
feet, suggestions are made that each successive area of the body
become more relaxed with each breath taken. This is an important
step in any form of pain reduction since tension tends to
exaggerate pain. Clients are then taken through an imagery
exercise where it is suggested they create feelings of numbness or
coldness in one of the hands. This hand then becomes a “glove of
anesthesia” in the mind and they are able to place the glove
anywhere on the body where pain is felt.
This
exercise gives the client a sense of empowerment. When they
realize they can numb their own hand whenever they want, they
begin to feel a sense of control over the pain and they regain a
sense of hopefulness.
Another
technique that I have had excellent results with is the Control
Room.
The client must first rate the intensity of the pain on a scale of
one to ten; ten being the most intense, and one the least
intensity. Then begin the progressive relaxation to release any
tension or tightness in the body. After deepening the trance, have
the client imagine he is going to his own master control room
where he is able to locate the apparatus that is responsible for
the specific area of the body where he is experiencing pain. He is
then instructed to turn the pain up one degree. Once this has been
accomplished, the therapist then instructs the client to
progressively turn down the pain, one degree at a time, until the
client reaches a desirable level of comfort. By first turning the
pain up, the client recognizes his own ability to control the
degree of pain.
While
still in the control room, the therapist can have the client
describe the image of the pain in terms of color, temperature,
mood, size, shape, consistency and density. Once the image has
been defined then we can consider ways to change it to make it
more comfortable for the client. For instance, perhaps “red
hot” changes to cool, pale pink or blue. Loud and angry becomes
quiet, still and calm. When the image has been changed, the pain
changes too and is able to subside. It is often more workable to
change one aspect of the pain at a time, first the color, then the
temperature etc.
Symptom
substitution is another symptomatic technique for dealing with
pain in a slightly different way. This technique teaches the
client to move pain from one area of the body to another, less
disruptive area. For example, a headache that is throbbing all
along the right side of the face and into the temple, can be
moved, through the power of suggestion and imagery, to a little
finger. This allows the client a sense of control, but does not
eliminate or reduce the pain. The client can think more clearly
and is able to explore the message the pain is trying to
communicate.
Pre
and Post Surgical Healing
Both the autonomic nervous system and the immune/inflammatory
response system can be mobilized through the use of imagery, which
means that it is not limited to the manipulation of pain. It is
also an important tool for self-healing. At major hospitals in the
Los Angeles area, imagery has been used pre and post surgically
with positive results. Many patients respond by healing faster,
experiencing less pain and developing fewer infections.
Prior
to surgery, an imagery exercise that I have used with clients is
to have them imagine the ill or damaged area of the body that is
to be removed or repaired. Have them describe it in detail, giving
it form, shape, color, size, sound, texture etc. Then have them
place that image to one side in their mind.
Now
have them imagine an image of recovery, healing and health; an
image of what the body will be like when it has healed and is well
again. All of the senses should be utilized to create this new
image. Vision, sound, touch, taste, smell and feeling. Then have
them place that image to one side.
They
are now asked to imagine that the first image is evolving into the
second one. Some people see this as a movie or video, some draw
intermediate images and others sense the evolution of one into the
other. Teaching self-hypnosis or making a tape, affords a client
the benefits of repetition, which of course, reinforces the
message to the subconscious mind that the healing process has
already begun.
Post
surgery exercises are numerous and varied. One of my favorites is
to have the client imagine being in a favorite place in nature.
This place should evoke a feeling of safety and security and a
deep sense of relaxation and calm. It is a place where no one else
can intrude and only those who are invited by the client can
appear. Once this place has been thoroughly explored with the
senses, the client imagines being healed with their favorite piece
of music, color, texture or a combination of all three, allowing
it to wash over them and focusing it’s healing power on the
affected area.
For
those clients who respond favorably to water, the following is an
excellent exercise. Imagine a body of water (pool, pond or stream)
infused with healing energy. As you splash this healing fluid on
your body, imagine it being absorbed by the skin, muscles and
organs and traveling through the bloodstream so that the affected
areas of the body are healed by the water. If it feels right to
you, immerse your entire body in this healing pond as the healing
energies work their magic.
Clients
who are suffering with a disease such as cancer and who are
undergoing chemotherapy treatments often find imagery exercises
help them to remain positive during a process where control is at
least temporarily out of their hands. Imagining several
fireman/rescue workers dressed in white spraying a cleansing,
healing liquid into the body can make a person more comfortable
with chemotherapy. As the liquid finds each and every nook and
cranny, the body is totally cleansed of the disease.
Pain
and Illness as Symptoms
Studies in England and the U.S. have shown that an astonishing
50-75% of all problems presenting to a primary care clinic are
emotional, social, or familial in origin, but are being expressed
by pain or illness. When we fail to express important emotions,
surround ourselves with emotionally unhealthy people or remain in
abusive relationships, it is often manifested in pain or illness
in the body. Exploring the symptom that is manifested can lead to
enlightenment and enable a client to make important lifestyle
adjustments and healthier personal choices.
One
way to do this through imagery is to begin with a visual
description of the symptom; size, color, texture, temperature etc.
Then identify its voice or sound. Perhaps it sounds reedy, raspy
or gruff. It may even have a smell. Allow the client to assign
certain qualities to it such as angry, menacing, indifferent or
impatient. The more detailed the image, the better. Once the image
has been described then we have the client engage in a dialogue
with it. We find out what it wants or needs, why it has shown up
and what the client can do to prevent it from returning. Sometimes
it is useful to call forth an inner advisor to facilitate this
dialogue.
In
this way, the symptom informs the client as to what changes need
to take place in order for the healing process to begin. It is
important that the client understands that symptoms are messengers
telling us to pay attention to something we have neglected or
ignored. Once we have been alerted to the problem, we can often
allow the symptom to subside.
One
last healing technique that I use on a regular basis with clients
recovering from surgery or illness that has produced good results,
combines direct and indirect suggestions with imagery and
anchoring.
Have
the client imagine himself at the top of a beautiful staircase as
a healthy, completely recovered and more resourceful person, one
whose body is healing with each passing minute. Suggestions are
made that the client feels stronger, physically and mentally and
is asked to imagine the healthy color of his skin, the healthy
shine of his hair and the clarity of his eyes all of which reflect
his internal health. It is suggested that he feels more energetic
with each breath and that he is breathing in positive health and
breathing out any negative ideas, thoughts or images that could
inhibit the healing process. He is asked to imagine himself eating
healthier foods, exercising and taking more time to enjoy healthy
pursuits.
He is encouraged to remember a time when he felt totally healthy
and energized and to relive those feelings each time I touch his
hand. (anchoring positive feelings) Suggestions are made that
elicit images of the client receiving the support and love of
friends and family who are cheering him on to health. Mobilizing
as many of the senses as possible makes the perception of the
experience more real to the client and produces more successful
results.
As
the client walks down the staircase he is asked to allow these
feelings, images and sensations that he has experienced at the top
of the stairs to grow stronger and more powerful with each step he
takes toward the bottom.
At
the bottom of the staircase is a small table on which sits a glass
of water and a pill or tablet. This pill represents whatever
quality is needed to facilitate the healing process, for example,
calm, relaxation, positive thoughts etc. By dropping the pill into
the glass of water, the water is infused with the same healing
properties of the pill. The client is then asked to imagine
drinking the water as he absorbs all the positive elements of the
pill. Clients who think analytically, may need an extra suggestion
that the qualities of the pill will remain within them and become
a permanent part of them after the water has been eliminated
through urination.
This
article barely scratches the surface of the numerous applications
for hypnosis and imagery in the healing process, but will perhaps
serve as an introduction to those hypnotherapists who currently
offer limited services and who wish to expand their practice to
include adjunctive services to more traditional medical
treatments.
To
learn more about hypnosis and specifically the use of imagery in
healing, Dr. Martin L. Rossman, M.D., Dr. David E. Bresler and
Jeanne Achterberg, Ph.D, have all written books on the subject
which shed a great deal of light on the process and its numerous
applications.
Linda
Clements-Urick, C.Ht., is a Certified Hypnotherapist, a smoking
cessation specialist and is certified as a Therapeutic Imagery
facilitator and an Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) facilitator.
She has appeared on the Discovery Health Channel and the Fine
Living Channel for her work in smoking cessation and fears and
phobias and wrote and recorded “Medical Applications of Hypnosis
and Imagery” for one of the largest audio libraries for medical
professionals in the U.S. She holds memberships in the American
Board of Hypnotherapy, National Guild of Hypnotists and the
International Hypnosis Federation. She speaks professionally on
numerous subjects relating to hypnosis and owns Motivational
Hypnosis, a private practice in the Los Angeles area.
(818)
415-3092 or toll free (877) 752-5700
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