Science Behind Hypnosis
Benefits of Hypnotherapy in Cancer Care: Our Current Research
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Positive Patient Experiences: Patients who have experienced hypnotherapy report feeling more in control, relaxed, and better equipped to handle the emotional challenges of cancer treatment.
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Growing Professional Support: Healthcare professionals increasingly recognize the value of hypnotherapy as a complementary approach to cancer care, especially in managing symptoms and enhancing patient comfort.
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Holistic Care Approach: Hypnotherapy is emerging as a powerful tool within a holistic care framework, addressing not only the physical but also the psychological and emotional needs of cancer patients.
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Strong Potential for Integration: With rising interest and growing evidence, hypnotherapy is poised to become a valuable component of comprehensive cancer care, offering a natural and effective way to support patients through their treatment journey.
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​Recent Publications by Malwina
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Szmaglinska, M., Andrew, L., Massey, D., & Kirk, D. (2023). Exploring the Underutilized Potential of Clinical Hypnosis: A Scoping Review of Healthcare Professionals’ Perceptions, Knowledge, and Attitudes. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis. https://doi.org/10.1080/00207144.2023.2276451
Szmaglinska, M., Kirk, D., & Andrew, L. (2023). Reporting and Mapping Research Evidence on Perceptions of Clinical Hypnosis Among the General Population and Patients Receiving Health Care Including Cancer Care: A Scoping Review. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis. https://doi.org/10.1080/00207144.2023.2276457
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Szmaglinska, M., Andrew, L., Massey, D., & Kirk, D. (2024). Beyond standard treatment: A qualitative descriptive study of cancer patients' perceptions of hypnotherapy in cancer care., Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice,101861. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ctcp.2024.101861.
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Hypnotherapy for Weight Loss
In 1995 a team of researchers from the University of Connecticut reviewed six weight loss studies that compared the effect of cognitive therapy -identifying eating triggers and defusing them with and without hypnosis. About 70% of the overweight people who got hypnosis lost more weight and kept it off longer than those who got only talk therapy. A Dateline NBC experiment on weight management indicates hypnotherapy was more successful than other methods.​
Throughout history, there were periods of intense interest and advancement in hypnosis, all in the medical field. Modern hypnosis was given birth by Mesmer, Viennese physician, followed by two British surgeons, J. Elliotson and J. Esdaile. They have all had great success with it. James Esdaile reported performing 3000 operations without anaesthesia, with hypnosis only. His followers were Braid (verbal suggestions) and Bernheim (Freud’s teacher) to mention the most important ones. Most of them have been persecuted by the conventional medical establishment and forced to resign their post. Still yet, it did not prevent their followers from developing it even further.
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Hypnosis is one of the most researched subjects. There’s over 100,000 researches done on the subconscious mind. And as you see, it has a tracked history.
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In 1958 the American Medical Association defined hypnosis as everything that bypasses the critical factor of the conscious mind.
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American Psychotherapy & Medical Hypnosis Association Cochrane Review Abstracts, Oxford, 1999 reports:
Hypnotherapy is a process by which a person, with the assistance of a trained hypnotherapist, has his/her subconscious mind opened to suggestion for the purpose of changing one or more behavior patterns. When the subconscious is spoken to directly, it may be possible to reprogram old behavior patterns and introduce new ideas and positive suggestions. These positive suggestions may then be used to help make the changes you desire.
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Comparison to other treatments
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Alfred Barrios PhD showed the following statistics concerning the effectiveness of Hypnosis:
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Psychoanalysis 35% recovery after 600 sessions Behavior Therapy
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72% recovery after 22 sessions Hypnotherapy
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93% recovery after 6 sessions
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80% of patient visits to their doctors are stress related. Almost 60% of all employee absences from work are related to stress. The World Health Organization calls stress a global epidemic. Stress kills over 1 million people a year in the U.S. Heart disease and high blood pressure; suppression of the immune system; deaths from smoking; deaths from obesity. Stress is also a contributing factor in arthritis, herpes, fibromyalgia, insomnia, migraines, chronic pain, and infertility.
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Hypnotherapy has been successfully employed with sleep disorders such as nightmares and anxiety associated with falling asleep as well as night terrors. There is general agreement that relaxation based approaches, including hypnosis, are “effective treatments of insomnia”, according to a 1996 National Institutes of Health Technology Assessment Panel report published in JAMA.
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Insomnia patients reported improved sleep by 100% and 91% either eliminated or reduced sleeping medications.
Hypnotherapy & Sleep
Hypnotherapy in Medicine
Dr. Andrew Weil recommends hypnotherapy to alleviate pain, lessen the side effects of chemotherapy, alleviate symptoms of autoimmune disease, counter-act anxiety and sleep disorders, and get rid of warts. He says, “In general, I believe that no condition is out of bounds for trying hypnotherapy on.”
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The Wall Street Journal reports on 10/7/2003:
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Numerous scientific studies have emerged in recent years showing that the hypnotized mind can exert a real and powerful effect on the body. The new findings are leading major hospitals to try hypnosis to help relieve pain and speed recovery in a variety of illnesses. University of North Carolina is using hypnosis in the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome by helping patients use their mind to quiet an unruly gut. Doctors at the University of Washington’s regional burn center in Seattle regularly use it to help patients alleviate excruciating pain. Several hospitals affiliated with Harvard Medical School are employing hypnosis to speed up post-surgical recovery time. In one of the most persuasive studies yet, a Harvard researcher reports that hypnosis quickened the typical healing time of bone fractures by several weeks.​
Hypnosis & Pain Management
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In 2002 Mount Sinai researchers went through 20 studies on hypnosis and surgical pain. They found that adding hypnosis to standard post-surgical care sped recovery almost 90% of the time, in terms of levels of pain, anxiety and the need for painkillers.
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A 1995 consensus statement from the National Institutes of Health cited strong evidence that hypnosis can reduce chronic pain associated with cancer and other conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome and tension headaches.
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Reported in the Los Angeles Times 1/5/2004; movie and TV actor Henry Polic II went to Marc Schoen of UCLA School of Medicine for treatment of a malignant skin cancer. Polic was also on a drug and radiation regimen that caused a paralysing nausea, plus swelling blisters in his mouth so severe that he had trouble speaking and swallowing. It took a few sessions, but swelling dropped by about half and the blisters near the back of his throat disappeared.
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