The Science of Hypnosis
Hypnosis, as a therapeutic tool has been used to help people overcome their blocks and traumatic experiences for hundreds of years. But, in recent time, stage hypnotists have devalued the use of Hypnosis as a therapeutic tool because it causes people to think that it’s just a gimmick for entertainment rather than a tool that will help them breakthrough their bad feelings and have a better life.
Over the past twenty years or so, Science has been studying hypnosis as a powerful therapeutic tool and here I present links to some of the thousands of scientific research papers that will help you understand the effectiveness of hypnosis and how hypnosis will work for you.
New directions in hypnosis research: strategies for advancing the cognitive and clinical neuroscience of hypnosis
- Clinical research supports the efficacy of hypnosis for managing a number of clinical symptoms and conditions, research supporting the role of various divisions in the anterior cingulate and prefrontal cortices in hypnotic responding. Science can now identify the parts of the brain that are affected by hypnosis.
- Clinical trials have demonstrated that hypnosis is efficacious for a variety of issues including, irritable bowl syndrome, anxiety and depression relief, smoking cessation and insomnia.
- Moving away from a ‘none-state’ model of hypnosis supports techniques of conversational hypnosis for change.
The effectiveness of hypnosis as an intervention for obesity: A meta-analytic review.
Published April 2018
Key findings of this research paper include:
- A review of multiple studies, combined to track the long term effectiveness of hypnosis for weight loss
- Research has shown that participants who received hypnosis lost more weight than approximately 94% of participants who didn’t receive a form of hypnosis treatment
- The research concludes that ‘Clinicians should view hypnosis as a promising treatment for obesity, especially when used in conjunction with CBT techniques for weight loss’.
Hypnotherapy is more effective than nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) for smoking cessation: Results of a randomized controlled trial
- This paper evaluates the results of the use Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) vs Hypnotherapy for smoking cessation
- Hypnotherapy patients were more likely than NRT patients to be non-smokers at 12 weeks and 26 weeks after hospitalization for smoking related illnesses
- The research concludes that ‘Hypnotherapy is more effective than NRT in improving smoking abstinence in patients hospitalized for a smoking-related illness, and could be an asset to post-discharge smoking cessation programs’.
Brain Activity and Functional Connectivity Associated with Hypnosis
Published Aug 2017
This paper describes how the brain alters when a person is in ‘a hypnotic state’. It’s interesting that they differentiate ‘highly hypnotisable’ people and people of ‘lower hypnotisability’.
Here's what to do next:
Click here to discover how to schedule your Free Hypnosis Strategy call to set a plan for your success.