Hypnosis is not unusual and does not involve mind control or sleep.
As a pediatrician specializing in the care of children with lung disease, I was introduced to hypnosis 28 years ago in a dramatic way.
“Paul is the most allergic patient I’ve ever encountered,” his pediatrician warned when he referred him for evaluation. “He’s nearly died twice after exposure to milk products.”
In my office, the tall, thin, pale 17-year-old told me he’d recently began developing asthma attacks after smelling cheeseburgers. My first thought was to tell him to go see his allergist. But then inspiration struck me, and I suggested we try an experiment.
“Can you imagine eating a cheeseburger?” I knew this was something Paul could never do in real life because of his allergies. He closed his eyes, and within a few seconds he began breathing faster. His eyes then opened wide, and he appeared to be struggling to inhale, which stopped me in my tracks.
I’d helped create the cheeseburger in his imagination, but the boy in front of me appeared to be suffering from an extreme reaction, one that, if allowed to worsen, could have catastrophic consequences.
“STOP IT!” I exclaimed.
Fortunately, he did.
“You’re joking!” I exclaimed. But Paul insisted his symptoms were real, and felt like his asthma.
Paul and I sat together, both wrestling with what had happened.
All I knew about hypnosis in that moment was based on what a physician friend had told me. She’d done workshop training, but hadn’t even used it with her patients yet. Still, I was aware that hypnosis involves using imagery. That idea fit with what had just occurred.
On a hunch, I decided to test the possibility that imagery was at play by suggesting that we experiment with a different kind of image.
“I’d like to try something, if it’s okay?” I asked.
He nodded.
“Good,” I began, “Put your hand out, palm up.”
He extended his right hand.
“Now, close your eyes and imagine there’s a glass plate covering it,” I said. “The glass is thick.”
“Okay,” he said, following the instruction.
“Now, tell me if you feel me touching your hand,” I said. I brushed his palm with my finger, and he made no response.
“Anything?” I asked.
He shook his head.
I pinched his hand lightly. “Do you feel that?”
“No,” he replied softly.
I reached into a pocket for my Swiss army knife and folded out its sharp-tipped corkscrew. I applied the tip rather forcefully to his hand.
“How about now? Can you feel this?”
“No,” he replied even more softly. He was completely calm, breathing easily, showing no sign of the respiratory crisis that had ended just minutes earlier.
Still skeptical, I asked, “Can you feel this?” and pressed the corkscrew into Paul’s left palm—the one not covered by an imaginary plate.
“Ouch!” he protested, snapping his arm back.
Huh. I asked Paul to open his eyes, and he gave me a glare.
“You really didn’t feel it when I touched your right hand?” I asked.
“No,” he replied. “No, but you hurt my left hand!”
“I’m sorry. Are you okay?”
“It’s no big deal,” he said. “Just thought you’d want to know that hurt. On the left.”
After that day I couldn’t let go of my wonder about what had happened, or the essential question it raised: “If you can think your way into disease, can you think your way out?”
Over the subsequent two decades I learned that the answer is an absolute “Yes!” Further, I learned that almost every person with a chronic disease could benefit from learning hypnosis in addition to their medical therapy.
Why? If you have a physical symptom that interferes with your life, you likely will be affected mentally. For instance, you might become anxious or depressed. You might worry about how your symptoms may affect your job or family. These mental health reactions can lead to worsening symptoms.
Further, mental health issues triggered by psychosocial stressors can lead to the development or persistence of physical symptoms. Thus, by learning how to self-regulate emotions people can reduce their stress reactions, and usually achieve a reduction or resolution of their symptoms.
In my practice I have helped patients resolve their headaches, chest pain, abdominal pain, shortness of breath, bedwetting, nail biting, and hair pulling, to name a few examples. I have also helped patients with arthritis, asthma, cancer, cystic fibrosis, diabetes, and inflammatory bowel disease improve their symptoms through reducing their emotional reactivity to health challenges.
An important difference between pediatric and adult hypnosis is that young children do not usually have preconceived notions about hypnosis, while I need to explain to older teens and adults that all hypnosis is self-hypnosis in order that they become more amenable to its use. I further instruct that hypnosis does not involve mind control or falling asleep, as shown in movies.
In fact, hypnosis is not an unusual state of mind. When someone drives while thinking about something other than driving, they are experiencing hypnosis. When someone starts to daydream during a boring lecture, they are also experiencing a form of hypnosis.
The type of imagery that can be used for therapy with hypnosis varies depending on the age of the patient. I choose an image based on the interest of individual patients.
Young children enjoy thinking about beloved cartoon characters, such as Belle from the movie Beauty and the Beast. One 4-year-old did very well with the suggestion that she hold her Belle doll who would help make her more comfortable during medical procedures.
A teenager might relax very well by imagining going to Disneyland, while an adult might choose to think about a calm beach scene.
Teens and parents who want to learn more about how relaxation techniques and other methods of self-regulation can help improve their lives can check out my new book, The Life Guide for Teens: Harnessing Your Inner Power to be Healthy, Happy, and Confident. In the book I review 180 tools to help people better harness their thoughts and emotions, including through utilization of hypnotic and non-hypnotic means.
