FEBRUARY 2, 2004 Business Week
It's gaining credibility as a treatment for a multitude of troubles, from
nicotine addiction to post-traumatic stress disorder
Hypnosis helped James Williams cut back on his drinking eight years ago. So when he
developed a fear of flying after September 11, he again sought hypnotic relief. "I had
always thought hypnosis was a stage show kind of thing. But I've found it incredibly
effective at getting me to focus on what I want to accomplish," says Williams, 56, a vicepresident
of Polyonics, a Westmoreland (N.H.) maker of bar-code stickers. Indeed, today
he travels by plane without anxiety.
Although still not well understood, hypnosis has gained credibility in the past five years
because of research using the latest brain-imaging technology. PET, MRI, and EEG scans
show that hypnotized subjects have altered sensory perception -- and they're not just
pushovers, play-acting, or highly imaginative, as once thought. Studies show hypnosis
can help treat a multitude of disorders from asthma to warts. But it is not a cure-all and
can even be dangerous if you go to a practitioner who lacks adequate training.
TUNING THINGS OUT. Hypnosis is a trancelike state that arises when your conscious
mind takes a backseat to your unconscious, usually induced by relaxing patter. Forget the
swinging watches. You'll more likely be asked to shut your eyes or focus on a fixed
object, such as a doorknob. You tune out everything, including your own inhibitions.
This makes you highly attentive and open to suggestion.
Some people are more susceptible than others. "It's a blue-eyes, brown-eyes kind of
thing," says Dr. Elliot Wineburg, a neuropsychiatrist at Mt. Sinai School of Medicine in
New York. "You're either born with the ability or you're not." Hypnotizability has
nothing to do with intelligence or gullibility. But it does correlate to whether you're the
type who gets totally absorbed reading a book or watching a movie.
The treatments usually last 30 minutes, and many patients report improvement after just
one session. Jennie Lauria, a Queens (N.Y.) lab technician, says she kicked a pack-a-day
smoking habit after a single visit with a hypnotherapist. More likely, you'll have to go
three or four times and maybe also get tapes of hypnotic suggestions to play at night
before you fall asleep. The suggestions are usually about positive things that will result
from stopping a bad habit, such as how good you will feel and look if you lose weight.
Your awareness of pain might be dulled by suggestions that you are floating in space in
absolute comfort.
PAIN MANAGEMENT. Various brain scans of hypnotized individuals show they
actually perceive what they are told is reality even when it clearly is not. A 2000 study in
The American Journal of Psychiatry revealed that when hypnotized subjects were told a
black-and-white picture was in color, their brain activity was consistent with seeing
colors. Other studies indicated brain activity congruent with hearing noises when there
were none, or not feeling pain when subjects' hands were submerged in painfully hot or
cold water.
It's not surprising, then, that hypnosis is often used to treat chronic pain and help women
give birth without resorting to medication. Researchers at Harvard University have found
it diminishes the need for anesthesia during invasive procedures such as angioplasty and
breast reconstruction and speeds post-operative healing. Hypnosis may also be effective
in treating asthma, irritable-bowel syndrome, dermatitis, warts, hives, hemophilia, nausea
associated with chemotherapy or pregnancy, undesirable traits such as smoking or
overeating, anxiety, phobias, and post-traumatic stress disorder, says Etzel Cardeña,
president of the Society for Clinical & Experimental Hypnosis (SCEH) and professor of
psychology at the University of Texas-Pan American in Edinburg. He adds that the
effects of hypnotherapy generally are lasting, though some patients might relapse after a
period of months or years and require more treatment. The success rate depends on your
hypnotizability, motivation, and disorder. For phobias, studies indicate it's around 50%
after one visit. Hypnosis is most effective when used with psychotherapy and other
supportive measures.
HYPNOTIC SUGGESTIONS. Hypnosis is only as effective as your therapist's
knowledge of you and your disorder. For example, Williams' psychologist hypnotherapist
recognized that his excessive drinking had a lot to do with job-related stress. Therefore,
the hypnotic suggestions Williams received encouraged him not only to stop drinking but
also to avoid getting "so worked up about stuff at work," Williams says.