Can Hypnosis Help My Headaches?

Dear Dr. LeCrone:

I have suffered from headaches for many years, which have been diagnosed by several physicians as tension-related. My life is full of stressors, including the fact that I am a perfectionist and very driven by my career.

The therapist that I consulted suggested that I try hypnosis as a way of handling stress, tension and worry. I don’t know much about the safety of hypnosis and have always wondered if being hypnotized can produce personality changes or give the hypnotist unhealthy control over the person being hypnotized.

Can you discuss hypnosis and tell me the name of a Web site where I can find reliable professional information on this subject?

-A reader in Minnesota

Dear Reader:

Many myths surround the subject of hypnosis. One fallacy is that a person can be put to sleep by hypnosis and never wake up.

Another is that that a hypnotist can make someone do something when they are hypnotized that they would not do on their own in a non-trance state, such as steal, undress in public, or imitate animals.

Another common misconception is that the hypnotized person will not remember what the therapist says during the hypnotic session.

In reality, such procedures such as habit control, stress management and pain control rely on direct suggestion and, in fact, the person will remember therapeutic suggestions.

Hypnosis has a long history of usefulness in treating human ailments, such as in ancient Egypt and Greece. The explanation of hypnosis as a scientific phenomenon varies from those who believe it is an altered state of consciousness to those who feel it is simply another form of communication in which the hypnotized individual responds to a role that has been given by the hypnotherapist.

Hypnosis has many medical and psychological uses including the following:

• Stress management – hypnosis can help the individual learn to manage tension and cope better with the fast pace of modern society.

• Pain management - hypnosis can help individuals alter their perception of bodily sensations so that pain can be perceived more manageably.

• Habit control – eating disorders, compulsive behaviors and other habits can often be altered through the use of hypnosis.

Therapeutic hypnosis should be conducted by trained professionals. The American Society of Clinical Hypnosis, www.asch.net, is a good source of information and has a list of trained professionals.