Hypnosis is the oldest form of therapy: back in the 19C, Scottish surgeon James Braid rejected the “magical” side of hypnosis emphasising instead its valuable and practical use in a medical and surgical setting.
James Esdaile, another surgeon at the time, reported a rate of 80% surgical anaesthesia in amputations using only hypnosis. The American Civil War also saw surgeons successfully hypnotising injured soldiers before amputations.
Since then, scientific research and studies into the mind-body connection means that we accept the mind as a powerful tool in controlling the health of the body.
Hypnosis as a therapeutic tool utilises this mind-body connection to create a state of highly focused attention and heightened responsiveness which has wide ranging applications in pain control, lifestyle choices and improved health. Studies focussing on subject’s brains when undergoing hypnosis have shown that it alters activity and connectivity reducing levels of anxiety and pain.
If a drug were to do that, it would be used in every medical setting. But, of course, there is little money to be made from the drug free and relatively cheap use of hypnosis.
Click on the buttons below for some fascinating scientific studies on the efficacy of hypnosis.