hypnosis / hypnotherapy

[HerMajesty]

I am just wondering if anyone has tried hypnosis / hypnotherapy for symptom control.
It is something I am thinking about because now that I am on a med regimen which controls my symptoms very well, I am starting to become very dissatisfied with the side effects. I am wondering if I could get the same effect with less meds, by using hypnosis.
I know very little about it except that I met a hypnotherapist at a party several years ago, asked him some question or other about what he did, and he immediately put me into a hypnotic state kind of as a demo, which I guess means either I am highly susceptible to hypnosis, or he was very good, or both.
I have had a mild dissociative disorder since childhood, which I never figured out until a few years ago when I took some kind of a quiz/ questionairre and did some reading about dissociative disorders and realized I have all the symptoms. The reason I call it mild is because I have functioned fine in life all these years without ever having treatment. But the hypnosis I experienced at that party gave me an extreme experience of dissociation, and I have also noted that this is what the med regimen seems to do: not so much get rid of my symptoms but give me some kind of dissociation from my body, so that I don't notice my symptoms sometimes for hours. I have just been thinking maybe with hypnosis I could achieve the same level of dissociation from my symptoms, without all the side effects.
Anyone ever tried it? With success or lack thereof? Anyone know how to shop for a qualified hypnotherapist as opposed to some quack? The guy I met at the party was when I was visiting my brother out of state, and he is not in my area so I would need to find someone else. I am also going to try to get in touch with the guy through my brother, and if I find any answers to these questions or if I give hypnotherapy a try, I will let y'all know how it works out.

[Karyn]

Hi there, HM!
My Mom is actually a licensed therapist and is experienced with hypnotherapy. I'm in the process of consulting with her about your case and let you know what I get back! Very interesting concept for pain relief.
Love,
Karyn

[Celeste]

Couldn't hurt, might help. I say go for it!

[HerMajesty]

The info I got back from my brother, is that there is actually a certification in Medical Hypnotherapy which has more rigorous requirements than other Hypnotherapy certifications. So I probably will try out a certified Medical Hypnotherapist just for the heck of it.
All I have to lose is money, and that seems to disappear no matter what anyhow
Karyn, with all your troubles taking meds, did your Mom ever try hypnosis on you or suggest hypnosis?

[calluna]

Yes. I used to be in private practice as a clinical hypnotherapist here in the UK.

Putting someone into a hypnotic state is extremely easy, the only time it may present any difficulties is if the person is mentally handicapped or drunk. The more intelligent the person, the easier it is. I am not at all surprised that the person you met was able to put you into a hypnotic state whilst you were at a party, but I for one would never do such a thing, I would regard it as ethically questionable.

If you have had a dissociative disorder since childhood, hypnosis can bring this to the surface again - you have had no problems with this, but this isn't necessarily going to be the case with everyone. One reason why it should never be done except under controlled conditions, although an experienced therapist should be well able to deal with anything that might arise.

Hypnosis and hypnotherapy can be very helpful indeed with pain management. There are many hundreds of well documented cases where major surgery has been done - including heart surgery and amputations - with only hypnosis as anaesthesia. It is not done much nowadays, mostly because doctors prefer to rely on drugs, which have predictable effects.

I would not recommend having a family member as your therapist, for much the same reasons as doctors do not treat members of their own family. It is not appropriate, really, and you are not likely to get the best results.

I have been working with an ex-colleague of mine who practices out of Harley Street and specialises in pain control, he has made a CD for me which I use regularly. Unfortunately although I am a good subject, I am not very good at self hypnosis, the two don't always go hand in hand. But the CD helps a lot.

If you were in the UK I could recommend names, and also the qualifications that you should look for, but in the US I don't think I can be of much help.

[Karyn]

Karyn, with all your troubles taking meds, did your Mom ever try hypnosis on you or suggest hypnosis?

The Mumsy did try to hypnotize me once but it was for smoking. It didn't work. I don't know if it was because I'm so used to her voice or what, but I did have a nice little nappy for myself on her comfy, pillow laden leather couch.
I do know she's had tremendous success with others, with emotional trauma related disorders.

[calluna]

Yup, that's the result I'd expect. The transference is all wrong, you need someone whom you know as a professional therapist and not as a member of your family.

[Karyn]

Yup, that's the result I'd expect. The transference is all wrong, you need someone whom you know as a professional therapist and not as a member of your family.

Makes sense, Calluna! Thank you!

[Karyn]

HM,
This is Mom's take on your question:

I am just wondering if anyone has tried hypnosis / hypnotherapy for symptom control.
It is something I am thinking about because now that I am on a med regimen which controls my symptoms very well, I am starting to become very dissatisfied with the side effects. I am wondering if I could get the same effect with less meds, by using hypnosis. YES, AS BOTH ACHIEVE AN ALTERED STATE.
I know very little about it except that I met a hypnotherapist at a party several years ago, asked him some question or other about what he did, and he immediately put me into a hypnotic state kind of as a demo, which I guess means either I am highly susceptible to hypnosis, or he was very good, or both. THERE ARE ENTERTAINMENT HYPNOTISTS AND MEDICAL HYPNOTHERISTS…HUGE DIFFERENCE. A M. HYPNOTHERAPIST WOULD NEVER, NEVER, NEVER BRING YOU UNDER CASUALLY AT A PARTY. THE TRAINING IS VERY DIFFERENT. A HYPNOTIST CAN GET THEIR TRAINING MAIL ORDER, ONLINE OR FROM AN UNCREDITIED SOURCE. A HYPNOTHERAPIST IS USUALLY AN EDUCATED LICENSED PROFESSIONAL. I WAS TRAINED BY DR. DANIEL BROWN….I TREAT MAINLY MEDICAL CONDITIONS WITH 90% IMPROVEMENT. IT CAN BE DANGEROUS TO GO TO THE WRONG PERSON – ESPECIALLY IF YOU HAVE A DISSOCIATIVE DISORDER. PEOPLE I’VE TREATED FOR IRRITABLE BOWEL SYDROM, COLITUS, PHOBIAS ARE NO LONGER SYMPTOMATIC NOR NEED MEDS. IT IS POSSIBLE. I have had a mild dissociative disorder since childhood, which I never figured out until a few years ago when I took some kind of a quiz/ questionairre and did some reading about dissociative disorders and realized I have all the symptoms. The reason I call it mild is because I have functioned fine in life all these years without ever having treatment. But the hypnosis I experienced at that party gave me an extreme experience of dissociation, and I have also noted that this is what the med regimen seems to do: not so much get rid of my symptoms but give me some kind of dissociation from my body, so that I don't notice my symptoms sometimes for hours. I have just been thinking maybe with hypnosis I could achieve the same level of dissociation from my symptoms, without all the side effects.
Anyone ever tried it? With success or lack thereof? Anyone know how to shop for a qualified hypnotherapist as opposed to some quack? The guy I met at the party was when I was visiting my brother out of state, and he is not in my area so I would need to find someone else. I am also going to try to get in touch with the guy through my brother, and if I find any answers to these questions or if I give hypnotherapy a try, I will let y'all know how it works out. SHE SHOULD LOOK FOR SOMEONE WITH CREDENTIALS THEN INTERVIEW AT LEAST 3 PEOPLE AND TRUST HER GUT. PERSONAL REFERRAL IS THE BEST WAY.

I hope this helps! Please let us know if you find someone and if it's effective or not!
Love,
Karyn

[HerMajesty]

Thanks ladies!

Calluna, does a CD like the one like your friend made you have to be personalized / custom, or can they be generic?

Karyn, I would see your Mom when / if I make it out to your neck of the woods in April, but I am assuming a one time thing would not help and treatment has to be ongoing (??)

I don't really worry about the dissociative disorder because it's not like it was ever a problem that was treated and could be "brought back up"; it was never treated and never bothers me, I just habitually dissociate for brief periods. Am I somehow making light of this and would it be more problematic with hypnosis than I think? It's due to childhood abuse but I never "stuffed" the abuse or anything, I remember it, and having forgiven it can think or talk about it easily.

I tried an initial web search last night and had kind of bleh luck. Even the people in my area with credentials to do medical hyspnosis seem very focused on a "lose weight, stop smoking, be happy" type theme; plus, this being Vegas, a lot of them do stage shows I'm not really comfortable when somebody's website lists "chronic pain" as an afterthought in a long list of very commercial services they provide. The one Nevada provider whose online profile impressed me turned out to be in Elko, a 10 or 11 hour drive from here...so I emailed him and asked him if he could recommend anyone in my area for chronic neuropathic pain.

I am down for trying it but having trouble finding somebody I would trust enough to part with my cash.