Wrist tendonitis, shoulder osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia, lower back pain… These pathologies cause often disabling pain. According to Delphine Beucher, hypnotherapist at the Saint-Eloy Thermal Center in Amnéville, hypnosis therapy can help patients let go, control the intensity of this unpleasant sensation and find the resources to better cope with it on a daily basis. Explanations.
– Why Doctor: In recent years, hypnosis has been increasingly practiced, especially in some hospitals to reduce anxiety and pain in hospitalized patients. But what does it consist of?
Delphine Beucher: Unlike stage hypnosis or street hypnosis, which can echo a whole imaginary world, particularly on manipulation and control, hypnosis, which here has as its main goal the care, is a therapy which allows to be in harmony with one’s body and mind. Through words, this method will induce in the patient a modified state of consciousness characterized by an indifference to the outside and a greatly increased capacity to receive suggestions. By approaching his unconscious, which only injects positive and does not take into account the negative, he will accept his traumas, namely all the baggage carried since his childhood, which allows to go back to the source of his problem. Once identified, the patient will put in place solutions in order to free himself and lighten up. Because yes, I am not a magician. It is not me who will do the work, I accompany him and guide him only to help him find solutions. Therefore, if the person thinks they have a problem that is medically related, they should seek the advice of a doctor, because the hypnosis session is not a medical consultation. Similarly, it is in no way a substitute for medical treatment.
Hypnotherapy: “Anyone can use it, except people with personality disorders”
– In which cases can hypnosis be offered to you?
Hypnosis therapy can be recommended in cases of chronic pain, self-esteem and confidence issues, anxiety, depression, addictions such as smoking, sexual problems, eating disorders. It can also be used to lose weight. In this case, if a person never stops eating, we will try to understand if they are filling a gap or if it is linked to a transgenerational element, for example, eating reminds them of their mother who has passed away.
– Is it accessible to everyone?
Anyone can use hypnosis, except people with personality disorders, such as schizophrenia, epilepsy, psychoses, severe heart problems and paranoia. It is also contraindicated for adults with heart problems, because during the session, breathing and breathing are slowed down to achieve a state of well-being.
In children over four and a half years old, who are having a session because of tantrums, bedwetting or school phobias, this method works well, because they have a lot of imagination.
During the hypnosis session, “we appeal to the person’s imagination”
– In patients with chronic pain, how does this method help to alleviate it?
In general, the brain mainly remembers what hurts. To better manage pain, we will tell the patient to visualize it, not using negative words, such as “bad” or “pain”, but rather with terms like “unpleasant sensations”. Then, we ask him to transform it, more precisely, we encourage him to find a way to embellish it.
– How does a hypnosis session take place?
During the first appointment, we always start with an anamnesis. We will talk with the patient and ask them questions in order to better understand their needs, their objectives and their history. Then, we continue with the trance to leave calmly, to be in a state of well-being and to allow the person to focus on themselves. For this step, their breathing, the words, the tone and the rhythm of the expert’s voice are key elements. Once the patient forgets what is happening in their environment, we move on to visualization during which we ask them, for example, to feel the pain or to become aware of its location. Then, we encourage them to modify and transform it so that it is more comfortable for them, for example with a magic hand, with heat or cold. For example, in children, some perceive their pain as a ball of wool with several knots, we will ask them to find a solution to remove them. In this case, we appeal to the person’s imagination.
“It takes a dose of willpower” for hypnotherapy to be effective
– What are the duration and frequency of the sessions?
A session lasts between 45 minutes and an hour. As for the frequency, the person can come back 15 days or three weeks after their first session, but it depends on their problem and also their investment, because they must use the tools that I offer them at home to change their habits. The patient must be an actor in their well-being.
– What should be done to make the sessions effective?
For it to work, a certain amount of willpower is required, especially for certain issues such as quitting smoking. The patient must want to enter hypnosis and solve their problem. They must not come because a third party has asked or suggested that they use hypnosis. They must also trust their hypnotherapist and have a good ability to follow instructions. If all these factors are present, the person will change when they begin hypnosis therapy. Generally, it is those around them who notice this first.
