10 Ways to Prepare a Positive Mindset for Flying

It’s starting to feel like summer now and we’re heading in to that time of year when people start to think about their upcoming holidays that they booked in the depths of winter. We seek sun (although as I type this it’s pretty hot and sunny here), adventure and time away from the stresses and strains of every day life.

Typically, once the holiday is booked, most people count down the days, so excited about their upcoming holiday but for others the time between booking that ticket and getting on the plane can be fraught with anxiety, negative thoughts and fear. And for some people just the thought of getting on a plane stops them from booking a holiday in the first place. Is this you?

Fears and phobias of flying are very common and can really take the enjoyment out of holidays. Flying phobias effect people in a number of ways and can range in severity from slight feelings of anxiety and discomfort to a full on panic attack and losing control of the situation. Some people decide not to holiday abroad in order to avoid flying and the anxiety and fear that accompanies it but this only reinforces the problem.

Here are 10 top tips to help you to prepare the right mindset for flying so that you can have a better experience of it:

1. Imaginal exposure. Spend some time imagining taking the flight. Not all the worse case scenarios nor your perfect flight but a more realistic representation of what happens. Imagine it as if you are actually there. It’s important that you are nicely relaxed while you do this. Notice the discomfort that you’re experiencing as you imagine it, how it plateaus and then starts to diminish the more you imagine the scenario.
2. Focus on how you would like things to be. Typically when we are fearful of something, we tend to worry about every possible thing that could go wrong. I am certain that when you think about flying, you are thinking about the worse case scenarios. When we think in this way, we create unnecessary stress for ourselves and the anxiety builds which makes us think more negatively. We get trapped in a cycle of negative thinking. So be aware of the thoughts that you are having. Start thinking about how you would to think, feel and be in the lead up to and during the flight.
3. Share concerns with others. Discuss your fear with your friends and family, especially those you are travelling with. Quite often, people keep their fears to themselves but this can make things a lot worse especially as you can start to worry about how you might appear to everyone around you and being “found out”. When people around you are aware of how you feel, they can support you through it.
4. Looking forward. When you’re scared of flying, everything becomes about the flight. More often than not, the place you are visiting, the things you’re going to do, and all the fun that can ensue, is put aside. Readdress this balance by spending time thinking about where you’re staying, what you are looking forward to seeing and doing, the food and drink you want to sample, discovering things about a place you’ve never been before and learning about the culture.
5. Be prepared. Do everything you can to minimise stress on the day of your flight. Ensure that you have packed your bags and have everything you need ready at least the day before you are due to travel. Have a relaxing bath and do other things to help you relax before getting a good night’s sleep. If you have time in the morning, have breakfast. Leave plenty of time to get to the airport so you don’t have to rush or worry about whether you’ll miss your flight or not. These are all simple things to support you physically and mentally, helping to take the load off for when you travel.
6. Avoid alcohol and caffeine. Some people have a few drinks before or during a flight to give them a bit of Dutch courage, to help them through. This is a bad idea. Alcohol is a depressant and can lower your mood, make you more anxious, and reduce your ability to control your thoughts and feelings. Caffeine can make you feel jittery and more anxious so it’s best to avoid it before and during your flights.
7. Occupy your mind. Some people are inclined to just sit and not do anything as they feel that they need to focus all their attention on not falling to pieces. Unfortunately this tends to have the opposite effect than intended. My advice is to do things to occupy your mind in order to reduce the introspection and rumination about the flight. So when you are waiting for your flight at the airport, browse the shops and duty free, go have something to eat or drink, and spend time chatting to the people you are travelling with (or anyone that will listen if you’re travelling alone). Make sure you take a book, magazine, phone and/or tablet with you so that you can entertain yourself during the flight. If you are going on a long haul flight then you will have the inflight entertainment as an option so spend some time browsing what’s on offer. If you have a relaxation audiotrack, make sure you have it loaded on your phone along with earphones so that you can listen to it.
8. Be present. When we are worried about things, we can lose ourselves in our thoughts and all manner of crazy things can come up. By shifting your focus outwards, to your environment, you start to focus on what is actually happening rather than what you think is happening. Focus on your senses, what you can see, hear, taste, touch and smell. Focus on things that are positive and neutral though.
9. Relax. Spend some time tuning in to your body and releasing any tension that you might have. A favourite technique of mine is tensing the muscles in your feet then relaxing them off, and systematically working your way up through the rest of the body. By tensing the muscles first, it makes it easier to relax the muscles afterwards.
10. Breathe. Breathing techniques help to trigger the relaxation response. Even if your breathing is fine, they are excellent, simple tools that you can use to help you feel more in control. 7/11 breathing is a popular one, whereby you breath in to the count of 7 and out for the count of 11 but there are others too which you might find more suited to you.

These top tips can help you feel more prepared and in control when you fly. Hypnotherapy is also very effective at helping you to change how you think and feel about flying. When I work with flying phobia clients, we delve deeper in to the tips I’ve given above and explore other avenues too. I help you to identify negative thinking errors about the flight, and teach you how to dispute the thoughts and beliefs that you hold about flying and reconstruct them in to something more positive that brings down your anxiety and fear. Imaginal exposure and desensitisation forms a huge part of the work I do with clients. These techniques have been used in clinical practice for over 50 years to help people overcome anxiety and fear and have an incredible evidence base supporting them. I will also teach you methods of relaxing as well as how to control your feelings helping you to reduce those physical feelings typically associated with anxiety and stress such as heart palpitations, rapid breathing, and sweating, among others. Flying phobias vary massively from person to person so I tailor my sessions specifically to you.

Hypnotherapy gives you the necessary tools for you to be able to board that plane, take off, be at altitude, experience turbulence and land in a calmer way where you are in control of how you think, feel and behave. I'm not saying that you will go from having an intense fear of flying to absolutely loving it but hypnotherapy can help you to cope with it effectively so that you can enjoy your holiday more thoroughly.

If you would like to find out more about how hypnotherapy can help a flying phobia, check out my phobias page on my website.

Related Posts:
Creating a Pathway for Positive Thinking

Hypnotherapy for Irritable Bowel Syndrome: The Research - Part 2

It is IBS Awareness month so I thought it would be an apt time to write a couple blog posts on Irritable Bowel Syndrome and how hypnotherapy can help with it. In the first post I talked about a number of research studies which have been conducted over the years which show the efficacy of hypnotherapy for IBS. I purposely left out the details of the research conducted at Manchester by Dr Whorrel et al. In this post, I will be talking about the approach used within this research. I utilise many of the methods outlined in the research with my clients and they have benefited greatly from it.

The researchers in Manchester have studied gut-directed hypnotherapy for many years now and it has shown some great results. It led to the inclusion of hypnotherapy in the NICE guidelines so that GPs and Consultants can now recommend IBS patients have hypnotherapy to help with their symptoms.

The rationale behind using hypnosis for IBS was to help participants learn mental skills and techniques to develop control over the physiological mechanisms influencing the gut that they are not normally under conscious control of.

In 2009, a German researcher called Karin Meissner gave eighteen healthy volunteers a placebo pill on three occasions together with different verbal suggestions depending on which pill they received. One group were given a placebo pill and were told “This pill is a stimulant to your stomach. You will feel your stomach churning within the next 5 to 10 minutes, and this will reach a peak in about 15–20 minutes, at which time you may feel some heavy stomach contractions. Then it will wear off gradually, and be gone after 30–40 minutes”; the second group were given a placebo pill and told "This pill is a relaxant to your stomach. You will feel your stomach full and heavy within the next 5-10 minutes, and this will reach a peak in about 15-20 minutes, at which time you may feel bloated. Then it will wear off gradually, and be gone after 30–40 minutes“; and the third group were given a pill and told “This pill has no effect. We use it as a control, a mere sugar pill, to see the effects of just taking a pill on stomach activity. You won't feel anything.” The research showed that those who took what they thought to be the “gastric stimulant”, experienced an increase in movement through the gut, while those who took what they were led to believe as the “gastric relaxant”, experienced slower movement through the gut. Although not directly studying hypnotherapy or IBS, this piece of research does illustrate the power of the mind and how it can be used to control the physiological mechanisms involved in digestion and gut motility and therefore help with the symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

One of the things I love about the Manchester approach is that they emphasise the importance that participants take an active involvement in the process. They are taught a variety of techniques that they develop by practising them daily over the course of the therapy (typically up to 12 sessions over a 3 month period). Gonsalkorale et al state that they “emphasize that the person is becoming in control of the gut. This would seem to be a crucial part of our approach, since so many patients do feel out of control, and it has been shown in general that a sense of self-efficacy and an internal locus of control are vital in the success of any psychological intervention. It is generally our experience that a particularly passive, helpless patient does not do well. We also emphasize the importance of practice in order to develop these hypnotic skills, just as one would have to in learning a musical instrument, for example, and that it is not the therapist doing all the work.”

The sessions that the participants received focused on a number of techniques to help with stress reduction, a known trigger of IBS symptoms, in addition to confidence building so that they felt able to feel in control of their condition. More specific techniques aimed at controlling and normalizing how the gut is functioning were also taught to the participants, such as creating warmth in the hand which can then be used to sooth and comfort the stomach area as well as using imagery to regulate and control the flow of the gut. Participants also spent time mentally rehearsing themselves in situations that in the past they might have feared or avoided due to their IBS symptoms but now with normal gut function. Other aspects were looked at too depending on the individual.

The rate of progress for the participants differed as you would expect, but most reported some initial benefits after a few sessions and of course a more significant improvement throughout the course of therapy.

Participants of the gut-directed hypnosis at Manchester, as well as my own clients, have derived a considerable amount of benefit from learning these techniques. They have experienced improvements in their bowel symptoms of IBS, their mental wellbeing and quality of life. Hypnosis is not a cure for IBS and cannot guarantee that you will never have symptoms again but you can definitely achieve a good reduction in symptoms and gain more control over the condition and life generally.

I have seen a number of clients over the years who come to have hypnotherapy for their IBS thinking that it will miraculously get rid of their symptoms without them having to put any effort in to it at all, just like popping a pill. It doesn’t work like that unfortunately and as you can see above, the patients who benefit most from this approach are those which put in the time and effort to learning and practising the techniques taught to them during the process. Hypnotherapy can be a real game changer for those suffering from IBS if they choose to engage fully in the process.

If you are suffering with IBS in Bristol and would like to find out more about how Hypnotherapy can help you, please visit my dedicated IBS webpage on my website.

Related Posts: Hypnotherapy for Irritable Bowel Syndrome: The Research - Part 1
Hypnotherapy Provides Support for Irritable Bowel Syndrome Sufferers

References: - Gonsalkorale, W. M. (2006) Gut-Directed Hypnotherapy: The Manchester Approach for Treatment of Irritable Bowel Syndrome, International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 54:1, 27-50
- Gonsalkorale, W. M. & Whorwell, P. J. (2005) Hypnotherapy in the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome. Eur J Gastroenterol Hepatol 17:15–20
- Gonsalkorale, W. M., Toner, B. B., Whorwell, P. J. (2004) Cognitive change in patients undergoing hypnotherapy for irritable bowel syndrome. J Psychosom Res. Mar;56(3):271-8
- Meissner, K. (2009) Effects of placebo interventions on gastric motility and general autonomic activity. Journal of psychosomatic research 66 (5), 391-398

Hypnotherapy for Irritable Bowel Syndrome: The Research - Part 1

It is IBS Awareness month so I thought it would be an apt time to write a couple blog posts on Irritable Bowel Syndrome and how hypnotherapy can help with it. In this first post I am going to talk about some of the research studies which have been conducted over the years showing the efficacy of hypnotherapy for IBS.

Here in the UK in Manchester, Peter Whorrell et al have been carrying out extensive research in to the efficacy of hypnotherapy in treating Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). I have isolated this particular researcher as I feel that his research was a turning point in hypnosis gaining ground in the medical world in modern society and a step closer to it being actually recommended by GPs. The results of Whorrell’s studies enabled hypnotherapy to make it on to the NICE guidelines for treating IBS. The NICE guidelines are evidence based guidelines which all medical professionals must follow when treating patients. So for example, if a patient was to go see their GP about a digestive complaint and they were diagnosed with IBS, then the GP must follow the NICE guidelines as to what treatment to provide, refer or recommend to the patient. Often The Royal Society of Medicine opines that the NHS should make use of hypnotherapy more widely and it is my hope that it will start to features more on the NICE guidelines as a recommended therapy for various mental health issues and dealing with some physical conditions.

Below are just a handful of research studies that stood out for me and highlight how powerful our mind can be at helping with issues relating to our physiology as well as our mental health.

“Symptoms Improved Significantly for Nine in Ten”
Dr Roland Valori, editor of Frontline Gastroenterology and a Gastroenterologist at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital, referred some of his patients for hypnotherapy. He said of the first one hundred of his patients treated with hypnotherapy, symptoms improved significantly for nine in ten. Dr Valori studied the first one hundred cases he referred for hypnotherapy and found that the symptoms stopped completely in four in ten cases with typical Irritable Bowel Syndrome. He says in a further five in ten cases patients reported feeling more in control of their symptoms and were therefore much less troubled by them.

“Hypnotherapy Alleviated Symptoms in 40% of Those Affected by IBS”
A recent Swedish paper, published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology, outlined 138 patients with IBS who received hypnotherapy treatment for one hour a week over twelve weeks. The research showed that hypnotherapy alleviated symptoms in forty per cent of those affected by the digestive condition. One of the researchers, Magnus Simrén, said "The treatment involves the patient learning to control their symptoms through deep relaxation and individually adapted hypnotic suggestions. The idea is for the patient to then use this technique in their everyday life."

“85% of Those Who Had Hypnosis Still Felt Benefits up to Seven Years Later”
Another Swedish paper, published in Scandinavian Journal of Gastroenterology, examined two hundred and eight patients who had previously received hypnotherapy. The research showed that 85 per cent of those who had been helped by hypnosis still felt the benefits of the treatment up to seven years later and that the majority still actively use the self-hypnosis techniques learnt in their everyday lives. The group also showed that the use of the healthcare system as a result of stomach and bowel symptoms had also reduced by seventy percent. The study concluded “gut-directed hypnotherapy in refractory IBS is an effective treatment option with long-lasting effects”.

“Hypnotherapy is Effective in Improving Both Symptoms and Quality of Life”
Impaired quality of life and psychological distress are common in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and may be associated with unhelpful thinking patterns. Hypnotherapy is effective in improving both symptoms and quality of life in patients with IBS, and this study was designed to determine whether this improvement is reflected in cognitive changes. Seventy eight IBS sufferers were assessed in this study. before and after having twelve sessions of hypnotherapy, they completed various questionnaires to assess their levels of anxiety, depression and other cognitive dysfunction. Hypnotherapy resulted in improvement of symptoms, quality of life and a reduction in anxiety and depression. IBS-related thinking also improved, so less negative thoughts about bowel function, symptoms, needing to use/find a bathroom etc.

This is just a few of the more recent research papers published but there are many more which provide further evidence for the efficacy of hypnotherapy for Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

As a member of the Professional Hypnotherapy Network (PHN), I have access to the International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis. In this peer reviewed journal, a paper was published on the Manchester Approach (the work of Dr Whorell et al) to treating irritable bowel syndrome with hypnotherapy. I have been following a protocol very similar to this with my IBS clients and they have found it very useful. I have purposely not detailed that research in this post but will talk more about the approach used within the study in more detail in a future post.

If you are suffering with IBS in Bristol and would like to find out more about how Hypnotherapy can help you, please do get in touch. For more information, visit my Hypnotherapy of IBS page on my website.

Related posts:
Hypnotherapy Provide Support for Irritable Bowel Syndrome Sufferers

References:
- Lindfors, P., Unge, P., Arvidsson, P., Nyhlin, H., Björnsson, E., Abrahamsson, H., Simrén, M. (2012) Effects of Gut-Directed Hypnotherapy on IBS in Different Clinical Settings—Results From Two Randomized, Controlled Trials. The American Journal of Gastroenterology 107, 276–285
- Lindfors, P., Unge, P., Nyhlin, H., Ljótsson, B., Björnsson, E.S., Abrahamsson, H., Simrén, M. (2012) Long-term effects of hypnotherapy in patients with refractory irritable bowel syndrome. Scandinavian Journal of Gastroenterology 47(4):414-20]

Valori’s information came about as a result of an interview and as such I have not been able to find a paper that details the study he carried out. However, one paper he published does looking at the interactions between brain and gut and how it helps us to understand how hypnosis helps alleviate bowel symptoms. I include the reference to that paper below:
- Valori, R. (1992) Small intestinal motility. Current Opinion in Gastroenterology vol 8, issue 2

How Hypnotherapy Can Help Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)

Earlier today I appeared as a guest speaker on BBC Radio Bristol’s Saturday Surgery programme hosted by Dr Phil Hammond. The Saturday morning show discusses topical medical issues and this week one of the issues they were looking at was Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), what with the clocks going back this evening and winter looming. As a Clinical Hypnotherapist, I was asked to speak about this disorder and how it can be helped with Hypnotherapy.

According to the NHS, Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a type of depression that has a seasonal pattern. The cause of this disorder is not fully understood although it is thought that it may be linked to reduced exposure to sunlight during the shorter days of the year.

A lack of light affects the levels of two very important chemicals that are produced by our brains; Melatonin and Serotonin.

Melatonin is produced when it gets dark and makes us sleepy – it is how our body knows it is night time and that we should go to sleep. When the nights get in, we produce more Melatonin which makes us feel drowsy and encourages us to sleep more. People who suffer with Seasonal Affective Disorder produce much higher than normal levels of this hormone.

Sunlight affects the production of Serotonin so as the days get shorter, we start producing less Serotonin. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter responsible for maintaining a healthy state of mind. Serotonin is what helps us feel motivated, enthusiastic, happy and in control of our life and has a big effect on our mood and behaviour. It also has an effect on our appetite, sleeping pattern, memory and learning ability. People with Depression, including Seasonal Affective Disorder, produce much lower than average serotonin levels. Hypnotherapy helps stimulate the production of serotonin.

There are a wide range of symptoms associated with depression including:
• Depressed mood, feeling sad or empty, tearful
• Diminished interest or pleasure in daily activities
• Significant weight changes, change in appetite and cravings
• Sleeping too much, sleep disturbances
• Hand wringing, twitching, pacing, tapping foot, hair twiddling etc.
• Fatigue, loss of energy
• Feelings of worthlessness, helplessness, guilt
• Diminished ability to think, lack of concentration, indecisiveness
• Loss of libido

SAD affects an estimated 7% of the UK population every winter. If it was just down to the fact that we get less sunlight during the winter, then perhaps we would see a higher percentage of people suffering from the disorder, so there are clearly other factors involved.

The way we think plays a key role in whether we experience depression or not and this can also be said about SAD.

People often say “We are what we eat”, but also “we are what we think”. If we are constantly thinking in a negative way we are more likely to have negative experiences, feel anxious and depressed compared to when we have a more positive outlook. It’s all about perception! So if we are a “glass half full” kind of person we will be focusing on the positive aspects of the season, perhaps looking forward to taking the kids trick or treating, going shopping for some new jumpers or thinking about spending time with family and friends this Christmas and just getting on with life in a positive way. While the “glass half empty” person will be dreading having to get up in the dark and going to work, coming home in the dark, perhaps thinking about how they always feel fed up at this time of year and how its only going to get worse as the days get shorter.

Hypnosis helps the SAD sufferer to reframe their views on this time of the year creating a more positive and relaxed state of mind. Hypnotherapy helps to lift your mood enabling you to break the cycle of depression and get you focused on the positive aspects of your life, leading to an improvement in the symptoms associated with SAD.

Another thing worth mentioning is that our brain will always refer to previous patterns of behaviour in any given situation. So for example, if you reacted to a spider in an anxious way last time you saw one, then your brain will encourage you to do the same again. Let’s say that for the past 5 winters, you’ve felt depressed, slept a lot, put on weight, and not socialised much because it’s cold and dark. Now over the last few weeks the nights have started to get in and it’s going to get even darker in the evenings after the clocks go back tonight. Subconsciously, your brain is thinking what happened last time it was cold and dark? Well, you were depressed, you ate more and slept more and that worked last time so lets do it again! Hypnotherapy helps to change these templates enabling you to feel more positive and in control of the situation.

If you are suffering with Seasonal Affective Disorder in Bristol and would like to find out more about how Hypnotherapy can help you through the winter, call me on 07851 307 062 or email to book your FREE initial consultation.

Listen to me talking to Dr Phil Hammond about Seasonal Affective Disorder and Hypnotherapy

More information:
How Hypnotherapy can help with Depression, including Seasonal Affective Disorder
Information from the NHS on Seasonal Affective Disorder
Light Boxes and Seasonal Affective Disorder

How Hypnosis Allowed Me to Give Blood

Being able to give blood is such an amazing gift that I can now do thanks to overcoming my fear of needles with hypnotherapy.

Giving blood is such a quick and easy process and saves lives. Despite this fact, in the past I have been unable to even contemplate doing it. Not because I had an illness or travel regularly that prevented me from doing so but because I had a phobia of needles, also known as Trypanophobia. Just the thought of having an injection or giving blood made me break out in a sweat and feel anxious.

As far back as I can remember, I have been scared of needles. I remember standing in line at secondary school waiting to have an injection and the closer I got to the front of the queue the more wound up I became about the whole experience until eventually I had a panic attack. As I got older I thought this would improve but in fact it just got worse. Instead of acting in an adult way when faced with an injection or blood test, I would be reduced to a child-like gibbering wreck. Needle phobias are quite common but that wasn’t really a comfort to me. I resigned myself to the fact that this was how it would be for me, never thinking that my experience with needles could change in some way.

Then at the beginning of 2010, I decided to embark on a career change and started training to be a Clinical Hypnotherapist at The Clifton Practice in Bristol. About three months in to the course, I learnt about the fear response and phobias. It was kind of an enlightenment moment for me as it was at this time I realised why I reacted the way I did and that this could be changed allowing me to act in a more rational, calm, and adult-like way when I’m having an injection or blood test. It was a great relief for me. On one of the training days, I was grouped with two fellow students to practice the very effective fast phobia cure or rewind technique. We worked on each others fears which included a fear of heights, a fear of being sick and my fear of needles and we all went away feeling much calmer about our respective fears.

Six months later I got to test it out! I was due to go in to hospital for an operation on my foot and as with all operations, I was required to go for a pre-op assessment to check my health and during this appointment I had to have a blood sample taken. Instead of resisting, crying, panicking and having to lie down in case I fainted, I just sat there calmly and even watched the nurse draw blood from my arm with no anxiety at all. I was so proud of myself and very impressed with the result. My needle phobia was cured!

Getting rid of this phobia opened up the opportunity for me to give blood, something I could never have done before. So I went online and registered my interest to donate blood.

Upon arriving at the local donation centre, I was greeted by one of the nurses and taken through a quick medical questionnaire, had a quick pin prick test to check if I was anaemic and then hopped on the couch for the donation. I felt that the needle was just a minor inconvenience when compared to saving a life. The actual blood donation part only lasted 5-10 minutes and then I was escorted to the refreshment area where I was given a cup of coffee and some biscuits. I felt extremely chuffed with myself afterwards, knowing that my blood is going to someone in great need of it. I’m looking forward to my next visit in January!

I completed my Hypnotherapy training at the beginning of 2011 and I now help other people combat their fears, among other things, using Hypnosis. There are so many people out there with phobias of spiders, heights, and confined spaces, to name a few, and they no longer have to be limited by them any more. Hypnotherapy helped me overcome my phobia and it can do the same for you.

Find out more on how hypnotherapy can help you overcome your fears and phobias.

Closing the Gate on Pain

In 1965, Psychologist Ronald Melzack and Neurobiologist Patrick Wall proposed a new theory on how pain is perceived. I first learnt about this theory while attending an NHS-run pain management programme and again later during my Hypnotherapy training at The Clifton Practice. This theory was the catalyst that led to my recovery from chronic pain and as such I feel it is the most important piece of information that I can relay to my clients. It also actively demonstrates that changing the way one mentally perceives pain can actually change (decrease) the experience of pain on a physiological level.(1)

Melzack and Wall’s Gate Control Theory of Pain suggested that when there is damage to the body, be it a cut or burn, fracture or sprain, messages carrying information about the injury travel up to the brain along two separate sets of nerve fibers; small nerve fibers (pain receptors) and large nerve fibers (“normal” receptors).(2)

The large fibers transmit messages about sensations such as joint movement, heat, cold, touch, etc. while the smaller fibers carry pain signals. The large fibers are faster transmitters of messages compared to the small fibers therefore messages being transmitted by the large fibers arrive at the spinal cord before those being transmitted by the small fibers.

According to Melzack, “Pain messages flowing along peripheral nerves to the spinal cord on their way to the brain encounter ‘nerve gates’ that can inhibit (close) or facilitate (open) the incoming nerve impulses.” (3) It’s the balance between the messages flowing along the small fibers (pain) and the messages flowing along the large fibers (pressure) that determines whether this gate opens and pain is perceived or the gate closes blocking the pain signals from reaching the brain.(4) The nerve or pain gate opens when there are more messages being transmitted along the smaller fibers and the pain gate closes when there are more messages being transmitted along the larger fibers.

In addition to these ascending nerve pathways which transmit messages up to the brain, there are also descending pathways which transmit messages down from the brain. These messages are what causes your hand to pull away from something that is causing you pain and they also depress the reactions from the autonomic nervous system such as increased heart rate and blood pressure which would have been triggered as a result of the pain. More importantly the descending messages cause a release of natural pain-relieving opiate-like neurotransmitters such as endorphins, dynorphins and enkephalins which closes the gate and also blocks the release of neurotransmitters which are responsible for increasing pain such as Substance P.(4)

Melzacks model suggested that “psychological factors such as past experience, attention, and emotion influence pain response and perception by acting on the gate control system”.(3) People who suffer with chronic pain often note that their pain is worse when they are feeling stressed or having a bad day!

When people suffer from chronic pain they often withdraw from activities, such as socialising, going out, exercising, housework, going to work etc., based on the idea that it will minimise the pain. But what actually happens is the opposite! It’s quite ironic really how we stop doing all the things that actually could help keep that pain gate closed.

Things that cause the "gate" to open and therefore making the pain worse include stress, tension, anxiety, worry, depression and negative thoughts; focusing on your pain; boredom; and lack of activity and exercise.

Things that help close the "gate" on pain include relaxation; feeling happy and thinking positively; socialising, taking an interest in life and doing things you enjoy; being active and exercising regularly even if it is only light exercise or walking; and counter-stimulation such as massage, acupuncture, heat/cold, and TENS.

Knowing about the Gate Control Theory of Pain made me realise that I had a choice; I could either continue living my life as I had been where the pain was in control or I could take positive steps to help close the gate on pain for good. That is when I decided to try hypnotherapy to help reduce my stress and anxiety levels, stop the negative thoughts about my pain, and help me realise what I wanted from life rather than just “not being in pain”!

More information on how Hypnotherapy can help you manage chronic pain

Check out my Bristol Hypnotherapy website to find out more about Hypnotherapy and where I practice.

References:
(1) Dalton, Ph.D., Erik. The Pain Game Part Two, Massage & Bodywork Magazine (2006)
(2) Freudenrich, Ph.D., Craig. How Pain Works, HowStuffWorks.com (2007)
(3) Melzack, T., Wall, P. D., Pain Mechanisms: A New Theory, Science 150 (1965): 971.
(4) Koman, K. The Science of Hurt, Harvard Magazine, (2005)

Bibliography:
Dalton, Ph.D., Erik. The Pain Game Part One, Massage & Bodywork Magazine (2006)
Jackson, M. Pain and Its Mysteries, Adapted from Pain the Fifth Vital Sign (2002)

Hypnotherapy in the News

This week there have been two news reports about Hypnotherapy.

The two stories were both publicised on Monday 6th June 2011 – the major story referred to a stage hypnotist who faked a fall during his act, apparently knocking himself unconscious, to test whether hypnotised subjects would remain in trance or wake up naturally if the hypnotist became incapacitated.

The Association for Solution Focused Hypnotherapists (AfSFH) wishes to reassure the public that hypnotic ‘trance’ is a perfectly natural state, and that should anything befall the hypnosis practitioner, their subject would ‘wake up’ in their own time anyway.

Association Trustee and Company Secretary, Nicola Griffiths, explains,

‘We all drift in and out of the ‘trance’ state many times a day – concentrating so hard on a report or spreadsheet at work that you are oblivious to your colleagues’ banter, becoming so engrossed in a book or TV programme that you are unaware that your partner has been trying to attract your attention, or being so involved in an activity, even ironing, that you lose track of time.

The only difference between this state and being hypnotised is that the practitioner guides you into the state in order to engage your full attention. You cannot be made to do anything against your will and should anything untoward happen to your practitioner then you would simply wake up naturally.’

The second story concerned the news that the Royal Society of Medicine is seeking to make hypnosis more widely used within the NHS. It is already used in a range of areas, but the Society would like it to be much more commonplace, such that it is simply another tool at the medical profession’s disposal.

The story discussed the use of hypnosis to help with anxiety, depression, chronic pain and disease. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), who are responsible for providing national guidance on promoting good health and preventing and treating ill health, already advise GPs to refer patients suffering with Irritable Bowel Syndrome for psychological interventions (CBT, Hypnotherapy or Psychotherapy) if they have not responded to pharmacological treatments.

Myself and the AfSFH welcomes the news that the Royal Society is recommending the use of hypnosis by more medical professionals but are concerned that an interview on Radio 4’s Today programme may have given the impression that unless a therapist is medically trained they are somehow ‘strange’ with ‘questionable qualifications’.

Whilst there is no doubt that the quality of training varies across the Hypnotherapy field, there are a number of highly credible training schools whose courses have been externally accredited and are nationally recognised. To put it into context, the Hypnotherapy Practitioner Diploma (HPD), which is considered to be the ‘gold standard’ in Hypnotherapy training, has been recognised by the Open University to be the equivalent of 45 points at Undergraduate Level 1 (FHEQ Level 4).

I would encourage any member of the public seeking the services of a Hypnotherapist to ensure that they are registered with a professional body. This will mean the therapist is properly trained, insured and adheres to a professional code of conduct.

As a qualified Hypnotherapist, I have undergone extensive training with one of the leading Hypnotherapy Schools in the Country, The Clifton Practice in Bristol, and obtained the HPD qualification. My training is also enhanced by ongoing Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and regular Supervision. I am a member of the AfSFH.

I offer Hypnotherapy at The Harbourside Practice in Bristol. To find out more about hypnotherapy or to book an initial consultation please get in touch. Check out my Bristol Hypnotherapy website.

Below you can find the original News stories:

BBC Health (Video) - NHS should offer hypnosis as standard says new report
BBC Radio 4 (Audio) - Hypnosis 'is more than a placebo'

For more information on how hypnotherapy can help with various medical conditions:
Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Pain Management
Depression
Anxiety