Frequently Asked Questions
F.A.Q.S
1.
What is
Hypnosis?
2. IBS "All in our head"?
Many doctors and gastro specialists
have implied the term 'all in your head' to patients in the past in error, and
some not up on current IBS research today may still view their patients somewhat
in this way. But IBS is a physical disorder and I think they are trying to say
that there is nothing organically wrong they have pinpointed yet. However, I
have had quite a few discussions about this in the past, the problem lies with
the fact that doctors are taught to look for disease and illness. We know IBS is
a functional disorder and the doctors and researchers have only recently been
making progress in the complex condition of IBS, but we can all agree
peristalsis is not doing what it should.
'All in the head' is not right, it is an offensive term to those that are
looking for solutions. It conjures up the emotion that sufferers are doing it on
purpose somehow.
However, the majority of us, tend to run things out, before they happen. So
along with Stress, there is also a psychological element in our thought patterns
that expects us to have difficult IBS days. Running out our worries causes us to
have anxiety and added stress, which in turn creates a negative physical
response. The annoying thing is, it's part of being human, it's a response which
we don't have to even try to do, it all happens automatically.
To understand the Audio Program 100 a bit more, we have to understand stress is
not 'out there', stress is how we respond internally to real or perceived
external demands. What is a stressful event for one, can be invigorating or
relaxing event for another.
Every thought has a physical response. We can prove this by the feelings of
love, anger, jealousy, etc., all emotions start with thought (our interpretation
to an event), which then leads to physical response. This is even recognized in
legislation by recognition of the term Crime of passion - a person might kill
another (an extreme example, granted) because they were firing on emotion, which
made them pick up the knife to perform the action. That anger began in the
thoughts, was interpreted and an action was carried out, all by the release of
chemicals and electrical impulses. Police officers see heightened states every
Saturday night when people come out of the pubs, we even have our own language
for heightened emotion, count to ten is a good example. Count to 10 before we
say or respond to something that has annoyed us, basically by giving a bit of
time, the response travels through the 7/8ths of the brain that is emotion until
it gets to the 1/8th bit of logic and reason, which allows us to stop and think.
In effect changes the chemical releases and electrical impulses - we simmer
down.
All these physical reactions, along with the more every day concerns of, getting
to work on time, what happens if I need the toilet? Do the shops have toilets,
etc. every thought produces a physical reaction, good or bad.
The thing is, we can choose to learn new coping strategies. Our inner resources
can be topped up. Users of the program will have noticed that the first session,
is time spent topping up the emotional reserves, making sure they can complete
the journey through the program. Patients that come to my practice all go
through the same thing, in short we have to be able to have the internal
emotional resource to deal with everyday living, as well as changing our
thoughts towards IBS. Because IBS has affected the lives of sufferers so deeply,
to try and deal with the IBS before we are prepared would lead to a tougher
journey. So taking the time to top up the emotional batteries as it were, is
time well spent.
In thinking about stress, it helps too if we remember that the only important
moment of our lives is the moment. We are living, not in the past (although we
can change emotions attached to memories to make the past more comfortable for
us), but we don't want to worry about future events or problems that might never
come.
The other thing that holds us back is the fear that however we are feeling is
going to last forever - Nothing lasts for ever, if we want to change! When we
throw a ball up in
the air, there is a point of time which the ball is neither going up or coming
down, that is the moment of change. Users of the program who are feeling much
better are changing the way they think, their outlook on life and its events,
but I doubt anyone will be able to pinpoint exactly when things started to get
better, but they do, and they do so because very gently the subconscious mind,
which controls the digestive system, begins to realize, that these thought
patterns of IBS are no longer needed, the individual as a whole is reminded that
it existed very well thank you, without IBS, and can do so again, simply and
gently by changing the thought processes, that kept Stress and Anxiety,
Guilt etc. in control.
So the sessions are quite complex in their make up, but when I was doing my
early days of research, I remembered that people learned more and it was easier
for them if they enjoyed what they we're doing, so by using imagery and
suggestion we create an environment internally, that allows changes, both
emotionally and physically to occur. And because we enjoy what we are doing it
doesn't seem difficult, and it isn't, its only when the conscious mind tries to
control areas it wasn't designed to that problems occur.
I might have babbled a bit, but don't expect a doctor to tell you this in this
way, because their skills are in the organic, and they might just not know how
to say what they mean!
3. How to Choose a
Therapist?
Although legally, anyone can practice hypnotherapy without either special
training or a license, it is important to make sure your hypnotherapist is a
clinical professional with a thorough training. Also make sure he or she has
experience in treating your particular condition. In this case Irritable Bowel
Syndrome.
4. Who Should Avoid This
Therapy?
Hypnosis is considered safe no matter what your condition but,
Please have your symptoms diagnosed by a medical
practitioner or doctor. It is important to remember that you cannot self
diagnose IBS and there are many serious conditions that mimic IBS.
5. What Side Effects May Occur?
Many people avoid hypnotism for fear of losing control to the therapist.
They take showbiz stunts, with audience members clucking like chickens or
bawling like babies, as genuine examples of hypnotic power, which is just not
true.
Fortunately, the truth of the
matter is that the hypnotist is never in control. A hypnotic suggestion works
only if you accept it, and the therapist cannot make you do something you would
not do consciously, something that goes against your moral code or religious
beliefs, for example. The practitioner's goal is to help you use your own mind
to solve problems, rather than give you the answers.
6. Modern Hypnotherapy
Modern hypnotherapy relies on induction of a "trance-like" state to reach
the unconscious level of the mind--the level over which people usually have no
control. Once the unconscious is open to suggestion, you and your therapist can
more easily change the way you perceive problems--and promote new ways of
responding to them.
Although "trances" may sound like psychological hocus pocus, they are neither
mysterious nor unfamiliar to most of us. We have all daydreamed or become lost
in a novel. Sometimes we concentrate so deeply on a problem that we drive right
past our exit on a highway. In all such cases, we are in a sort of trance--a
state of "focused concentration" in which we are neither fully awake nor fully
asleep. We have blocked out all distractions so that we can think exclusively on
a particular subject, memory, problem, or sensation.
The concept of using trances to alleviate ills, both physical and mental, has
recurred throughout the history of medicine. The ancient Greeks and Egyptians
induced trance-like states to cure what we would call anxiety and hysteria. The
Druids called trances "magic sleep." Native Americans and Africans recognized
the hypnotic effect of drumming and dancing.
Modern hypnotherapy got a false start in the 18th century, when Austrian
physician Franz Anton Mesmer propounded his theory of "animal magnetism."
Believing that illness was a result of imbalance in the body's magnetic forces,
he insisted that he could restore balance--and thus cure diseases--by
transferring magnetism from his body to his patients. He endeavored to achieve
this by waving iron rods, magnets, and his hands in front of his subjects and
using "soothing words" to induce a trance. His influential contemporaries
branded him a charlatan, and his magnetic theory was soon discarded.
Interest in the healing potential of the trance was later resurrected by James
Braid, an English ophthalmologist, who coined the term "hypnosis," after the
Greek word for sleep. To induce a trance, Braid simply stared at his subjects
intently. Although he realized he could implant ideas in his subjects while they
were in this deep, relaxed state, he could not explain why this was so.
Hypnosis remained in vogue until the late 19th century, and Freud used it in his
early work. It then fell out of favor once again, resurfacing in the 1950s when
Milton Erickson began experimenting with it for the treatment of both mental and
physical ailments. By 1955 the British Medical Association had approved
hypnotherapy as a valid medical treatment; the American Medical Association
(AMA) followed suit in 1958. Today, the therapy is so widely accepted that the
American Society of Clinical Hypnosis, a professional association of physicians,
psychologists, and dentists, boasts 4,300 members.
While there seems to be little doubt that hypnosis provides lasting benefits for
many of those who try it, no one is quite certain of the reason. Some scientists
speculate that it prompts the brain to release chemicals called enkephalins and
endorphins, natural mood-altering substances that can change the way we perceive
pain and other physical symptoms. The majority, however, feel that it acts
through the unconscious, the part of the mind responsible for involuntary
reactions ranging from blood pressure and heart rate to hunger. Normally, these
reactions are beyond our control. Hypnotherapy seems to put them under our
power.
Whatever the truth of the matter, it's clear that when you are in a relaxed,
trance-like state, you are receptive to suggestions that can help you react
differently to negative situations, turn your attention away from harmful or
unpleasant stimuli such as pain, discourage unwanted behavior, and even change
your pulse rate or body temperature. The technique can also put you in touch
with memories that may explain the origins of current problems and habits. Once
you understand why you act a certain way, proponents suggest, you're in a better
position to change the way you respond. Your mind can focus on productive
solutions and hopefully overcome negative reactions.
One of hypnotherapy's greatest benefits may be its ability to reduce the effects
of stress. Many physicians and psychologists believe that the mind has a direct
impact on physical well-being. According to this theory, tension, anxiety, and
depression can undermine immunity and compromise your health, while a positive
attitude can reinforce the immune system, enabling it to better fight
infections, toxins, and other invaders. Hypnosis can allay stress by putting you
into a relaxed state, offering positive suggestions, and ridding the mind of
negative thoughts. As tension in your muscles--and even your blood
vessels--recedes, the theory goes, your circulation then improves, and your
entire body feels healthier.
As with most hypnotherapy
processes, direct suggestion, guided imagery, and metaphor techniques are used
in this hypnotherapy program. Imagery phrases such as new age, mystical and
crystal are used solely for illustrative purposes. These are used in the context
of childish wonderment and imagination, openness, and seeing things in
perspective. No implication of any religion, belief, or faith is mentioned nor
is implied by the author. It is not our intention to offend any individual
belief. Should these phrases offend, please do not purchase.
