Hypnosis therapy is commonly used for pain management and control. Its effectiveness in minimizing pain is underscored by research that reveals that only about 10 to 25 percent of pain is due to a physiological cause. The majority of someone’s pain experience is rooted in emotions — fear of pain, stress, anxiety or memories of previous pain.

Hypnosis therapy taps into the strong mind/body connection and helps to harness the power of the mind to control thoughts about pain.

Hypnosis therapy for pain management, supported by clinical evidence, helps diminish pain sensation and suffering associated with:

• Acute and chronic pain
• Burns
• Cancer
• Rheumatoid arthritis

Alexander Hertzberg uses hypnosis to manage two types of pain: chronic and temporary pain. Hypnosis therapy for pain management can accomplish two goals:

• Immediate pain relief
• Control over future pain through learned self-hypnosis

As it relates to immediate pain relief, hypnosis therapy helps clients feel more comfortable while pain begins to dissipate. Hypnosis is able to block and to control the area of the brain that is responsible for discerning pain. This is acutely visible in situations where people undergo surgery with only the aid of hypnosis. Anesthesia via hypnosis is sometimes necessary when individuals have various allergies to chemical anesthesia.

Hypnosis therapy also can train clients in self-hypnosis, which will aid the client when he or she experiences chronic and ongoing pain in the future. Teaching self-hypnosis to clients involves providing keywords while they are in deep states of relaxation. Those keywords help clients return to a state of relaxation in the future.

Also, clients are provided suggestions and visuals to help ease pain. For example, clients may be asked to imagine a cold hand in bucket of ice water. Then clients imagine placing their cold, numb hand onto the area of pain, thereby numbing the area and dampening pain sensations. Hypnosis’s trance-like state is needed to fully embed this concept into someone’s subconscious mind.

It’s important to note that pain is typically a sign that something is going wrong within the body. Though headaches can be relieved instantly through hypnosis, clients should make sure there is no serious underlying cause that is going untreated. In most cases that involve unusual pain, the hypnotist recommends that the client obtain a referral from a doctor. And in some situations, the hypnotist may leave some small sensation of pain in order to make sure the person seeks proper medical care to address the root cause.

Take control of your pain. Hypnosis therapy is an effective tool to help you navigate the mind/body phenomenon. While hypnosis therapy may not cure whatever underlying cause may be associated with pain, it will help you manage it.

Call Alexander Hertzberg’s Los Angeles hypnosis office today at (310) 804-8123 for more information or to schedule a session.