Does Hypnosis Work?

I have been skeptical of hypnosis my whole life. Really thought it was a parlor trick. There is an interesting article in the most recent Scientific American Mind (supposedly on shelves until July 25)

"The Truth and the Hype of Hypnosis".

It seems in the 1950s, doctors at Stanford University created a "Hynotizability" scale. Some people are more hypnotizable than others, and oddly enough it has nothing to do with being more imaginative, intelligent, etc. It also seems to be genetic. Identical twins will have identical "Standford Hypnosis Susceptibility Scale" scores, and these remain constant, like IQ, in all individuals over their adult life times. (They've done follow-ups since the 1950s).

It seems hypnosis is best for pain management.

Fascinating is that one can create hallucinations in hypnotized people. This is leading to understanding the auditory hallucinations in schizophrenia. Also, is helping in the understanding of the creation of false memories -- this is where it can be misused/dangerous.

I have been told by every therapist I've ever seen that hypnosis is useless for DP, that might help anxiety, but that I'm not highly susceptible. (And it has nothing to do with skepticism either -- interesting). A skeptic can be hypnotized if they have a high SHSS rating!

One therapist I had was "afraid" to do it for fear of repressed memories and suggested I see a specialist in hypnosis. To be honest, I agree with that, especially with people who dissociate. See a well trained psychiatrist who has success with this. Hard to find. And some are "looking" for "false memories." That's a whole other bag of wax.

I see there is "real hypnosis" -- not the parlour tricks we see on TV, etc. I'm less skeptical, and it leads to some understanding of how the mind/cognition/perception works.

Here's a real test. Individuals were told they couldn't smell. Ammonia sp! was placed under their noses. Those who weren't really hypnotized, grimaced and reacted. Those actually hypnotized had no reaction to the amonia. Interesting.

See the article. It opened my mind a bit. "Fascinating...."

Best,
D

1A said:

Dreamer said:

I have been told by every therapist I've ever seen that hypnosis is useless for DP, that might help anxiety.

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Respectfully, I believe there is a contradiction in your quote above.

It is widely accepted that DP/DR is a result/symptom of chronic anxiety disorders -- a defense mechanism if you will.

Therefore, if hypnosis alleviates symptoms of anxiety, as is suggested, hypnosis also would have the possibility to alleviate DP/DR (as DP/DR is kept alive thanks to an unrelenting anxiety disorder).

Furthermore, if the mind/body is unable to experience anxiety, can the mind/body expererience DP/DR? Or must an (underlying) anxiety disorder be present in order for DP/DR to exist/persist?

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Dear 1A,
I'm just conveying what all my shrinks over the years have said. It is in re: my particular case.

I've had DP/DR essentially my whole life. Anxiety and depression too. Since it was never treated at an early age, the theory is it is more resistant to treatment. I've been told this by every doctor I've seen.

I understand what your saying. You'd have to read the article, but from what I've seen on anxiety boards, etc., one can have anxiety and NOT have DP/DR. So in theory, hypnosis could help alleviate anxiety, but if one is trying to hypnotize someone to rid them specifically of DP, well, per these doctors... since I was 15 and I'm now 46... this is what I was told.

Again, I have no rec drug onset. I experienced DP/DR as a little girl, it got awful around 6th-8th grade and progressed to 24/7, in my dreams as well. My prognosis was always "poor." But I have improved significantly over the years.

Never thought I'd see 46, and I've accomplished a lot, and am hoping to accomplish more. At minimum, lead a life I feel good about, that gives me some joy. And I want to share that joy with others.

Best,
D

Oh, and as I said, I apparently do not have a high SSHS rating. I don't recall who figured that one out. And oddly enough it was a psychoanalyst trained in dissociative disorders who didn't want to do hypnosis on me!

I personally know I have psychological problems, many from my childhood, but I don't subscribe to the theory of "repressed memory" etc. I've followed Elizabeth Loftus re: her work on this.

I don't know if that doctor felt he couldn't handle something "repressed" or what. I admire him for feeling it was not a specialty of his, yet he was one of the fouding members of the original International Society for the Study of Dissociation and MPD. The MPD has been taken out of the title, as MPD is now DID and defined very differently. I don't know what to make of it.

See the Links section. It's http://www.issd.org Oh Check the links section, I forgot.

They deal with trauma. What scares me is another doctor I saw (who moved to Sheppard-Pratt/Johns Hopkins) was involved in a false memory lawsuit in the early 90s. A "fad" of sorts re: these pre-K children false memories. I think a teen girl at S-Pratt went in for treatment, and emerged with 100 personalities and a mess. She was subsequently "de-conditioned" etc. It was found many therapists, police officers, social service workers, simply manipulate children (too much to go into here) to just go along with the most outrageous claims.

"Mr. Buckey took me in a space ship and patted my bum with a hot poker and it burnt me." (The child had no marks at all -- just a made up example.) The kids were so sick of being asked, "Did this happen? Did this?" they finally said, "YES!" and went on like kids will do with wonderful imaginations.

McMartin PreSchool Case, Little Rascals Daycare are the famous cases. There were many more in the 1980s.

The point? LOL. In MY case, I was told it was useless, and I don't hypnotize. I forgot when this was tried. Perhaps when I was given a long battery of cognitive and perceptual tests, IQ, etc. in the 1980s.

D

PS, I am not denying the concept of DID. I don't understand it. I believe such individuals are indeed very ill. But the fact that doctors changed it from MPD to DID in itself indicates that doctors are also at a loss as to the exact processes of this disorder.