Pain Control

It is a little-known fact that, around 150 years ago, well before the invention of anaesthetic drugs, hypnosis was already being used with astounding success by a few notable surgeons and doctors, such as James Braid and James Esdaile. These pioneers took great professional risks by using and writing about hypnosis, because the medical authorites and universities of the time regarded hypnosis (or mesmerism, as it was then known) with great hostility and prejudice. And who can blame them? It seemed incredible, that a person could undergo deep abdominal surgery, or have a limb amputated, whilst suffering no pain or distress, yet being aware of what was happening, simply as a result of suggestion! Perhaps it still does seem incredible, yet it is certainly true.

It may seem less surprising, however, if we look at the phenomenon in a different way. The fact is, the experience of pain is an illusion, produced by the nervous system and the brain, and there are several stages in the process. If something blocks the process at one stage or another, pain is lessened or removed. This is how drugs work. However, since we know that suggestions given under hypnosis can be accepted by the unconscious parts of the brain, and that this is where pain is interpreted as pain, and the illusion produced, it should not be surprising that it can be 'switched off' by suggestion.

Before treating pain with hypnosis, however, it is important to get proper medical advice from your doctor, to make sure that it is safe to go ahead. Pain is sometimes an indicator of a condition which needs other medical treatment, in which case removing the pain could mask a serious or worsening physical condition.

It is also important to note that although hypnotists can treat pain, we are not trained or qualified to diagnose the cause of it, or give any medical advice - this must always be done by a doctor. If your doctor is in agreement that hypnosis will do no harm (even if they don't personally believe it will help!) then it is okay to go ahead.

"How about pain control?"

Hypnotic pain control – hypnoanalgesia (controlled feeling) and hypnoanesthesia (no feeling) – is well represented in the literature. Commonly reported are uses in dental procedures, surgical operations, and giving birth without any anesthesia other than hypnosis. Many people have gained control over chronic pain that did not respond to any other method.