Pain Treatment and Hypnosis for Children
The word hypnosis seems to conjure bad images for a number of people. I’m sure we have watched something, whether it is a movie or an animation, about people falling or doing evil things because of being hypnotized. So when you say, hypnosis for children, parents tend to be overprotective.
Actually, hypnotism is not bad at all. Studies have shown hypnotism helping children and adults deal with chronic pain, insomnia, stress, depression, weight gain and fears or phobia. Currently, hypnosis is being used in pain management.
Unlike the deep sleep that we know, people under hypnotism or hypnotherapy are conscious on what they are doing and what they can hear and understand. Hypnotism can be used to treat diseases and disorder, it is called hypnotherapy. Hypnotherapy is used in pain management.
There are three strategies in using hypnosis in pain management:
Physical relaxation – focusing on relaxation while feeling the pain, reduces the pain to vibrate and escalate. When tension is mixed pain, this heightens the pain. Muscle tension tends to pull on the muscles where it is hurting.
Sensory alteration – this strategy changes how we perceive the pain. Focusing to a different feeling will eventually filter out the hurt that you are experiencing.
Distraction – focus is shifted to other things to remove any attention to the body part feeling the pain.
Actually there are studies showing how effective hypnosis is in pain reliving. Hypnosis with combined with other alternative form of medication like acupuncture can relieve chronic pain patients. This can also be used to help children who are in the hospital undergoing painful treatments. Self-hypnosis against pain can be learned and be performed by children. There are studies showing children who can do self-hypnotism recorded less migraine occurrence than those children who are thinking medication.
Using hypnosis for children would show complications once the hypnosis lifted or removed. Some side-effects would include confusion, fainting, dizziness, nausea, fatigue and anxiety. Most of the side-effects are short-termed but there are some patients who experience stupor, psychological problems, and some patients even display recurring episodes of the previous shock. Based on these experiences, it is imperative to investigate on the background on profile of the patient and screen those who are susceptible to the mentioned side-effects.
A problem may also occur when the hypnotherapy forget to lift the hypnosis. The patient may sustain serious injury or any complication without the patient even knowing or feeling it at all.
Over the course of applying hypnotherapy to children, studies and practices showed that children find it easier to face painful medical procedures like bone marrow aspiration, cancer patients, co-operative pain, chronic headache and remove anxiety tin children who would undergo surgery.
Actually, if hypnosis history is traced, it would show that during early period, hypnosis is used to help patients who would be undergoing agonizing surgeries before anaesthetics were discovered. When anaesthesia was discovered in the middle of 19th century, chemical induced painless surgeries were favoured over tradition hypnosis. When chemicals and anaesthesia is useless or not enough in relieving the pain, this is when self-hypnosis is used.
Studies have shown that hypnosis for children can help them remove any pain and help them undergo medical procedures or simply just live their life. But more importantly, we must find that it is really, well sometimes, just in the mind.
Hypnosis for Children: A History
Nobody can say for sure when hypnosis started. But historians seem to agree that his has been used for more than a thousand years. Remember witch doctors or spiritual priests entering into a trance talking to the supernatural and the spirits to save people from diseases or misfortune.
Ancient Egyptians has been using hypnosis to relieve pain and cure diseases. They would have healing temples which are called Temples of Sleep. Those who are sick are given suggestions while induced to sleep. This suggestions are to direct their mind that they would be healed of their illnesses. Ancient Egyptians, aside from healing through sleep, has also used hypnosis to endure prolonged physical pain. They used this as we use anaesthesia now.
Hundreds of years later, in 1765, Franz Anton Mesmer introduced animal magnetism. He stated that man could influence a magnetic fluid which could help in the healing process. His thought became an influential school. There were salons were he would apply magnets in people’s afflicted body parts.
After a few years, Le Marquis de Puysegur, believed the magnetic power the Mesmer is talking about is actually present in his own mind and transferred through fingers to the person sick. He discovered that you could induce a very deep sleep where the person who is sleeping will follow the command. This is referred to as the perfect crisis or the profound sleep.
During this time hypnosis was referred to as mesmerism. In 1837, Dr. John Elliotson cited that hypnosis can be associated to voluntary and involuntary movement which he claims to be linked to the mesmerism theory. Dr Elliotson claimed that there is a doctor in India who has amputated legs with the aid of hypnosis. The doctor saving lives if India is named Dr. James Esdail. And upon on his departure from India, it was said that he able to do 300 operations and 19 of them is amputation.
Dr. James Baird saw a French man named La Fontaine in his mesmerism demonstration. After experiencing this, he put it into practice and were able to put the patients into a deep sleep that would make them accept any medical suggestion made by the doctors.
Actually during World War I, hypnosis was used by the Germans to make sure that their soldiers were able to recover from shell shock. This would enable them to return to their trenches.
Hypnosis started to gain interest among practitioners in the medical field. Sigmund Freud was said to be the firs proponent of hypnotherapy. Originally, Freud started studying hypnotherapy in late 1890s until he shifted into a new practice or method on 1905. Freud stated that suggestion can be made in an attempt to make treatment speedy.
Dr. Milton Erickson is one of the few people who greatly influenced hypnotherapists. He has accomplished a lot of books and research about hypnotherapy. Dr. Erickson’s study became the foundation of NLP or the neuro-linguistic programming which became widely used in trading and marketing.
Currently, hypnotherapy are used on only on adults but also with children. Hypnosis for children were proven to have resolved some issues about behaviour and health disorders. Hypnotherapy was formally endorsed by the British Medical Association in 1955. Three years after, the American Medical Association did the same. They endorsed hypnotherapy as a form of treatment.
Disadvantages of Hypnosis for children
Hypnosis for children to resolve or address some issues or problems regarding behaviour or health is called hypnotherapy. In hypnotherapy, children use their daydreams to change their behaviours, sensations and other symptoms. Not everybody can be a hypnotherapist. A trained health and psychiatric profession is needed to put children, also adults, into hypnosis.
Hypnotherapy or using hypnosis for treatments used to be unthinkable. Most people and patients alike, tend to think that hypnotherapists would require their patient to walk, cluck like chickens when hypnotized. One major disadvantage of this treatment, is the lack of support it has endured as an alternative treatment.
But currently, things are starting to shape up for hypnotic treatment. There are medical groups who are starting to recognize the potential of hypnotherapy in treating illnesses and dealing with disorders.
In 1958, the American Medical Association, already recognized hypnosis as a form of treatment. The American Psychological Association has acknowledged hypnosis as treatment years ago. The National Institute of Health expressed it support for hypnotherapy as a method of relieving pain for cancer patients in 1995.
But still regardless of the medical endorsements, there is still a prevailing outlook that hypnosis as a treatment is negative and images of funny people on hypnotic state conjures up to our mind.
Another disadvantage of hypnotherapy is that there are children or people who cannot be hypnotized at all. Children who show psychotic symptoms are not compatible with hypnotic treatment. While children or teen-agers using drugs or alcohol also prove to be poor hypnotic patients.
Hypnotherapy is best recommended for children ages 5 and above. Children, unlike adults, are more in touch with their imaginative side. This could be either beneficial or detrimental in the hypnosis process. That is why different approaches should be used based on different age and characteristics.
Hypnotherapy can also be done by parents to their children. Experts say that children with ages seven to eight are in the hypnotic state most of the time even when there is no hypnotist around. On these ages, children take in suggestion very seriously. Parents who tend not to be too sensitive with what they say to their children may say some remarks which can be both hurtful and have some effect on their self-esteem.
This is why children who are undergoing hypnotherapy tends to be sensitive to what is around them remember that hypnotherapy and its positive effects can be turned into rubble when negative energy surrounds the child. Parents should be sensitive with what they say and suggest to their children.
Sometimes a hypnotherapist may forget to remove the suggestions of the hypnotic sessions. If a child is undergoing therapy for pain management, this could pose a problem. When under these kind of treatment, children may run into accidents or serious problem which may cause serious injury and not get any proper treatment. It is important for parents to take note of these when sessions for hypnosis of children is done.
It is important to remember that these disadvantages of using hypnosis for children is more of a social prejudice. There are some people who regard hypnosis as control or manipulation of one’s mind and body which is completely untrue. Hypnotherapy when properly done could render positive and massive results. Most of our fear about hypnotherapy is rooted on how it was viewed in the past, which is mostly myths.
Bedtime Stories: Hypnosis for Children
How many times have we herd some rustling coming from the children’s bedroom only to find-out that our kids are having sleeping problems or are wetting the bed. Fortunately for us, these issues can be addressed by using hypnosis for children.
There are more and more children who are feeling the effects of insomnia. In a 1997 survey, it showed results that there are 11 percent of children with ages 5 to 12 who cannot sleep well at night, 7 percent would wake up at the middle of the night, 17 percent would have difficulties waking up the next day and another 17 percent would feel extremely exhausted.
Insomnia among children is attributed mainly to night time fears and anxious dreams. These may be an effect of several factors like environmental aspects, consumption of alcohol or caffeine, or sometimes inadequate parental supervision. Children who sleep late of course tends to wake up late.
Hypnosis for children is used to help children relax or calm down before bedtime. In contrast of what is widely known, you do not have to be asleep to be affected by hypnosis. You should be unconscious but into deep state of relaxation. The subconscious would be more receptive to suggestion during this period. There are programs where the hypnotherapists would give your suggestions which would eliminate stress and other negative energy preventing you to get a restful street.
After entering a deep relaxed state, it is important to address the reason behind restlessness at night. Resolving insomnia with hypnosis also involves you to look into your habits and change your nightly ritual which would help you to quickly fall asleep soundly.
There are also visualization in which the mind can be trained to flush out all thoughts and feeling that brings anxiety and stress preventing you to be at peace and at ease when on your own bed. There are also hypnosis insomnia which encourage patients to listen to CD or watch DVD.
About bedwetting, one out of three children wet the bed at age six. While there are about 2 to 10 percent of teenagers who still wet the bed from time to time. Unresolved, bedwetting can even lead to more severe problems as they grow older.
Hypnosis can also be used to resolve bedwetting problems. There are several CDs where children could listen to stories especially befitting their situations. Some parents discover that aside from removing bed wetting problems, children also started to have:
- Appreciate themselves more
- Discover unique abilities
- Deal with sadness in a healthier manner
- Handle criticisms very well
- Achieve a feeling of well being and in control
Most of the type the hypnosis method for children used is in gentler forms, most of the hypnotherapists use the “blow away technique”. They blow away emotions and fears which prevent them from sleeping or wetting the bed.
Of course there is something much better than hypnosis for children, prevention is still the top action that you can do. Instead to giving them lectures and getting angry because of wetting the bed, focus more on the success they have done previously for staying dry overnight. Remind them to go or relive themselves in the bathroom before going to bed and also limiting the liquid intake two hours before going to bed.
Benefits of Hypnosis for Children
Hypnosis for children are starting to get attention nowadays since it is giving and showing results in helping children deal with problems, illnesses and other conditions. Hypnosis is getting recognized as a treatment. It is getting attention from pediatricians who are not even using this practice or method
Some benefits of hypnotherapy would include treatment of anxiety, fears and phobias, reducing pain and stress, self confidence building, alleviating depression, addressing loss of weight, putting stop into smoking and even enhance performance whether in athletics or academics.
Hypnosis makes use of the deep relaxation as its element. Deep relaxation enables the mind to be more receptive of changes since the mind opens up during this time. This period of deep relaxation is not a sleeping nor an awake period of time. This is induced by a person skilful in therapy and hypnosis. The mind is awake during this time, unlike what myths say, that the mind during this period is completely unconscious.
Unlike what most people and doubters say that a hypnotized person is unable to control their own actions, children have the command on their own action. Receptivity is important. You cannot hypnotize a person who does not want to be hypnotized.
This is the same for hypnotism for children. Even if the parents like to have the children undergo hypnotherapy, it is important to make sure that the children understand this process and able to get their full attention and cooperation. Although the mind is open during the period of hypnosis, the subconscious would still not accept the suggestion if it conflicts with the person’s values and beliefs.
Since hypnotherapy invokes deep relaxation, it is said to reduce blood pressure, stress, anxiety, and pain. It could even change habits like smoking, alcohol consumption and eating too much.
Hypnosis can even be used in eliminating phobias. It can even help in reducing predetermined nausea and vomiting brought by treatment for cancer or pregnancy. It is important to remember that children or people who have mental illnesses should not undergo hypnotism
Hypnotherapy for children can resolve problems like bedwetting in children or teenagers. It can also reduce nightmares and night terrors. It also addresses fear or phobia of animals or even school. It also helps children who are having difficulties at school and with behavioural problems.
Results showed that children who took hypnotherapy are more confident, they have an increased self-esteem, reduced stress, tension and anxiety. Children are also able to get rid any of their negative emotions which affect their school performance or social interaction.
Being a good parent does not only mean that we should provide the physical and material needs of our children. Giving them emotional and mental support and be able to provide the best possible future to our children is our responsibility.
Hypnotherapy is an alternative medication. And alternative medicine is being used by almost 40 percent of Americans nowadays. Alternative medication can render very successful results, sometimes much better than taking prescribed drugs and medicines.
Hypnotherapy or hypnosis for children is an option which you can try to help your children face their problems. There are people testifying on its phenomenal results, but also there are critics saying that there are not enough evidences showing significant results. But surely, something drug-free, calming and enjoyable is something worthwhile to be used for the children.





