Medical Hypnosis Works for Arthritus Pain Relief

Arthritus hypnosis works!  The Arthritus Foundation notes  that about 75% of people with chronic conditions like rheumatoid arthritis (RA) or osteoarthritis (OA) can achieve a significant reduction in their experience of pain through hypnosis. Pain is an interpretation of your body’s neuron signals. You can use simple mind tools to get easy, quick relief to adjust the interpretation.

Furthermore, hypnosis is also beneficial for relieving the stress, insomnia, and anxiety that accompany the arthritus pain. In just a few sessions you can learn to use self-hypnosis to turn off you pain whenever it arises.

Medical Studies of Hypnosis for Chronic Pain

Thirteen studies, excluding studies of headaches, were identified that compared outcomes from hypnosis for the treatment of chronic pain to either baseline data or a control condition. The findings indicate that hypnosis interventions consistently produce significant decreases in pain associated with a variety of chronic-pain problems. Also, hypnosis was generally found to be more effective than non-hypnotic interventions such as attention, physical therapy, and education. Most of the hypnosis interventions for chronic pain include instructions in self-hypnosis. (“Hypnotherapy for the Management of Chronic Pain,” Gary Elkins, Mark P. Jensen, and David R. Patterson, Int J Clin Exp Hypn. 2007 Jul; 55(3): 275–287).

Medical Study of Hypnosis for Arthritus Pain

Thirty-six patients with osteoarthritis pain were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: hypnosis, relaxation training, and a no-treatment/standard-care control condition. The hypnosis intervention consisted of eight weekly sessions that began with a standard relaxation induction followed by suggestions for positive imagery, as well as a memory from childhood that involved joint mobility. The subjects in the standard-care control condition were administered the outcome measures and were offered treatment after their last follow-up assessment. Patients in the hypnosis treatment showed a substantial and significant decrease in pain intensity after 4 weeks of treatment, which was maintained through 3 months and 6 months of follow-up. (“Differential effectiveness of psychological interventions for reducing osteoarthritis pain: a comparison of Erikson hypnosis and Jacobson relaxation.” Gay MC, Philippot P, Luminet O, Eur J Pain. 2002; 6(1):1-16).

Pain-relieving hypnosis sessions can be delivered in person, via phone, or via interactive video. in all cases, the ultimate objective is to master self-hypnosis for self- administration of pain relief whenever needed.