Chapter 4
The Science of Hypnosis
Linda sat looking at her computer screen for a long time. Her heart was already racing. She had just received an e-mail that contained the opportunity of a lifetime; to present to the entire board of directors the project she had been overseeing for the past year. She knew her numbers, her projections had been conservative, and she was over performing. Everything was on track, and she knew the board would be thrilled. They would absolutely roll her program out company-wide now that she had proven her strategy was such a success regionally. There was only one problem. She was now based out of the Chicago office and this year the board’s retreat would be held in their newest offices; not New York, not Los Angeles, not in Miami, not even in London.
Linda’s mouth was already beginning to feel dry, it was difficult to swallow, and her hands were beginning to shake involuntarily.
This year the board retreat would be held in… Hong Kong.
Ever since the tragedy of 9/11, Linda’s fear of flying was debilitating. Whenever possible she would drive to or even take trains to US-based meetings. The few hellish times when she had to travel by plane to London, she knocked herself out with a Xanax and a few too many drinks. She would feel awful for at least two days between the hangover and the jet lag, yet she could muster the trip.
Hong Kong, though? There was just no way. She would have to cancel, or worse yet, let someone unqualified take the credit for her career-defining project. Sure, they would say her name a half-dozen times throughout the presentation, but the glory always goes to the one presenting.
She snapped closed her laptop and grabbed her coat; she needed some fresh air.
Once she was outside, the biting cold of Chicago’s winter winds sliced right through her many layers. Her cheeks turned an immediate three shades brighter and her hands dug down deeper into her pockets. She had moved to Chicago in 2002, when she realized she just wasn’t moving past that horrific day in New York and it wasn’t looking as if she ever would. Linda used to be based in the downtown NYC office, so close to the Twin Towers that she still couldn’t walk on Wall Street without seeing it covered in a film of dust. She had lost so many friends, and her friends had lost so many friends. The pain was unbearable and the memories just wouldn’t fade.
Prior to 2001, Linda still hadn’t loved flying but she didn’t hate it. Her mother had always been pretty nervous on family vacations, taking deep breaths, tightening the seatbelt until she could barely breathe, watching the fly attendants like a hawk as they went through the motions of what to do during an emergency landing. Linda grew up watching her mother fly this way and she just adopted some of the same habits and fears. But once they were in the air, she and her mother would calm down; it was really only during taxi, take-off, and landing that they used to have a rough time.
After 9/11, though, Linda was inconsolable. She already needed more than two hands to count the number of times she walked halfway down the “gangplank” as she would call it, before turning around, running back up toward the airport to tell the agent at the desk still scanning tickets “I just can’t do it; give mine to someone on standby,” and forfeiting hundreds of dollars on a flight she would need to later rebook so as to not lose her job.
She was already on thin ice. Linda had essentially been promoted as many times as someone could be promoted before her job required more travel. She had turned down three growth opportunities within the company, citing her PTSD, and her boss, although sympathetic, was also on edge: during the last quarterly review, in no uncertain terms she had told Linda she couldn’t continue to make more money for doing the same job forever, even though her expertise and deliverables were more and more impressive. Essentially, Linda would either need to learn to be okay with regular international travel, or she would need to move on to another job.
This trip to Hong Kong felt like a test. It would catapult her to new levels within the company, or it would be the kiss of death.
Linda ducked inside a Starbucks to get out of the cold and called her best friend. Over a piping hot latte she filled Mikaela in, finishing with, “I guess this is it. I’ll have to start all over. No one will hire me at this same level unless I’m okay to travel. From here on out, I either need to start over or be okay with going backward.”
Mikaela replied, “The thing I always find so amazing is that it terrifies you to get to the meetings, but once you’re there, you shine. You love public speaking! Whereas I always get so nervous speaking in front of anyone; whether it’s ten people I know or a hundred strangers, I’m equally shaking like a leaf. You know, my HR department is now offering this group hypnotherapy class once a week to overcome fear of public speaking. I haven’t tried it yet but a few colleagues are already swearing by it. I wonder if the same hypnotherapist could help you with your fear of flying.”
Linda was at her wits’ end and was willing to try anything. Mikaela quickly looked up the contact information for the hypnotherapist inside her company’s directory and within thirty minutes Linda had booked her first appointment.
A week later, Linda and Mikaela met for dinner. “So, how did it go with the hypnotherapy? Are you cured?” Mikaela asked.
“Well, I don’t know about ‘cured’ just yet,” Linda said with a smile, “But it was really interesting, actually. The hypnotherapist said that while many fears or phobias can be almost entirely irrational, which actually makes them even easier to overcome, the fear of flying is at least partially legitimate. Even though it is technically much safer to fly than it is to drive in terms of the likelihood of ending up in accident; of course, not all car accidents are fatal and with plane crashes… well, you get the point. So, basically I had to thank my subconscious for trying to keep me safe, to let it know that I appreciated its concern, but ultimately the fear of flying was hurting me a lot more than flying itself ever had. We had to focus on tangible data in my life, essentially that the fear of flying has caused real, true damage in my life, whereas with flying itself I have always arrived perfectly safe and sound wherever I was going. This logic while in hypnosis seemed to create some kind of shift and I really felt it. We then visualized my easily staying calm on the plane and the hypnotherapist made me a recording I can listen to during takeoff and landing. I mean, I guess I won’t know if it really worked until the next time I’m boarding a plane, but I have to say, when I think about flying I’m not having the same racing heart or shaking hands or terrible thoughts. I just feel slightly apprehensive, as I used to when I was younger. I’m going back for a follow-up session next week and the flight to Hong Kong is a week after that, so I’ll have a few more days to decide whether my career is going to sink or swim.” Mikaela lifted her glass and clinked Linda’s: “Here’s hoping hypnosis works.”
A year later, Mikaela and Linda met up at their favorite nail salon for a pedicure. As soon as they settled down in their comfy chairs and the treatment began, Mikaela reached down and pulled a little present out of her purse. She handed the bright little package to Linda, saying, “Congratulations to the most fabulous global manager I’ve ever laid eyes on—I’m so proud of you!”
This story is derived from a real client I had who was truly on the brink of losing her job, only to turn her fear of flying around so thoroughly that within a year she was promoted to global manager. The power of the mind is truly astounding. Did you know that Thomas Edison and Albert Einstein used hypnosis? There are actually many innovators, creative visionaries, and top athletes who use hypnosis to access the theta brain wave state to enhance their performance. James Earl Jones, the voice of Darth Vader, used hypnosis to overcome stuttering, Tiger Woods has used it to improve his golf game, the late Princess Diana used it to overcome her fear of public speaking, Ben Affleck (and too many other celebrities to list) used it to quit smoking, and many Olympic athletes use it to prepare for competition.
Thomas Edison is well known for his “naps,” which were actually a deeply relaxed state between waking consciousness and sleep, where creativity flowed like a child’s. In this state, he was delightfully uninhibited and unencumbered by self-criticism. Edison would put himself into a hypnotic state while holding a metal ball in his hand. If he relaxed deeper than he had intended, moving from theta to delta (sleep), the metal ball would drop into a metal pan beneath his hand, waking him so that he could start again. Accessing this state allowed him to problem-solve on a subconscious level where “ah-ha” moments necessary for breakthroughs often occur.
Scientific and clinical studies at the Mayo Clinic, Yale University, and Stanford University continue to shed scientific light on the efficacy of hypnosis, and in preparation for this book I was lucky enough to work with Dr. Keerthy Sunder and Samantha Franklin of Mind and Body Treatment and Research Institute in Southern California on our own study. You’ll find more info about our study in just a few pages, but let me take a few moments to introduce Dr. Sunder and Samantha, as I will be referencing their insights quite a bit throughout this chapter.
We met a conference in Denver, Colorado, and instantly, Dr. Sunder, Samantha, and I knew that we had shared missions and interests. We stayed in touch, and a few months later, my husband and I had the pleasure of visiting Dr. Sunder and Samantha at their institute in California. We had planned for a two-hour visit but ended up staying for fourteen hours. We learned all about the fascinating use of neurofeedback and TMS (transcranial magnetic stimulation), which are offered at the institute, and I was thrilled to answer all of their questions as they were deeply interested in hypnotherapy and how it could be used as an adjunct tool to help their patients.
We then decided to conduct an informal study specifically for this book (found at the end of this chapter and in the appendix) to measure outcomes of one week of hypnotherapy. One week may seem like a short time, but even one session of hypnosis has often proved to be extraordinarily life-altering. So, while short and sweet, the information garnered from this study is as telling as it is fascinating.
Keerthy Sunder, the medical director and founder of Mind and Body Treatment and Research Institute, has more than twenty years of experience as a medical doctor and holds diplomas from the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, American Board of Addiction Medicine, and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, London. His membership list in the field of mental health and addiction is extensive and includes a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association. He also serves as a board member of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), San Jacinto, and an editorial board member for the Journal of Addiction Therapy and Research, to name a few. He is a Dream Builder member of the Academy of Integrative Health and Medicine (AIHM), a member of the credentialing committee for the American Board of Addiction Medicine, and an accredited menopause practitioner. He speaks internationally, has had numerous professional articles published, and is author of the best-selling Addictions: Face Your Addiction and Save Your Life. His passion is to integrate the mind, body, and soul in medicine. In addition to all of this, he is an incredibly kind, welcoming, and genuine man.
Samantha Franklin is a neuromodulation technologist who is also the practice director for the Mind and Body Treatment and Research Institute. Her background is in biomedical study at the University of California, Riverside, and she is a strong proponent of therapeutic modalities, such as hypnosis, mindfulness meditation, neurofeedback, and TMS. (Samantha is also a world-class musician who played stand-in bass for albums recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London. Whereas my all-girl rock band from yesteryear came to an end after a few short months, Samantha’s played the Warped Tour. We’re two ladies who are equally as passionate about making the world a better place through accessing the subconscious mind as we are about music. It was the bedrock for endless geeking out.)
In short, working with Dr. Sunder and Samantha Franklin has been a dream come true. Often, it’s difficult to ascertain the true impact of hypnotherapy because there are so many variables, as every hypnotherapist uses different words and a different approach in his or her practice, and each has different levels of rapport with clients. Furthermore, all clients come to the session with different expectations, which can significantly impact how they might respond to various suggestions. With that in mind, I set out to conduct my own study for the purposes of this book, and I was lucky enough to have the immense support and knowledge of Dr. Sunder and Samantha.
Although the power of hypnosis has been evidenced in client testimonials and in the fact that the world’s elite have been using this tool for centuries, the science behind it is now finally catching up. Let’s review some of what we now know about this tool, which has been mired in mystery and misunderstanding for far too long, beginning with the findings of our study.
Our Study: The Power of Hypnosis
Over one hundred people started the study, and thirty-five completed it from beginning to end. We used only data from those who completed the study. This shows us that the first hurdle to overcome is showing up for our daily commitments. Hypnosis only works if we actually do it! (To help with this, I’ve created a hypnosis recording to help increase your desire and commitment to actually complete your hypnosis every day. You can find it at www .CloseYourEyesGetFree.com. For more information, see here.)
The study included listening to the same hypnosis recording once per day for seven days in a row and completing a quiz before and after. We measured twenty-one positive emotions and forty negative ones, as well as overall stress levels. We chose these emotions based on words commonly used during therapy sessions and on intake forms. (For the full list, see the Appendix.) The answers were randomized so that every time the quiz was taken, the answers were in a different order.
The biggest increases showed that on average participants were 32 percent happier, 29 percent more content, and 27 percent more satisfied after seven days of listening to the hypnosis recording. Decreases in emotion were even more significant, which is interesting. This suggests that it is faster to let go of a habit than to create one. At the same time, participants felt on average 80 percent less disdain; 80 percent, less furious and disgusted; 58.8 percent, less depressed; and 54.5 percent, less angry, and the feeling of procrastination decreased by 51.5 percent. In addition, although stress levels decreased dramatically immediately following the recording, stress levels were still lower than ever by the end of the week. How much did overall stress levels decrease? By 45.5 percent.
How would you like to be 45.5 percent less stressed out, 32 percent happier, and 51.5 percent less likely to procrastinate in just seven days? Amazing, isn’t it?
For a greater in-depth understanding of our study, please turn to here of the Appendix.
Now that we’ve reviewed the basic findings of our study, let’s dive deeper into the science behind how and why hypnosis works. I asked Dr. Sunder and Samantha to provide us with some answers to help us further understand how hypnosis works within the framework of our complicated mind:
Q: What is the mind?
A: The mind is the home for consciousness. It represents the software that allows for the manifestation of thought, memory, and imagination.
Q: What is the subconscious mind?
A: It is the part of the mind that we cannot access readily but stores our emotions, feelings, and memories. It’s also the receptacle for our imagination, intuition, and spiritual experiences.
Q: What is the brain?
A: The brain is the physical home where the mind resides.
Q: What are brain waves?
A: Brain waves are the building blocks of our consciousness. They facilitate a complex system of communication and operate like a symphony orchestrated by the brain cells or neurons.
Q: How do we measure brain waves?
A: Delicate sensors are applied to the surface of the scalp that capture the electrical activity of the brain waves. The four brain waves of delta, theta, alpha, and beta are characterized by unique bandwidth frequencies and reflect states of consciousness ranging from alertness to deep sleep.
Q: What is the mind-body connection?
A: States of dysregulation have their origins in the disruption of mind/body barriers. The psyche (the human soul, mind, or spirit) and the soma (the body as distinct from the soul, mind, or psyche) are inextricably connected.
Q: What are neurons?
A: Neurons are the foundational building blocks of the nervous system. They are the conduits of electrical and chemical communication.
Q: What does it mean when we say, “Neurons that fire together, wire together”?
A: The brain is an adaptive and plastic organ. When we pay attention to happy thoughts and experiences, the nerve cells fire and wire in the direction of promoting blissful states. The opposite is also true. When we repeatedly pay attention to sad thoughts and feelings, the nerve cells fire and hardwire negative patterns. This phenomenon is also referred to as neuroplasticity.
Q: What is the “reptilian brain”?
A: It’s the oldest part of the evolutionary brain that is responsive to our primal desire to survive by flight or fight. It’s an unregulated response expressed by the part of the brain also called the limbic brain.
Q: Without having formally studied hypnotherapy, but knowing all you do about how the brain functions, what are your thoughts on how hypnotherapy works?
A: Hypnosis is a process that produces this increased awareness of the unconscious mind, heightened sense of suggestibility, and deep relaxation to access the subconscious mind without resistance. This allows for brain wave state shifts to take place to promote wellness and recovery.
Q: In the same way, without having formally studied hypnotherapy, what are your thoughts on why hypnotherapy is so effective?
A: Hypnotherapy does not access willpower but has the amazing ability to utilize the power of imagination and effect a change in reality by accessing the subconscious mind.
Q: What is neurofeedback?
A: Neurofeedback is a noninvasive, nonpharmaceutical brain exercise. We show your brain a reflection of its own activity while you sit back and enjoy a movie or a video game driven by your own brain waves. This allows your brain to recalibrate and self-regulate its own functionality over time. Neurofeedback trains your brain to self-regulate, much like a workout for the mind. This self-regulation helps your brain flex its own muscle using neuroplasticity. Self-regulation training strengthens and enhances the overall function of the central nervous system, thereby ramping up and improving mental performance, emotional control, and physiological stability.
Q: What are your thoughts on other factors impacting the brain?
A: The timeless pursuit of tranquility and inner peace has inspired a remarkably effective heuristic of [examining of] wellness practices. Ancient holistic healing and rejuvenation techniques allow us to broaden the focus from simply treating specific maladies or conditions to embracing patients as whole beings so as to achieve optimal health. A voluminous amount of scientific research currently validates the untapped power and efficacy of holistic patient care. Mindfulness meditation, yoga, acupuncture, hypnotherapy, therapeutic massage, and optimal brain-healthy nutrition are integral to gaining a proper balance in life.
Now that Dr. Sunder and Samantha have provided us with a general understanding of the mind, let’s dive even deeper into the science.
Brain Waves
I think it’s safe to say we all know the brain is infinitely complex. To explain how the brain functions in any detail is quite the undertaking, but there are a few main areas that are helpful to understand before we continue on our hypnotic adventure. Furthermore, in my professional opinion, learning the science behind hypnosis allows the common misconceptions about it to finally be put to rest, and more important, the invaluable efficacy of hypnotherapy to be finally understood in a practical sense.
Let’s start with brain waves. We’ve discussed brain waves a lot already, especially the “theta brain wave state” that you enter into during hypnosis. But what is a brain wave exactly, and how is it measured? Put simply, brain waves are synchronized electrical pulses between neurons that are communicating messages.
Have you ever seen a movie where a patient has sensors placed on his or her scalp, and there are wires from the sensors to machines? Those brain waves are being measured in hertz (cycles per second). In general, brain waves can range from slow and subtle to fast and complex. If your brain waves measure as slow, you may be feeling tired or sluggish. If they measure high, you may be feeling “wired” and alert. Brain waves are a continued stream of consciousness that range in variation depending on what you’re doing or feeling.
There are six brain wave levels: infra-low, delta, theta, alpha, beta, and gamma. When it comes to hypnosis, theta brain waves are the doorway to memory and learning. Vivid imagery, strong intuition, and information from your unconscious become available to you while your mind is in this state. It’s the state we are all in as soon as we wake up in the morning and right before we fall asleep at night. Have you ever awakened and felt as if you were still in your dream and could remember it perfectly? Then, as you woke up even more, did the dream seem to slip away? This is the transition from a theta brain wave state up through alpha and into the waking state of beta. Hypnosis takes place anywhere from light alpha to deep delta. However, it’s most associated with the theta brain wave range, which is a wonderfully deep meditative state that allows our mind to uncover stored memories. Our problem-solving abilities increase, as does our overall creativity. In the theta brain wave state, we tend to feel safe and relaxed, which also allows us to become highly suggestible to suggestions that are in line with our personal goals for transformation.
In general, if your perception changes, then your brain waves change. Medication and recreational drugs alter brain waves. Meditation and yoga, along with neurofeedback, transcranial magnetic stimulation (see here for more on this), and, of course, hypnotherapy can train brain waves to be calm and peaceful. The more we practice these modalities, the more balanced the mind becomes.
Neurons
Early on in my private practice, I began using visualizations with my clients. After Alexandre’s initial success with this technique, I would have them imagine their brain like an aerial photo of a city at night, thinking of certain parts of the brain as having a blackout, meaning they were completely dark with no sign of life or electricity. They would describe the parts of their brain that were hustling and bustling with bright lights and tons of electricity, and they would describe what each area of the brain represented to them. Once they identified the area that was their issue, we would rework the system. If the anxiety part of their brain was extremely bright and overworking, and it looked like a system-overload, we would turn off some of those lights until it calmed down. This freed-up additional energy to work on another area. For example, if there was a lack of motivation, we would add electricity to the motivation part of the brain, turning on the lights there. This worked extremely well. When I spoke with Dr. Keerthy about the phenomenon, he said it’s likely that the neurons were being mentally redirected in the brain.
Neurons are equally as important to understand as brain waves, as both are cornerstones of how hypnosis functions in our mind. Our brain is basically a mass of interconnected neurons, constantly communicating with one another. More specifically, “cells within the nervous system, called neurons, communicate with each other in unique ways. The neuron is the basic working unit of the brain, a specialized cell designed to transmit information to other nerve cells, muscle or gland cells.”1
There are now conflicting reports on how many neurons are in the human brain; however, for some time, most neuroscientists have estimated that there are approximately 100 billion neurons in the brain. 100 billion! Neurons send and receive messages via an electrical impulse that can be measured as our brain waves. The neurons and brain waves work together to create memories, influence how we feel, and influence what we think about.
To help explain how this works within the context of hypnotherapy, I’ll use the analogy of a highway. Every time you think a thought, feel an emotion, or take an action, it is as if a little dirt path is being carved out in your mind (a neural pathway). Over time, through repetition, that the dirt path becomes a little two-lane road; the more you repeat those thoughts, emotions, and actions, the faster that little road becomes paved; and over the years, that little dirt path can turn into a sixteen-lane highway in the brain—with countless entry ramps. For example, if nail-biting started off as a little dirt path and happened only because of one little trigger, let’s say when you actually had a broken nail, but over the years you started biting your nails for countless reasons—boredom, stress, frustration, anger, and most insidious of all, habit—those become countless new entry ramps that have been built to this now sixteen-lane highway in the brain. Hypnotherapy allows us to put up orange traffic cones in front of that old highway, blocking access to it, but it only lasts if we quickly build another dirt path, a different option to cope with stress, frustration, and so on. Every hypnosis session strengthens and deepens that path so that before you know it, you have a new sixteen-lane highway in the brain, one that you created for yourself rather than one that was built by default.
The Tortoise, the Dolphin, and the Hare
One of the most interesting things I learned while working with Dr. Sunder and Samantha was that they never treat their patients for things like improving peak performance until such issues as depression and anxiety have been cleared up. I realized that without having made a conscious decision, my own sessions had always been structured the same way. Until trauma and pervasive negativity are healed, it’s nearly impossible to see a breakthrough in something like attracting love into one’s life.
We have three primary sections of the brain. One is ancient, primitive, and keeps us alive. The second is in charge of our emotions, and the third is the most sophisticated and the most recent. They are the reptilian brain, the limbic brain, and the neocortex brain, respectively. Because I remember all things that have to do with animals, I refer to them in my mind as the Tortoise, the Dolphin, and the Hare. Essentially, we have to first work on improving the ancient tortoise before we can work with the emotional dolphin, and finally, we can catch up with the rapidly moving hare.
These three parts of the brain have evolved over millions of years and are known as today’s brain, which, by the way, is still evolving. Take a look at this chart from thebrain.mcgill.ca:
These three parts of the brain do not operate independently of one another. They have established numerous interconnections through which they influence one another. The neural pathways from the limbic system to the cortex, for example, are especially well developed.”4
Here’s an interesting exercise: Write down all of the areas of your life that you would like to improve. Then, put them into a category based on which brain they’re associated with. You’ll have a blueprint for exactly the areas you want to work on first, second, and third as you move from the most primitive part of the brain, through the emotional brain, and finally into the “peak performance” brain.
Reptilian—work on these first: instincts
Limbic—work on these second: anger
Neocortex—work on these areas last: make smarter decisions
Reptilian—work on these first: breathing
Limbic—work on these second: sadness
Neocortex—work on these areas last: more focus/less distraction
Reptilian—work on these first: digestion
Limbic—work on these second: disappointment
Neocortex—work on these areas last: plan for future success
Reptilian—work on these first: circulation
Limbic—work on these second: fear
Neocortex—work on these areas last: strengthen willpower
Reptilian—work on these first: elimination
Limbic—work on these second: anxiety
Neocortex—work on these areas last: learn a new language
Reptilian—work on these first: temperature
Reptilian—work on these first: fight
Reptilian—work on these first: flight
Reptilian—work on these first: movement
Reptilian—work on these first: posture
Reptilian: Stress relief*
Limbic: Stress relief*
Neocortex: Increase self-worth
Reptilian: Overcome anxiety*
Limbic: Overcome anxiety*
Neocortex: Stop negative thinking and complaints
Reptilian: Overcome fear of flying
Limbic: Overcome depression
Neocortex: Breakthrough procrastination
Limbic: Increasing comfort/decrease pain
Neocortex: Weight loss/stop overeating
Limbic: Stop nail-biting
Neocortex: Quit smoking
Limbic: Develop gratitude
Neocortex: Increase self-confidence
Limbic: Increase self-love
Neocortex: Anger management
Limbic: Overcome insomnia
Neocortex: Improve relationships
Limbic: Increase patience and kindness
Neocortex: Learn a new language
Neocortex: Increase motivation
What Does the Medical Community Have to Say About Hypnosis?
Some of my all-time favorite studies about hypnosis include the following takeaways:
• A study by Alfred A. Barrios, PhD, conducted in Los Angeles in 1970 and first printed in Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice, compared recovery rates for various modalities of therapy and found the following:
• 600 sessions of psychoanalysis have an average recovery rate of 38%.
• 22 sessions of behavioral therapy have an average recovery rate of 72%.
• 6 sessions of hypnotherapy have an average recovery rate of 93%.5
• 6 sessions resulting in 93% improvement!
Can you believe this information has been known for over 46 years and still hypnosis has yet to be covered by insurance companies?
• The effect of psychosocial intervention on time of survival of 86 patients with metastatic breast cancer was studied prospectively. The 1-year intervention consisted of weekly supportive group therapy with self-hypnosis for pain. Women with metastatic breast cancer who received group hypnosis therapy were able to reduce their pain experience by 50% compared to a control group.6 At a 10-year follow-up of these same women, the hypnosis treatment group had double the survival rate of the control group.7
• Studies from Harvard Medical School show that hypnosis significantly reduces the time it takes to heal. Six weeks after an ankle fracture, those in the hypnosis group showed the equivalent of 8½ weeks of healing.8
• Out of 1,000 irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) patients treated with 12 sessions of hypnotherapy, 76% of the patients improved from the treatment. Success rates were higher for females than males (80% vs. 62%) and slightly higher in patients with anxiety (79% vs. 71%). In addition to bowel symptom improvement, nongastrointestinal symptoms also improved significantly on average after treatment, and hypnotherapy also improved the quality of life scores.9
Throughout this book we will discuss many ways in which hypnosis can be used to make us feel better—for example, to expedite the healing of bones, to treat IBS, or to calm nausea during chemotherapy treatments—as well as other ways in which it can expedite healing. For this chapter’s self-hypnosis process I have included a script that will help bring ease and comfort to any area of your body that is experiencing pain or discomfort. This is not meant to be used in lieu of anesthesia during a surgery, as that requires extensive conditioning and an on-site certified hypnotherapist; however, for general aches, pains, and headaches, this process will be a wonderful remedy.
Self-Hypnosis Process: Increasing Comfort/Decreasing Pain
I suggest reading through the following directions two or three times before beginning so that you will be able to follow along easily. Remember, there are video tutorials and audio recordings available to you at www.CloseYourEyesGetFree.com that will help you to become a self-hypnosis pro in no time at all.
• Begin by making note of your starting stress level. 10 = a full-blown panic attack and 0 = zero stress, no stress at all, the most relaxed a person can possibly be. Remember this number.
• Sit in a comfortable chair and place your feet flat on the ground, rest your hands gently in your lap.
• With your spine straight but comfortable, take 4 deep, slow breaths, inhaling through the nose for 4 counts and exhaling out the nose for 8 counts.
• Close your eyes and imagine gentle roots growing from the bottom of your feet down into the center of the Earth, grounding you.
• Imagine a color you love flowing in through the top of your head, all the way through your body, out the bottoms of your feet and down those roots, down into the center of the Earth.
• Bring all of your focus and awareness and attention to the palms of your hands. Perhaps you can feel your palms tingling, perhaps you can feel your heartbeat in your hands, perhaps you notice a sensation of expansion in your hands. Just notice and breathe for a few moments (you can choose whatever length of time feels best, about 30 seconds is my personal favorite).
• With your eyes closed, count down from 10 to 1, saying “I am going deeper and deeper” after each number: Ten, I am going deeper and deeper. Nine, I am going deeper and deeper. Eight, I am going deeper and deeper. Seven, I am going deeper and deeper. Six, I am going deeper and deeper. Five, I am going deeper and deeper. Four, I am going deeper and deeper. Three, I am going deeper and deeper. Two, I am going deeper and deeper. One, I am going deeper and deeper…
• With your eyes closed, repeat the following hypno-affirmations silently in your mind or out loud, 10 times: I send my 
[body part] love and relaxation. I feel myself improving. I am safe.
• Take another nice, deep, letting-go breath and with your eyes closed imagine all of the pain draining away from that part of the body. Pretend that loving, calm, healing energy is now soothing that part of your body. See, feel, and experience comfortable relief all over.
• Once you’ve spent 1–2 minutes imagining that part of your body healing and becoming comfortable, imagine the same color as before flowing in through the top of your head, all the way through your body, out the bottoms of your feet, and down those roots into the center of the Earth.
• Put a gentle smile on your lips, open your eyes, stretch your arms over the top of your head, and say, “Yes!”
• Notice your new number on the scale (remember 0 = zero stress, the most relaxed you can be) and congratulate yourself on how quickly you improved your state!
Here is a simple summary for the process in case you need to peek your eyes open at any point for a quick reminder:
• Notice starting stress level from 0 to 10.
• Take 4 deep, slow breaths.
• Grow roots.
• Color.
• Notice your palms.
• Count down from 10 to 1 saying, “I am going deeper and deeper” after each number.
• Repeat the hypno-affirmations, “I send my [body part] love and relaxation. I feel myself improving. I am safe” 10 times.
• Imagine healing that part of your body.
• Color.
• Smile while opening your eyes and say “Yes!”
• Notice new number on the scale of 0 to 10.
• Congratulate yourself for improving your state so quickly!
In this slightly more advanced self-hypnosis script, we’ve added one new component, a color we love flowing through our body.
Why do we imagine a color we love flowing in through the top of our head, all the way through our body?
Oftentimes, when we love a color, it is prominently featured throughout our wardrobe, on the walls of our home, in trinkets throughout our office, even in the jewelry and artwork that we buy. By continually running the color we love through our body, it not only calms us, it also conditions us to subconsciously feel calm every time we see that color throughout our day. You can change the color every time you practice this self-hypnosis process, or you can use the same color each time. Any color or shade will work and I tend to find that blue is the most widely used.
Next Steps
Excellent! You have completed the Increase Comfort/Decrease Pain self-hypnosis process!
• Now, go ahead and visit www.CloseYourEyesGetFree .com to access this chapter’s hypnosis recording. Pop in your headphones, sit back, relax, and Close Your Eyes, Get Free.
• After you listen to the recording, please let me know how it went! Using the hashtag #CloseYourEyesGetFree on Instagram or Twitter, message me @GraceSmithTV your starting and ending numbers on the stress scale. I’d also love to know which body part you are healing and how much comfort you were able to achieve. By using the hashtag, you’ll get to see how other readers are improving right alongside you, plus I will have an opportunity to cheer you on!
• Move on to Chapter 5, and in the meantime, look out for all of the wonderful benefits you’re already starting to receive as a result of learning the power of hypnosis.
* Stress relief and overcome anxiety are found in both the reptilian and limbic areas of the brain.