Hypnotherapy Statistics

Here is a brief review of some of the research evidence on the effectiveness of hypnosis:

90.6% Success Rate for Smoking Cessation Using Hypnosis
Of 43 consecutive patients undergoing this treatment protocol, 39 reported remaining abstinent from tobacco use at follow-up (6 months to 3 years post-treatment). This represents a 90.6% success rate using hypnosis.

University of Washington School of Medicine, Depts. of Anesthesiology and Rehabilitation Medicine, Int J Clin Exp Hypn. 2001 Jul;49(3):257-66. Barber J.

87% Reported Abstinence From Tobacco Use With Hypnosis
A field study of 93 male and 93 female CMHC outpatients examined the facilitation of smoking cessation by using hypnosis. At 3-month follow-up, 86% of the men and 87% of the women reported continued abstinence from the use of tobacco using hypnosis.

Performance by gender in a stop-smoking program combining hypnosis and aversion. Johnson DL, Karkut RT. Adkar Associates, Inc., Bloomington, Indiana. Psychol Rep. 1994 Oct;75(2):851-7. PMID: 7862796 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

81% Reported They Had Stopped Smoking After Hypnosis
Thirty smokers enrolled in an HMO were referred by their primary physician for treatment. Twenty-one patients returned after an initial consultation and received hypnosis for smoking cessation. At the end of treatment, 81% of those patients reported that they had stopped smoking, and 48% reported abstinence at 12 months post-treatment.

Texas A&M University, System Health Science Center, College of Medicine, College Station, TX USA. Int J Clin Exp Hypn. 2004 Jan;52(1):73-81. Clinical hypnosis for smoking cessation: preliminary results of a three-session intervention. Elkins GR, Rajab MH.

Hypnosis Patients Twice As Likely To Remain Smoke-Free After Two Years
Study of 71 smokers showed that after a two-year follow up, patients that quit with hypnosis were twice as likely to remain smoke-free than those who quit on their own.

Guided health imagery for smoking cessation and long-term abstinence. Wynd, CA. Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 2005; 37:3, pages 245-250.

Hypnosis More Effective Than Drug Interventions For Smoking Cessation
Group hypnosis sessions, evaluated at a less effective success rate (22% success) than individualized hypnosis sessions. However, group hypnosis sessions were still demonstrated here as being more effective than drug interventions.

Ohio State University, College of Nursing, Columbus, OH 43210, USA Descriptive outcomes of the American Lung Association of Ohio hypnotherapy smoking cessation program. Ahijevych K, Yerardi R, Nedilsky N.

Hypnosis Most Effective Says Largest Study Ever: 3 Times as Effective as Patch and 15 Times as Effective as Willpower.
Hypnosis is the most effective way of giving up smoking, according to the largest ever scientific comparison of ways of breaking the habit. A meta-analysis, statistically combining results of more than 600 studies of 72,000 people from America and Europe to compare various methods of quitting. On average, hypnosis was over three times as effective as nicotine replacement methods and 15 times as effective as trying to quit alone.

University of Iowa, Journal of Applied Psychology, How One in Five Give Up Smoking. October 1992.(Also New Scientist, October 10, 1992.)

Hypnosis Over 30 Times as Effective for Weight Loss
Investigated the effects of hypnosis in weight loss for 60 females, at least 20% overweight. Treatment included group hypnosis with metaphors for ego-strengthening, decision making and motivation, ideomotor exploration in individual hypnosis, and group hypnosis with maintenance suggestions. Hypnosis was more effective than a control group: an average of 17 lbs lost by the hypnosis group vs. an average of 0.5 lbs lost by the control group, on follow-up.

Cochrane, Gordon; Friesen, J. (1986). Hypnotherapy in weight loss treatment.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 54, 489-492.

Two Years Later: Hypnosis Subjects Continued To Lose Significant Weight
109 people completed a behavioral treatment for weight management either with or without the addition of hypnosis. At the end of the 9-week program, both interventions resulted in significant weight reduction. At 8-month and 2-year follow-ups, the hypnosis subjects were found to have continued to lose significant weight, while those in the behavioral-treatment-only group showed little further change.

Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology (1985)

Hypnosis Subjects Lost More Weight Than 90% of Others and Kept it Off
Researchers analyzed 18 studies comparing a cognitive behavioral therapy such as relaxation training, guided imagery, self monitoring, or goal setting with the same therapy supplemented by hypnosis.
Those who received the hypnosis lost more weight than 90 percent of those not receiving hypnosis and maintained the weight loss two years after treatment ended.

University of Connecticut, Storrs Allison DB, Faith MS. Hypnosis as an adjunct to cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy for obesity: a meta-analytic reappraisal. J Consult Clin Psychol. 1996;64(3):513-516.

Hypnosis More Than Doubled Average Weight Loss
Study of the effect of adding hypnosis to cognitive-behavioral treatments for weight reduction, additional data were obtained from authors of two studies. Analyses indicated that the benefits of hypnosis increased substantially over time.

Kirsch, Irving (1996). Hypnotic enhancement of cognitive-behavioral weight loss treatments–Another meta-reanalysis. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 64 (3), 517-519.

Hypnosis Showed Significantly Lower Post-Treatment Weights
Two studies compared overweight smoking and non-smoking adult women in an hypnosis-based, weight-loss program. Both achieved significant weight losses and decreases in Body Mass Index. Follow-up study replicated significant weight losses and declines in Body Mass Index. The overt aversion and hypnosis program yielded significantly lower post-treatment weights and a greater average number of pounds lost.
Weight loss for women: studies of smokers and nonsmokers using hypnosis and multi-component treatments with and without overt aversion. Johnson DL, Psychology Reprints. 1997 Jun;80(3 Pt 1):931-3.
Hypnotherapy group with stress reduction achieved significantly more weight loss than the other two treatments.
Randomised, controlled, parallel study of two forms of hypnotherapy (directed at stress reduction or energy intake reduction), vsdietary advice alone in 60 obese patients with obstructive sleep apnoea on nasal continuous positive airway pressure treatment.

J Stradling, D Roberts, A Wilson and F Lovelock, Chest Unit, Churchill Hospital, Oxford, OX3 7LJ, UK

Hypnosis can more than double the effects of traditional weight loss approaches
An analysis of five weight loss studies reported in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology in 1996 showed that the “… weight loss reported in the five studies indicates that hypnosis can more than double the effects” of traditional weight loss approaches.

University of Connecticut, Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology in 1996 (Vol. 64, No. 3, pgs 517-519).

Weight loss is greater where hypnosis is utilized
Research into cognitive-behavioral weight loss treatments established that weight loss is greater where hypnosis is utilized. It was also established that the benefits of hypnosis increase over time.

Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology (1996)

Showed Hypnosis As “An Effective Way To Lose Weight”
A study of 60 females who were at least 20% overweight and not involved in other treatment showed hypnosis is an effective way to lose weight.

Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology (1986)

Hypnosis Reduces Frequency and Intensity of Migraines
Compared the treatment of migraine by hypnosis and autohypnosis with the treatment of migraine by the drug prochlorperazine (Stemetil). Results show that the number of attacks and the number of people who suffered blinding attacks were significantly lower for the group receiving hypnotherapy than for the group receiving prochlorperazine. For the group on hypnotherapy, these two measures were significantly lower when on hypnotherapy than when on the previous treatment. It is concluded that further trials of hypnotherapy are justified against some other treatment not solely associated with the ingestion of tablets.

Anderson JA, Basker MA, Dalton R, Migraine and hypnotherapy, International Journal of Clinical & Experimental Hypnosis 1975; 23(1): 48-58.

Hypnosis Reduces Pain and Speeds up Recovery from Surgery
Since 1992, we have used hypnosis routinely in more than 1400 patients undergoing surgery. We found that hypnosis used with patients as an adjunct to conscious sedation and local anesthesia was associated with improved intraoperative patient comfort, and with reduced anxiety, pain, intraoperative requirements for anxiolytic and analgesic drugs, optimal surgical conditions and a faster recovery of the patient. We reported our clinical experience and our fundamental research.

[Hypnosis and its application in surgery] Faymonville ME, Defechereux T, Joris J, Adant JP, Hamoir E, Meurisse M, Service d’Anesthesie-Reanimation, Universite de Liege, Rev Med Liege. 1998 Jul;53(7):414-8.

Hypnosis Reduces Pain Intensity
Analysis of the simple-simple main effects, holding both group and condition constant, revealed that application of hypnotic analgesia reduced report of pain intensity significantly more than report of pain unpleasantness.

Dahlgren LA, Kurtz RM, Strube MJ, Malone MD, Differential effects of hypnotic suggestion on multiple dimensions of pain.Journal of Pain & Symptom Management. 1995; 10(6): 464-70.

Hypnosis Reduces Pain of Headaches and Anxiety
The improvement was confirmed by the subjective evaluation data gathered with the use of a questionnaire and by a significant reduction in anxiety scores.

Melis PM, Rooimans W, Spierings EL, Hoogduin CA, Treatment of chronic tension-type headache with hypnotherapy: a single-blind time controlled study.Headache 1991; 31(10): 686-9.

Hypnosis Lowered Post-treatment Pain in Burn Injuries
Patients in the hypnosis group reported less post treatment pain than did patients in the control group. The findings are used to replicate earlier studies of burn pain hypnoanalgesia, explain discrepancies in the literature, and highlight the potential importance of motivation with this population.

Patterson DR, Ptacek JT, Baseline pain as a moderator of hypnotic analgesia for burn injury treatment. Journal of Consulting & Clinical Psychology 1997; 65(1): 60-7.

Hypnosis Lowered Phantom Limb Pain
Hypnotic procedures appear to be a useful adjunct to established strategies for the treatment of phantom limb pain and would repay further, more systematic, investigation. Suggestions are provided as to the factors which should be considered for a more systematic research program.

Treatment of phantom limb pain using hypnotic imagery. Oakley DA, Whitman LG, Halligan PW, Department of Psychology, University College, London, UK.

Hypnosis Has a Reliable and Significant Impact on Acute and Chronic Pain
Hypnosis has been demonstrated to reduce analogue pain, and studies on the mechanisms of laboratory pain reduction have provided useful applications to clinical populations. Studies showing central nervous system activity during hypnotic procedures offer preliminary information concerning possible physiological mechanisms of hypnotic analgesia. Randomized controlled studies with clinical populations indicate that hypnosis has a reliable and significant impact on acute procedural pain and chronic pain conditions. Methodological issues of this body of research are discussed, as are methods to better integrate hypnosis into comprehensive pain treatment.

Hypnosis and clinical pain. Patterson DR, Jensen MP, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA USA 98104 Psychol Bull. 2003 Jul;129(4):495-521.

Hypnosis is a Powerful Tool in Pain Therapy and is Biological in Addiction to Psychological
Attempting to elucidate cerebral mechanisms behind hypnotic analgesia, we measured regional cerebral blood flow with positron emission tomography in patients with fibromyalgia, during hypnotically-induced analgesia and resting wakefulness. The patients experienced less pain during hypnosis than at rest. The cerebral blood-flow was bilaterally increased in the orbitofrontal and subcallosial cingulate cortices, the right thalamus, and the left inferior parietal cortex, and was decreased bilaterally in the cingulate cortex. The observed blood-flow pattern supports notions of a multifactorial nature of hypnotic analgesia, with an interplay between cortical and subcortical brain dynamics. Copyright 1999 European Federation of Chapters of the International Association for the Study of Pain.

Functional anatomy of hypnotic analgesia: a PET study of patients with fibromyalgia. Wik G, Fischer H, Bragee B, Finer B, Fredrikson M, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Karolinska Institute and Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden Eur J Pain. 1999 Mar;3(1):7-12.

Hypnosis Useful in Hospital Emergency Rooms
Hypnosis can be a useful adjunct in the emergency department setting. Its efficacy in various clinical applications has been replicated in controlled studies. Application to burns, pain, pediatric procedures, surgery, psychiatric presentations (e.g., coma, somatoform disorder, anxiety, and post traumatic stress), and obstetric situations (e.g., hyperemesis, labor, and delivery) are described.

Emerg Med Clin North Am. 2000 May;18(2):327-38, x. The use of hypnosis in emergency medicine. Peebles-Kleiger MJ, Menninger School of Psychiatry and Mental Health Sciences, Menninger Clinic, Topeka, KS, USA. peeblemj@menninger.edu

Significantly More Methadone Addicts Quit with Hypnosis. 94% Remained Narcotic Free
Significant differences were found on all measures. The experimental group had significantly less discomfort and illicit drug use, and a significantly greater amount of cessation. At six month follow up, 94% of the subjects in the experimental group who had achieved cessation remained narcotic free.

A comparative study of hypnotherapy and psychotherapy in the treatment of methadone addicts. Manganiello AJ, American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis, 1984; 26(4): 273-9.

Hypnosis Shows 77 Percent Success Rate for Drug Addiction
Treatment has been used with 18 clients over the last 7 years and has shown a 77 percent success rate for at least a 1-year follow-up. 15 were being seen for alcoholism or alcohol abuse, 2 clients were being seen for cocaine addiction, and 1 client had a marijuana addiction

Intensive Therapy: Utilizing Hypnosis in the Treatment of Substance Abuse Disorders. Potter, Greg, American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis, Jul 2004.

Raised Self-esteem & Serenity. Lowered Impulsivity and Anger
In a research study on self-hypnosis for relapse prevention training with chronic drug/alcohol users. Participants were 261 veterans admitted to Substance Abuse Residential Rehabilitation Treatment Programs (SARRTPs). individuals who used repeated self-hypnosis “at least 3 to 5 times a week,” at 7-week follow-up, reported the highest levels of self-esteem and serenity, and the least anger/impulsivity, in comparison to the minimal-practice and control groups.

American Journal of Clinical Hypnotherapy (a publication of the American Psychological Association) 2004 Apr;46(4):281-97)

Hypnosis For Cocaine Addiction Documented Case Study
Hypnosis was successfully used to overcome a $500 (five grams) per day cocaine addiction. The subject was a female in her twenties. After approximately 8 months of addiction, she decided to use hypnosis in an attempt to overcome the addiction itself. Over the next 4 months, she used hypnosis three times a day and at the end of this period, her addiction was broken, and she has been drug free for the past 9 years. Hypnosis was the only intervention, and no support network of any kind was available.

The use of hypnosis in cocaine addiction. Page RA, Handley GW, Ohio State University, Lima, OH USA 45804. American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis, 1993 Oct;36(2):120-3.

Healed 41% faster from fracture
Healed significantly faster from surgery
Two studies from Harvard Medical School show hypnosis significantly reduces the time it takes to heal.
Study One: Six weeks after an ankle fracture, those in the hypnosis group showed the equivalent of eight and a half weeks of healing.
Study Two: Three groups of people studied after breast reduction surgery. Hypnosis group healed “significantly faster” than supportive attention group and control group.

Harvard Medical School, Carol Ginandes and Union Institute in Cincinnati, Patricia Brooks, Harvard University Gazette Online at 

http://www.hno.harvard.edu/gazette/2003/05.08/01hypnosis.html.

By Richard Nongard

http://www.hypnotherapyboard.org/research-statistics-on-the-effectiveness-of-hypnosis-with-citations/

http://www.hypnotherapyboard.org/

Hypnosis Myths...Solved!

One of the major problems that faces Hypnotherapy as a profession is the stigma attached to it's name. Hypnosis in the past has been associated with mind control; making people do things they are unconsciously aware of and have no control over. There are various novels where the villain is portrayed as a hypnotist maniac who leaves a trail of crime conducted using his super-human ability to control people against their will. Often in my daily practice I come across people who have completely incorrect ideas in their head about hypnosis, some expecting a pocket watch to be swing across their eyes before they fall asleep in the same instant. So this article is about dispelling at least some of the myths that surround hypnosis... let me know if I have missed any!!

1. Hypnosis is a natural state of mind. It is not an unnatural or sacrilegious phenomena. Animals go into trance naturally in the wild to protect themselves against predators (a fear trigger) (click here for more) while we as humans day dream on a regular basis...that is the mind slipping into trance state. Have you ever been driving your car and lost 5 minutes on a regular route, maybe pulling into your street forgetting the journey? That is just the subconscious taking control. 
2. Hypnosis is not the same as sleep. Some people do fall asleep during hypnosis because it is so relaxing, but generally speaking people in hypnosis are not asleep but instead awake and conscious the whole time only in an altered state of mind. Brainwave testing has showed this to be true, and highlights the different 'depths' of hypnotherapy that bridges the gap between waking state and deep sleep. 
3. Hypnosis cannot be used to control you against your will. Despite the stories even the world's greatest hypnotherapist could not induce you into trance state without your mental consent. If you refused to comply with him there would be no hypnotic effect, a hypnotist has no 'special powers' above anyone else. Legally any hypnotherapist would require your consent anyway before proceeding with their work. Hypnotherapists do their job by facilitating the natural process of hypnosis in their client, not creating it. However, there is an argument that TV commercials control our buying attitudes without our say so...so if you are worried about that it might be best to keep your TV switched off!
4. You will not experience complete amnesia during hypnosis. You may not remember certain aspects of the hypnosis experience but amnesia on the whole is quite rare. Distorted time experience is common though; perhaps you will think the session lasted 30 minutes when indeed it was 1 hour. Post-hypnotic amnesia is something that can be suggested during a session, where a client would then not remember the certain aspects suggested afterwards, but it would be nothing like complete amnesia and the effects would be minimal. Usually this technique is employed to keep various pieces of information in the subconscious mind so they will not be consciously considered and pulled apart, which can help in changing long held negative attitudes. 
5. Hypnosis cannot make you remember every last detail of your life in crystal clear vision. I have watched many Sci-Fi TV shows and films where a character is taken back into their past memories as though they were relieving them exactly as they happened, most recently in the crime drama Fringe. Hypnosis can boost memory and has been used in criminal cases successfully to bring about clues that were otherwise forgotten, such as what colour the car was that drove past or a more detailed description of what an intruder looked like, but hypnosis cannot take anyone back in time to relive things over again - the memory is subjective and therefore not a true reflection of reality anyway. Although it does make for a good story!
6. A Hypnotherapist will not make you 'cluck like a chicken'. Unless you want to of course... stage hypnotists are one of the big reasons why people are unsure of hypnotherapy. Hypnotherapy uses the relaxing state of mind of hypnosis to open the subconscious mind and improve its way of thinking about things for example stopping a bad habit, while stage hypnotists uses the state of hypnosis to give highly extroverted people the chance to become centre stage! The audience effect can make hypnosis stronger but you can rest assured if a person really did not want to do that Elvis impression they would not do it.
7. During hypnosis you will not give away personal secrets or reveal embarrassing stories about yourself. Similar to what is written above, you can't be made to say anything that you do not agree with. If there are things you are guarded about and want to keep strictly personal then hypnosis will not affect that attitude. You will always remain in control of your actions and decisions.
8. Hypnosis can work on any regularly functioning adult. I've heard many times the phrase 'hypnosis does not work on everyone so I doubt it will work on me'. It is true that some people are more receptive to hypnosis and naturally go deeper faster than others but that is not to say hypnosis cannot be used on just about anyone. Very young children do not have the attention span or focus to become hypnotised, while mentally impaired persons often have the same problem and generally are not treated. In the opposite way people with a strong focus and a creative imagination find the hypnotic state easier to reach.
9. Hypnosis is not dangerous. If you have a session with a certified hypnotherapist the chances of dangers are very remote. Someone practising hypnosis without training could possibly cause problems for their client but they would still need to have learnt the art of hypnosis induction. But apart from a poorly trained or maverick hypnotherapist, hypnosis is a natural state of mind that feels relaxing both during and afterwards and has many benefits similar to meditation, decreased stress being a main one. There are no known side effects of hypnosis, it is perhaps the individual administering it that could be the dangerous one like in many therapeutic profession. Massage isn't dangerous until you experience giant clumsy Jim who damages you back because he does not know what he is doing.
10. You cannot get stuck in hypnosis. Another Hollywood style myth. If you were placed into hypnosis then left alone, depending how comfortable you were in the state you would come around in your own time just like waking up from sleep, even in the deepest form of hypnosis named 'somnambulism' this would be the case. The body also has a great warning system, so if there was any danger around you such as a fire you would be quick to snap out of hypnosis.  
11. You wont become dependant on hypnosis or the hypnotherapist. Typically hypnotherapy solves a problem in a handful of sessions and the client goes away never to return, unless they have another problem they want resolved or have a recurrence for any reason years later. Hypnotherapy is a  very rapid therapy compared to something like psychotherapy where the client would have scheduled meetings for sometimes years. Self-hypnosis is something that people often take up after having a treatment because of its relaxing, stress relieving properties rather than a dependency of any kind.
12. Hypnotherapy is not a 'new age' concept. Hypnotherapy has existed since before the written record. In ancient Egypt and Greece 'sleep temples' existed where patients would be placed into deep trance in order to heal mental and physical conditions. Hypnotherapy has come in and out of fashion over the centuries but it has stood the test of time because of its success. Read more about the history of hypnosis here. 
13. Hypnosis will not give you special powers! Hypnosis can be used to enhance physical performance through focus, motivation and confidence etc, but in no way can it make you stronger, faster or more intelligent. Hypnosis can make you train and perform better, study harder and longer with more concentration to make grades/work results improve - but it does not alter your genetics or your innate abilities. 
14. And last but not least... the chances are you will NOT see your hypnotherapist use a pocket watch as part of their induction! That's not to say it could not be used effectively, there is just no need for it. Long ago hypnosis was linked to eye fixation, the idea being that if you focus your eyes on an object that in itself will bring you into trance. In these olden times what object was handy to everyone? Modern hypnosis has found that eye fixation is not necessary for hypnosis to work but it can help with induction so many hypnotherapists simply use their hand as the object or a mark on the wall/ceiling.

Do you know a hypnosis myth I have not included in the list? Or maybe there is a facet of hypnotherapy you are not sure of... leave a comment or contact me.