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Como funciona a auto-hipnose para pacientes com ansiedade

How self-hypnosis works for patients with anxiety

Discover how self-hypnosis for anxiety can transform your life. Explore effective techniques for quick and lasting relief.

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Due to the pandemic, there was an 80% increase in Brazilians who started having anxiety problems. This is an estimate, from a study by UFRGS (Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul). But hypnosis can be the answer for those looking for a solution, especially without the need for medication. 

Despite the negative situation, it presents an opportunity for professional hypnotherapists to help treat these anxious individuals. Furthermore, a hypnotherapist who knows how to teach self-hypnosis to control anxiety can achieve more significant results and have more success in their career. 

Therefore, we will discuss in this content the importance of teaching self-hypnosis. Check it out!

Why can self-hypnosis help control anxiety?

Anxiety is a natural mechanism of our body, it is the activation of what we call the sympathetic nervous system, which is a mechanism that signals that punishment or the absence of an expected reward (frustration) will occur, thus generating what we call anticipatory anxiety.

Understanding how the modulation of the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems works is very important for all health professionals. See how it works:

The sympathetic nervous system prepares you for fight or flight, it is a system that makes the individual tense, and the parasympathetic is a “braking” system, meaning it reduces these tensions. 

When we are anxious, our mouth becomes dry, pupils dilate, adrenaline production increases, and heart rate is stimulated. These are exactly the symptoms of sympathetic activation.

While the parasympathetic reduces this activity, stimulating salivation, decreasing heart rate, and lowering blood pressure, promoting relaxation. 

When sympathetic activity increases, the parasympathetic reduces its activity, and when sympathetic activity decreases, the parasympathetic increases in activity. They are inversely proportional and function like a balance, one modulating the other.

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When we decrease Sympathetic Tone to relax through self-hypnosis, we obtain: 

● Decrease in blood pressure, decrease in respiratory rate and heart rate; 

● Decrease in the release of cortisol, adrenaline, noradrenaline;

● Decrease in cardiac contraction strength, contraction of blood vessels (vasodilation), peripheral resistance, decrease in blood glucose and platelet aggregation (metabolic syndrome);

● Decrease in anal sphincter contraction;

● Decrease in contractions of the large intestine (irritable bowel);

● Increase in: glomerular filtration (renal), insulin secretion, salivation, stimulation of small intestine movement (reduces abdominal distension), increased urine elimination by the bladder (bladder contraction). 

Because of this, anxious people can develop some physical and psychological symptoms that directly affect their routine. See some of them below:

Psychological symptoms of anxiety

  • Apprehension;
  • Fear;
  • Anguish;
  • Restlessness;
  • Insomnia;
  • Difficulty concentrating;
  • Inability to relax; 
  • Feeling “on edge”; 
  • Worries about future disasters; 
  • Catastrophic thoughts, ruin or illness.

These symptoms are not resolved just by “letting it go,” as the anxious individual can lose control of their thoughts and be carried away by negative feelings that arise, especially when anxiety already leads the individual to intense crises. This is why hypnosis can help with this problem.

Hypnosis and self-hypnosis

According to the American Psychological Association (APA), with small considerations from the Brazilian Society of Hypnosis (SBH), hypnosis can be defined as a state of consciousness [intentionally induced] that involves focused attention and reduced peripheral awareness, characterized by an increased capacity for response to suggestion. In this state, the subject is led to experience changes in sensations, perceptions, thoughts, or behavior [goal-oriented].

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From this definition, we see that the hypnotherapist can assist their patients who suffer from anxiety, in understanding better the causes of this problem, possible triggering factors, feelings, and thoughts of the patients that may be related to memories, broken expectations, or even negative beliefs.

But as anxiety can be a daily problem and the professional cannot be available 24/7, how could the therapist assist their patient if they had an anxiety crisis and couldn’t help them? 

In this case, one of the recommendations is that the hypnotherapist teaches their patient to do emotional regulation exercises, such as self-hypnosis. It is a great tool to assist patients in moments of crisis, but also to practice daily the learnings from the consultations.

Self-hypnosis can be done daily, through relaxation and the necessary suggestions taught by the professional. Thus, self-hypnosis can occur through pre-recorded audios and videos or by mentally repeating the learned exercise. The goal should be for the patient to perform the exercises in the best way they adapt to, so they can practice or have access whenever needed.

In this way, the patient has a form available at any time of their day to seek help. It is an intense process of creating autonomy for this individual to take control of their own therapeutic process. 

Self-hypnosis in medicine

Self-hypnosis in medicine

There are examples that show the effectiveness of using self-hypnosis that have become memorable. In a document of the Victor Rausch case (1980), the dental surgeon who had already experienced procedures with hypnosis, when he needed to remove his pancreas, he used self-hypnosis as his only form of anesthesia.
There are scientific studies that show that professionals trained to apply self-hypnosis can help patients overcome clinical conditions. Among them are included:

  • Anxiety;
  • Pain;
  • Headaches;
  • Chronic shortness of breath;
  • Irritable bowel syndrome.
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Thus, self-hypnosis with the aid of a professional hypnotherapist can give people greater control over their emotional health, offering them an alternative that does not require medication and promotes greater mental resilience to negative situations. 

Therefore, if you are looking to learn hypnosis, check out our course schedule to take an official training from SBH.

This publication is also available at: Portuguese (Brazil) Spanish

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Erick Ribeiro

Psychologist graduated from PUC Minas and co-founder of the Brazilian Society of Hypnosis. With extensive experience in clinical hypnosis, he also works in the field of digital marketing, helping to popularize hypnosis on the internet. His work is focused on empowering hypnotherapists, offering them tools to improve their practices and reach more people.

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Pós-Graduação em Hipnose Clínica e Terapias Baseadas em Evidências®

Aprofunde-se na teoria e prática das neurociências, e conheça as fronteiras dessa ciência que revela novas possibilidades para todas as áreas do conhecimento. Torne-se um hipnoterapeuta profissional e qualificado com a Sociedade Brasileira de Hipnose.