Hypnosis For Fibromyalgia Pain – Fibromyalgia Chronic Pain Relief

 

What Can Be Mistaken For Fibromyalgia?

 

Fibromyalgia can be misdiagnosed as Rheumatoid arthritis, Chronic fatigue syndrome, and Lyme disease. This article will explore recent research where hypnosis for fibromyalgia pain was examined.

 

Can Hypnosis Help Fibromyalgia?

Fibromyalgia Definition and Symptoms

Fibromyalgia is a rheumatic disorder characterized by generalized pain.

Fibromyalgia (FM) is the most common rheumatic disorder, affecting an estimated 2-4% of the population. It affects more women than men, with a female to male ratio of 9:1. In addition to widespread pain, FM can lead to symptoms such as fatigue, cognitive dysfunction, and sleep disturbances.

Fibromyalgia symptoms are poorly understood and the disease itself is difficult to diagnose due to its many possible causes. The cause of FM is still unknown and there are no known treatments for it that consistently work for all patients. Fibromyalgia can drastically affect your family life and physical ability to work. It can also have negative effects on relationships with friends and coworkers because it can be hard.

Hypnosis Therapy for Fibromyalgia Pain Relief

Hypnosis therapy is a form of psychotherapy that utilizes self-hypnosis and focus to manage and treat chronic pain. The procedure has been shown to be helpful for many chronic disorders, including fibromyalgia.

Fibromyalgia is a disorder characterized by sensory abnormalities, muscle pain, fatigue, sleep disturbances, and cognitive impairments. In addition to the aforementioned mental and physical manifestations of the disease, patients also experience high levels of anxiety because they frequently need to avoid activities that would cause them more pain.

Researchers have found that hypnosis therapy can help decrease the severity of fibromyalgia symptoms by providing relaxation techniques for relief from stress and anxiety. It can also help patients experience less pain in their muscles through visualizations that reinforce the adjustment in their brain chemistry caused by hypnosis therapy.

Over ninety patients over the age of forty-five recently participated in a study to overcome the psychological and quality of life issues associated with fibromyalgia. This group was split into two groups. The first group received hypnotherapy sessions with a licensed clinical hypnotherapist. The second group was the placebo group. Throughout the study, both groups also continue with their regularly scheduled pharmacological treatment from their primary medical doctor.

 

The individuals in the experimental group received a recorded session highlighting an array of hypnosis techniques. They would also receive additional hypnosis sessions along with learning self-hypnosis at home for thirty days. What would be their level of pain after the month’s trial was completed?  

 

Researchers would evaluate their levels of pain after thirty days compared to before the research process started. They would also measure whether the patients continue to complain about fatigue and not being able to sleep. Lastly, the researchers recorded the quality of life of the patients in the experimental group.

 

Experimental Group Findings

 

During the post-evaluation phase, researchers identified that those in the experimental group had lowered their collective levels of pain. In addition to a decreased level of pain, patients also recorded that they didn’t feel exhausted all the time either. Levels of depression had also taken a dip and the quality of life was improved overall.

 

 

Is There Any Hope For Fibromyalgia?

 

In a recent Dutch study, researchers work with forty patients who experienced significant pain associated with fibromyalgia. The initial study lasted for ninety days in which the patients would receive eight individual sessions lasting over sixty minutes.

 

During the hypnotic induction process, individuals received effective and sensory strategies to deal with pain and managing that pain. The session also included suggestions that would improve the patient’s sleep patterns.

 

It is interesting to note that the researchers compared the initial hypnosis sessions to patients that had only received massage therapy to deal with their pain. At the end of the three months, patients had reported lower levels of pain. They also found ways to sleep the entire night. These improvements were significantly better than previously receiving a massage as the only pain therapy.

 

Hypnosis And Fibromyalgia – Can You Be Hypnotized To Not Feel Pain?

 

Another Dutch study included guided imagery as a modality to overcome the pain associated with fibromyalgia. The guided sessions included visualization techniques to reduce pain as well as anxiety.

 

The guided sessions included visual imagery of peaceful places in the Mind’s Eye. In addition to the peaceful places, a separate guided session included imagining pain being reduced as mentally active participation to relieve pain.

 

Researchers found that there was a significant Improvement when the patients received the guided imagery highlighting pleasant surroundings. This Improvement was greater than the second guided session which highlighted active imagining and taking control of the pain.

 

In the twenty-eight days following the initial hypnotherapy sessions, the guided imagery about Pleasant surroundings was consistent in improving the quality of life in the patients. Since the act of mental imagery suggestions did not fare as well as the pleasant surroundings, researchers concluded that hypnotherapy and guided imagery should only complement traditional medical therapy.

 

Additional considerations for the study’s included the shortcomings by having small sample groups in the study. The combination of active mental pictures as well as passive mental surroundings could also be biased due to a lack of standardized tracking evaluations. Additional studies were recommended to compare hypnosis against other alternative modalities to verify consistency as well.

 

Hypnosis For Fibromyalgia Pain – Dealing With The Elderly

 

Could hypnotherapy for fibromyalgia pain also be used as an effective treatment for the elderly population? Researchers in this study thought to compare Mind-Body Therapy in treating fibromyalgia pain with senior citizens. They wanted to see if the older populations would have the same level of hypnotizability as their younger counterparts.

 

Over forty elderly patients took part in this study to compare clinical hypnotherapy vs physical therapy to treat fibromyalgia pain. In addition to paying, these participants also reported feeling tired even after a full night’s rest. For those that did not sleep the entire night, they reported constantly waking up in the middle of the night while in pain.

 

Hypnosis treatments were given to this group for over four months. After the four-month period was over, patients reported no longer feeling tired all the time. Also, levels of pain were reduced.

 

Follow Up Sessions

 

There were follow-up sessions at the twenty-four-week mark. At that time, the elderly patients reported that the pain levels that they had experienced before the study had not returned. The research concluded that incorporating clinical hypnosis to address fibromyalgia pain can show significant improvements that are consistent over time.

Researchers requested a future study to not only address hypnosis to deal with fibromyalgia but to find usefulness in dealing with varying levels of pain. Studying the effects across all age groups was recommended as well to observe a positive outcome.