hypnotherapy ? women's health

hypnotherapy A method of inducing a trance- like state characterized by extreme suggestibility in order to help patients relax, recall repressed memories, control pain or overcome addictions such as smoking. Invented in the mid-19th cen- tury, the process of hypnosis induces a state somewhere between sleeping and waking. Some prefer to describe it as a condition of deep relaxation and focused concentration. It has been used by psy- chotherapists to help patients recall suppressed events, by dentists and surgeons to deaden pain, and as a mode of alternative medicine to help such conditions as headache, skin disorders and chronic colitis. Another use for it, sometimes called hypno- birth, is a kind of self-hypnosis so that childbirth occurs in a trancelike, deeply relaxed state. Invented by Marie Mongan in 1989, it is taught in a series of lessons, mostly by hypnotherapists and midwives. It allegedly reduces the pain and duration of labor enormously, and at least one practitioner claims it cut his rate of Cesarean sections from 25% to 1%.
A recent study showed that women who were hypnotized immediately before a breast biopsy or lumpectomy needed less sedation and anesthesia during the surgery and felt less pain, nau- sea, fatigue, discomfort and emotional distress afterward.
At present few states have certification or licens- ing requirements for hypnotists or hypnotherapy. Consequently those considering it should take care to choose a trained hypnotist, one certified by a state-approved school of hypnosis. See Resources in the Appendix.

Source: http://www.girls-fitness.com/hypnotherapy/

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