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Phobias and intense fears: Facilitating their treatment with hypnosis

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Abstract

This chapter concentrates on the use of hypnosis in the treatment of phobias as an adjunct to cognitive therapy, behavior therapy, insight therapy, and other approaches. We review experimental research that finds that the effectiveness of hypnosis in the treatment of phobias seems to be related to the often high hypnotic responsivity of phobics and their unusual capacity for imagery vividness, focused attention, and flexibility in information-processing strategies. Review investigations of the relationship between hypnotizability and phobias that implicate cognitive skills such as imagery, absorption, and dissociative-like attention that may be used in the development and maintenance of phobias. Because hypnotizability has been shown to be related to therapeutic outcome when hypnosis is used, we show how the standardized testing of hypnotic susceptibility level during clinical evaluations may facilitate the choice of the most appropriate therapeutic approach. Two case studies, school-phobic child and a phobia of a single phase of airplane flight activity, are presented to illustrate the importance of the assessment of hypnotic susceptibility and the tailoring of the particular hypnotic intervention in a wider therapeutic context to fit the characteristics of the individual. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
... Algumas metanálises mostram que associar a hipnose aos tratamentos psicológicos melhora a eficácia e a eficiência dos mesmos (Kisrch, Montgomery & Sapierstein, 1995;Smith, Glass, & Miller, 1980;Agostinho, 2012 Yapko, 2001a). Há muita investigação que apoia o facto de que utilizar hipnose no tratamento da depressão contribui significativamente para os resultados positivos do tratamento direta e indiretamente (Crawford & Barabasz, 1993;Montgomery & col., 2000;Schoenberger, Kirsch, Gearan, Montgomery, & Pastyrnak, 1997;Yapko, 1992Yapko, , 2001Yapko, , 2006Yapko, , 2008Yapko, , 2009, bem como, quando se recorre a uma intervenção psicoterapêutica baseada no modelo cognitivo-comportamental (Shipley & Fazio, 1973;Shaw, 1977;Dobson, 1989 O inventário foi lido por todos os sujeitos e foi-lhes pedido que interpretassem cada afirmação salvaguardando, desta forma, uma possível má interpretação dos sujeitos. ...
... Momentos Perante estes resultados, e com base no objetivo proposto neste estudo empírico, confirma-se que existem diferenças significativas entre os participantes sujeitos a terapia com recurso à hipnoterapia e participantes sujeitos a terapia cognitivo-comportamental, o que vai de encontro com outros estudos efetuados (Shipley & Fazio, 1973;Shaw, 1977;Dobson, 1989;Crawford & Barabasz, 1993;Montgomery & col., 2000;Schoenberger, Kirsch, Gearan, Montgomery, & Pastyrnak, 1997;Yapko, 1992Yapko, , 2001Yapko, , 2006Yapko, , 2008Yapko, , 2009). ...
... Numa avaliação intragrupal verifica-se que no grupo alvo de intervenção hipnoterapêutica (Gh) há diferenças significativas, entre os momentos temporais (t1 e t2), assistindo-se a uma redução significativa da sintomatologia depressiva apresentada pelos participantes (17 e 10, respetivamente). Estes resultados vão de encontro a diversos estudos que também verificaram valores pós-tratamento significativamente mais baixos em medições da síndrome depressiva do que haviam evidenciado no pré-tratamento (Smith, Glass & Miller, 1980;Crawford & Barabasz, 1993;Kisrch, Montgomery & Sapierstein, 1995;Schoenberger, Kirsch, Gearan, Montgomery, & Pastyrnak, 1997;Montgomery & col., 2000;Yapko 1992Yapko , 2001Yapko , 2006Yapko , 2008Yapko , 2009Agostinho, 2012 ). ...
... Frankel (1974) planteó hace tiempo que los pacientes fóbicos eran más sugestionables que la población normal. Estudios posteriores han puesto de manifiesto que los pacientes fóbicos puntúan consistentemente más alto en hipnotizabilidad que los controles (ver Crawford y Barabasz, 1993;González Ordi y Miguel Tobal, 2001). Según Dell (2017), estos estudios informan que entre un 46% y un 79% de los pacientes fóbicos mostrarían una alta capacidad de respuesta a la hipnosis, relación que es tanto más clara cuando hablamos de la presencia de varios miedos específicos o multifobias. ...
... El análisis realizado con el grupo de pacientes con trastorno de ansiedad social en relación con su capacidad de sugestión muestra que estos pacientes presentan una puntuación total significativamente más elevada que la muestra control y, específicamente, mayores puntuaciones en la escala de influenciabilidad, con un tamaño del efecto grande en ambos casos. Estos resultados son congruentes con los estudios que han demostrado que los pacientes con fobias son altamente sugestionables (Crawford y Barabasz, 1993;Dell, 2017) y con las investigaciones que han puesto en evidencia que los trastornos de ansiedad presentan un sesgo de atención a los estímulos amenazantes del ambiente, lo que juega un papel determinante en la etiología, mantenimiento y tratamiento de este trastorno, tal y como ha sido contemplado en algunos modelos cognitivo-conductuales para la ansiedad social como el de Rapee y Heimberg (1997) (para una revisión de estos estudios, véase Van Bockstaele et al., 2014). Asimismo, los resultados son acordes con los obtenidos en otros estudios con población general que han evidenciado que los participantes altamente sugestionables presentan más ansiedad, se ven más afectados por la deseabilidad social y manifiestan mayor puntuación en ansiedad de evaluación y ansiedad interpersonal (González-Ordi, 1994), así como con otros estudios previos que han encontrado una correlación significativa entre la influenciabilidad, medida a través del IS, y la ansiedad (Polczyk et al., 2013). ...
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The assessment of suggestibility and hipnotizability has become a valuable research line in the last decades. However, most studies have focused on general population, and there are limited and insufficient papers dealing with clinical sim-ples. The aim of the present study was to evaluate general suggestibility in a sample of patients (n = 147) compared to a control (non-clinical) group (n = 57), by means of the adminitration of an inventory of suggestibility. Clinical sample participants showed higher levels of suggestibility (overall score) and higher levels of absorption, emotional suggestibility, and influence of others (subscales) than controls. By clinical groups, social anxiety, panic isorder, OCD, and PTSD groups scored higher in suggestibility than controls. These results have relevant implications for clinical practice.
... First, studies that compare clinical hypnosis with various control groups (i.e., no treatment, wait list, attention control, but rarely other therapies) have been used as indirect evidence for hypnosis as a treatment adjunct. There now exists an extensive, albeit rather methodologically varied, research base attesting to the utility of clinical hypnosis in the treatment of emotional disorders such as anxiety (e.g., Crawford & Barabasz, 1993;Moore & Burrows, 1991); depression (e.g., Dobbin et al., 2009); in the treatment of health-related problems such as smoking (e.g., Green & Lynn, 2019); in the management of surgical/medical procedures (e.g., Tefikow et al., 2013); and in the treatment of various medical problems such as psychosomatic disorders (e.g., Flammer & Alladin, 2007), pain (e.g., Montgomery et al., 2000), irritable bowel syndrome (Moore & Tasso, 2008), and hot flashes (Elkins et al., 2013). ...
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Pronounced difficulties in functional outcomes often follow acquired brain injury (ABI), and may be due, in part, to deficits in metacognitive knowledge (being unaware of one’s cognitive strengths and limitations). A meta-analytic review of the literature investigating the relationship between metacognitive knowledge and functional outcomes in ABI is timely, particularly given the presence of apparently inconsistent findings. Twenty-two articles revealed two distinct methods of measuring metacognitive knowledge: (1) absolute (the degree of inaccurate self-appraisal regardless of whether the error tends towards under- or over-confident estimations) and (2) relative (the degree and the direction of the inaccuracy) discrepancy. Separate meta-analyses were conducted for absolute and relative discrepancy studies to assess the relationship between metacognitive knowledge and functional outcomes (affect-related quality of life, family and community integration, and work outcomes). The pattern of results found suggested that better metacognitive knowledge is related to better overall functional outcomes, but the relationship may differ depending on the outcome domain. These findings generally support the importance of focusing on metacognitive knowledge to improve outcomes following ABI. Nonetheless, the relatively small effect sizes observed suggest that other predictors of functional outcome should be investigated, including other subdomains of metacognition.
... Direct verbal suggestibility has also been linked to a number of clinical conditions, such as conversion disorder (Roelofs et al., 2002), phobias (Crawford & Barabasz, 1993), non-epileptic seizures (Kuyk et al., 1995) -though this is not a consistent finding (Brown & Reuber, 2016;Goldstein, Drew, Mellers, Mitchell-O'Malley, & Oakley, 2000), bulimia (Griffiths & Channon-Little, 1993;Pettinati et al., 1990;Pinnell & Covino, 2000) -though not with anorexia (Pettinati et al., 1990;Pettinati, Horne, & Staats, 1985), and with posttraumatic stress disorder (Cardeña, 2000), -though not with obsessive compulsive disorder (Spinhoven, Van Dyck, Hoogduin, & Schaap, 1991). Higher levels of direct verbal suggestibility are also reported with somatic (somatoform) illness in non-clinical populations, especially in females (Younger et al., 2007) as well as being a correlate of both delusion proneness and the cognitive-perceptual subscale of schizotypy (Connors et al., 2014). ...
Article
Hypnotic suggestibility is part of the wider psychological trait of direct verbal suggestibility (DVS). Historically, DVS in hypnosis has informed theories of consciousness and of conversion disorder. More recently it has served as a research tool in cognitive science and in cognitive neuroscience in particular. Here we consider DVS as a general trait, its relation to other psychological characteristics and abilities, and to the origin and treatment of clinical conditions. We then outline the distribution of DVS in the population, its measurement, relationship to other forms of suggestibility, placebo responsiveness, personal characteristics, gender, neurological processes and other factors, such as expectancy. There is currently no scale specifically designed to measure DVS outside a hypnotic context. The most commonly used and well-researched of the hypnosis-based scales, the Harvard Group Scale, is described and identified as a basis for a more broadly based measure of DVS for use in psychological research.
... El aumento del interés por la hipnosis y las técnicas de sugestión, tanto en el mundo clínico como en el académico, ha llevado, en estos últimos años, a la aplicación de estas técnicas en distintos ámbitos de la Psicología y la Medicina; tales como control y tratamiento del dolor (Un número elevado de estudios evalúan la utilización de la hipnosis en el contexto de una terapia de carácter cognitivo o conductual; en este sentido, destacan trabajos como el de Brown (1998) o el de Crawford y Barabasz (1993), en los que se analiza el uso de la hipnosis en el contexto de una terapia cognitiva para el tratamiento de la ansiedad o de las fobias. ...
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The effectiveness of cognitive-behavioural therapy was studied under three different conditions: a) only cognitive-behavioural therapy, b) therapy plus relaxation and, c) therapy together with hypnosis. Twenty-one participants were used with age mean of 32,95 years and standard deviation of 12,43. All participants were diagnosed with a major depression according to the DSM-IV criteria. Results clearly show that cognitive-behavioural therapy is more effective when applied under hypnosis conditions. This effectiveness of the cognitive-behavioural therapy under hypnosis conditions was obtained for all clinical variables studied Anxiety, Depressive Neurosis, Major Depression, Histrionics, Psychotic Thinking.
... Los acontecimientos que normalmente se experimentan como una sucesión continua quedan aislados de los demás procesos mentales con los que normalmente están asociados. Así, cuando los recuerdos están mal integrados se produce «amnesia disociativa» (imposibilidad de recordar cierto o ciertos acontecimientos pasados); la fragmentación de la identidad puede producir «fugas psicógenas» o «personalidades múltiples» (trastorno de identidad disociativo); una percepción alterada puede producir un trastorno de despersona- (Mallet, 1989;González Ordi, 2001Stanley, Norman y Burrows, 2001;Flemons, 2005) (Crawford y Barabasz, 1993;Kirsch, Montgomery y Sapirstein, 1995;Schoenberger et al., 1997;Schoenberger, 2000;Gerschman, 2001;Medd, 2001;Byron, 2002 (Wickramasekera, 1988;Hoogduin y Roelofs, 2001) lización. Aunque estos trastornos presentan una prevalencia baja, los estudios clínicos revelan que la hipnosis es una herramienta útil tanto en su diagnóstico como en su tratamiento (para una revisión más detallada de estos aspectos consultar los trabajos de Spiegel y Maldonado (2000) y Kluft (2001). ...
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This article presents an overview of the rationale, procedures, and applications of hypnosis to clinical and health psychology. A four-step working framework is delineated, including pre-inductive phase (with two main goals: restructuring myths and misconceptions of hypnosis and assessment of hypnotizability), application of induction techniques, administration of specific suggestions that facilitates behavior change, and posthypnotic phase which ensures that the subjects learn how to apply suggestions by themselves in daily life situations. Hypnosis as an adjunct to cognitive-behavioural therapy proved additive benefits in the treatment of different disorders: (1) acute pain and chronic pain; (2) psychophysiological and health problems (headaches, irritable bowel syndrome, asthma, skin disorders, eating disorders, and smoking cessation), and psychopathological disorders (anxiety and stress reactions, phobias, acute and posttraumatic stress disorders, depression, conversion and dissociative disorders).
... Hypnotherapy: Hypnotherapy is the application of hypnotic techniques to bring about a "trance" or an altered state of consciousness or attention which raises the person's susceptibility to experience various changes in sensation, perception, cognition or control over motor behavior [56]. Limited session brief, focused, selective hypnotherapy can however cure incapacitating fear, disturbed conditioned reactions and avoidance behavior [57]. Some patients were treated by group desensitization and autohypnotic training over a term of six weeks for flight phobia, with a highly significant reduction of fear for the group. ...
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The purpose of the present survey was to review the important Non-pharmacologic treatments for fear of flying up to the present. This study is in the same way as some studies. Accordingly, some Non-pharmacologic treatments for fear of flying were assessed through this systematic review article. The general conclusion from the information provided by the former studies, shows that a growing number of treatment facilities offer treatment programs for fear of flying, including combined treatment, Hypnotherapy, EMDR, Relaxation, information Providing, Cognitivebehavioral treatment, cognitive therapy, exposure therapy, Computer-based exposure therapies, Implosion therapy, Flooding, Systematic desensitization and Psychodynamic therapy. Nevertheless, little is known about which specific method or element of treatment programs works best; In addition, Psychological therapy should be employed under unique circumstances and according to the needs of individuals rather than applying identical treatment packages to any case.
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O presente estudo procurou avaliar o efeito do modelo de intervenção hipnoterapêutica no tratamento dos sintomas conducentes a um diagnóstico de ansiedade e depressão e avaliar o ajustamento diádico em pacientes expostos à COVID-19. Sendo assim, este estudo classifica-se como quantitativo transversal de caráter descritivo e correlacional com a finalidade de adquirir uma maior compreensão da importância do procedimento hipnoterapêutico na redução da sintomatologia relacionada com a ansiedade e depressão e com a qualidade do ajustamento diádico. Os resultados revelaram, os benefícios específicos da hipnose na redução da sintomatologia associada às perturbações do humor e na qualidade do ajuste diádico.
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