CAN IT (HYPNOTHERAPY) REALLY STOP TINNITUS?
Quite often in a conversation when someone discovers my field of expertise I've been asked
I've heard that hypnosis can stop tinnitus, is that true?
For a qualified hypnotherapist/hypnoanalysist (of which there is VERY few--Do your homework) that has been fully trained in the field of tinnitus, this is often the case and when hypnotherapy doesn't eliminate tinnitus it normally reduces the volume, the stress and negative emotions surrounding tinnitus. In fact, one recent study showed that 73% of individuals taking part in a study on the efficacy of hypnosis in tinnitus reduction, succeeded in doing just that.
Why don't more pursue such a successful therapy?
The common preconception of hypnosis that is negative in the minds of many of the general population. This can normally be attributed to the media's portrayal of hypnosis in general. People seem to relate hypnosis to the surrender of will to another person, the loss of control...that is until they actually participate in hypnotherapy and learn self hypnosis!
Hypnosis is an ancient Greek word that once meant sleep, another misnomer. When a person is in a state of hypnosis they are actually in the exact opposite state of sleep! Hypnosis is a state of heightened awareness and focused concentration. It is scientifically measurable by instruments and is known as "the alpha state." (Measured by an EEG, this is 8-12 Hz.) Recent science have shown this state of mind to be superior for learning, recall of memory and training the mind to overcome the bad "programming" of the past, including tinnitus.
It has been shown in countless studies that those people who suffer from tinnitus tend to have more somatics; that is symptomatic issues than the population as a whole. People who suffer from tinnitus largely either experienced a massive onset of stress, suffered from depression or stress related anxiety before the onset of the noise. This fact, in part, explains the efficacy of hypnosis in the relief of tinnitus. For many decades it has been known that hypnosis reduces stress, anxiety and phobias. Now we are learning that hypnotherapy is effective in the treatment of depression, and, now tinnitus. When a person has tinnitus or any illness, there are emotional clusters of feelings attached to the illness within the neurology of the individual. In psychology, these are known as "state dependent memories." The memories are so powerful because of the emotional attachment to them. With tinnitus, the emotions can run the gamut from anger to anxiety and distress to depression. The hypnotherapists job is two-fold. The therapist must defuse the emotional charge from the associations so that the person has a better opportunity for healing. Once the emotional clusters have been removed, the therapist will help the client's unconscious mind focus on other stimulii than the noise.
What can we expect in a session?
Each hypnotherapist has a slightly different style, much like a psychologist would. However there are a few hypnotherapeutic models that are common in reducing tinnitus volume and other somatics.
Regression therapy is one form of hypnotherapy. In regression therapy the client is regressed to the time before the onset of the tinnitus to discover the trigger of the noise if it is unknown. Approximately half of all individuals do not know how their tinnitus onset. This will come out in therapy in most cases.
Generally speaking, from this point the therapist can help the client in a couple of ways. The therapist may have the client simply re-experience onset over an over until the emotional impact becomes boring or even amusing to the client. The other traditional methodology is to bring the onset to the client's conscious awareness so the client can make a cognitive decision about how he should feel about tinnitus. Often the tinnitus will disappear or reduce at this point.
An excellent therapist will incorporate all three of these general therapies in addition to teaching the client self-hypnosis for relaxation. Self hypnosis can be used to relax and experience calmer states of mind without the need of seeing the therapist for relaxation techniques again.
It will frequently be necessary and desirable for a follow up session with a hypnotherapist several months after the original client work has been accomplished. A good hypnotherapist will usually charge substantially less for a follow up session and will work with the client to make sure the work previously done is indeed working.
Hypnosis is not a cure for tinnitus. Hypnosis is an extremely affordable and very helpful therapy for reducing or eliminating the noise and/or the emotional impact of tinnitus. Depending on the cause of the tinnitus and the psychological status of the individual, hypnosis will generally surprise the client with it's seemingly amazing results.