You are getting sleepy, sleeeeepy….

Ever tried hypnosis? Good stuff I tell you. I’ve done it several times and I got it right away. Hypnosis is the practice of taking the mind through mental and visual processes to help control the physical and material plane. Huh? Let me rephrase that: If you’ve got a physical problem, hypnosis can help guide you mentally to change your physiology. And, if you want to create or change an experience in your life–quit smoking, lose weight, gain confidence, reduce fears–hypnosis can also help there by guiding you through visualizations and help change mental patterns. Think it’s BS? Well check this out:

British researchers have found that hypnosis may help reduce bowel inflammation seen in ulcerative colitis. Ulcerative colitis is a disease that causes chronic inflammation in the lining of the colon and rectum, leading to symptoms such as abdominal pain and diarrhea. Although the standard medical treatment is drugs, a small study suggests that hypnosis may aid in the healing process.

In the study, scientists looked at 25 people with ulcerative colitis. Seventeen were taken through 50-minute session of “gut-focused” hypnotherapy aimed at relaxation and relief of inflammation, while eight simply listened to music of their choice for the same period. What they found was astounding: blood levels of IL-6–a marker of inflammation in the body–fell by 53 percent in the hypnosis group, whereas music listeners showed no substantial change. And they found a decrease in other chemical markers of inflammation as well.

The researchers were not sure why hypnosis eased inflammation but think that it might have direct effects on colon activity or it might affect people’s pain tolerance or perceptions of their symptoms. To me it’s quite simple: you cannot separate the body from the mind. In fact, all physical processes–both health and illness–have their origins in the mind. Trip on that for a minute. And if that’s true, then they must have mental solutions (components) as well. That’s my belief, anybody disagree?

I know two very talented hypnotherapists that I love to send clients to, one in Los Angeles and one in The Valley. Check them out–they work magic.

Copyright © 2013 Dr. Nick Campos - All Rights Reserved.