Inner Cosmos with David Eagleman Ep135: What does neuroscience mean by hypnosis? with David Spiegel
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Jan 5, 2026 
David Spiegel, a Stanford psychiatrist and hypnosis expert, dives into the fascinating world of hypnosis, demystifying its clinical applications for pain, anxiety, and habit change. He explains how attention and expectation can reshape our experiences, revealing the brain’s pathways. Hypnosis is contrasted with meditation and flow states, emphasizing its intentionality. Spiegel discusses its proven effectiveness in medical settings, barriers to broader acceptance, and the potential of his Reverie app for accessibility in therapeutic hypnosis.
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Focused Attention Rewrites Experience
- Hypnosis narrows attention and lets inner experience dominate perception.
- This reconfiguration lets suggestions feel like internal ideas rather than external commands.
Two-Step Self-Hypnosis For Stress
- To reduce stress, first downregulate the body's arousal with paced breathing and imagery.
- Then separate the stressor from your body's reaction and brainstorm one concrete action to address it.
Childbirth Without Drugs
- David Spiegel's wife used self-hypnosis as sole anesthesia for childbirth and reported no pain.
- The experience illustrates hypnosis' potential as a powerful, non-pharmacologic analgesic.
