Huberman Lab Essentials: Using Hypnosis to Enhance Mental & Physical Health & Performance | Dr. David Spiegel
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Nov 27, 2025 
Dr. David Spiegel, a Stanford psychiatry expert in clinical hypnosis, shares fascinating insights into the science of hypnosis. He discusses how hypnosis alters brain networks for improved focus and stress relief. The conversation dives into practical applications like reducing pain, treating phobias, and aiding trauma recovery through narrative reframing. Spiegel emphasizes the importance of gauging one's hypnotizability and offers tools, including the Reverie app for self-hypnosis, to enhance mental and physical well-being.
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Hypnosis As Focused Absorption
- Hypnosis is a state of highly focused attention likened to a telephoto lens of consciousness.
- You experience the imagined world directly without evaluating it, which creates hypnotic-like absorption.
Brain Networks Shift During Hypnosis
- Hypnosis reduces dorsal anterior cingulate cortex activity, lowering distractions and conflict detection.
- It increases DLPFC–insula connectivity and decreases DLPFC–posterior cingulate coupling, enabling body control and cognitive flexibility.
Imagined Food Changes Stomach Chemistry
- In a study, highly hypnotizable people imagining a culinary tour increased gastric acid secretion by 87%.
- Imagery under hypnosis produced measurable stomach responses even when no food was present.