S10 EP2 How hypnosis can help with healthy habit formation.
Oct 8, 2023
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Dr. David Spiegel, a psychiatrist with extensive experience in hypnosis, discusses its use in habit formation, pain management, smoking cessation, and healthy eating. He explains the misconceptions around hypnosis and its benefits, including cognitive flexibility. The chapter also explores the Revery app and concludes with the guest answering fun questions.
Hypnosis is a low-risk technique that can provide immediate relief for pain management and is gaining recognition for its effectiveness.
Hypnosis is a state of focused attention that enables individuals to try out new behaviors and perspectives, effectively managing pain and improving stress responses.
Deep dives
Hypnosis: A Psychological Procedure with Clinical Uses
Hypnosis is a psychological procedure with clinical applications that can help individuals change their feelings and behaviors. It has been used for pain control, stress management, habit control, smoking cessation, and healthy eating. Hypnosis is often misunderstood due to misconceptions, such as it being a loss of control. In reality, all hypnosis is self-hypnosis, where individuals focus their attention and become more flexible cognitively. Hypnosis has shown promising results in pain management, with studies demonstrating reductions in pain signals in the brain. It is a low-risk technique that can provide immediate relief for some individuals. Hypnosis is gaining popularity, and its effectiveness is being recognized more widely.
Understanding Hypnosis: How It Works and What It Isn't
Hypnosis is a state of naturally focused attention that narrows the focus of consciousness and dissociates individuals from certain aspects of their surroundings. It is not a loss of control but rather a gain of control, allowing individuals to try out being different and explore new ways of thinking and acting. Hypnosis works by turning down activity in the salience network of the brain, promoting intense engagement in focused attention. It also strengthens connectivity between the executive control region and the insula, which helps facilitate brain-body control. Additionally, hypnosis disconnects the executive control network from the default mode network, enabling individuals to be more flexible and try new behaviors or perspectives. Through hypnosis, individuals can effectively manage pain, improve stress responses, and better handle various challenges in their lives.
Revery: An App for Utilizing Hypnosis
Revery is a hypnosis app designed to make hypnosis techniques accessible to individuals seeking various benefits, such as smoking cessation, pain control, stress management, and healthy eating. The app provides interactive exercises that simulate being in a hypnotherapy session with a professional. Users can engage in self-hypnosis, which involves focusing on what they're for rather than fighting urges or challenges. The app offers diverse exercises, including breathwork techniques and guided visualizations for different therapeutic purposes. Revery has shown promising results, with individuals reporting reductions in smoking, pain, and stress levels. This app aims to empower individuals to take control of their mental and physical well-being by harnessing the power of hypnosis.
The Power of Human Connection and the Potential of Hypnosis
Dr. Spiegel emphasizes the power of human connection in therapy and how hypnosis can be a therapeutic tool to facilitate that connection. While hypnosis may not be widely utilized in healthcare due to misconceptions and a bias towards physical interventions, its effectiveness and safety make it an underutilized resource. The Revery app serves as a direct-to-consumer option, allowing individuals to access hypnosis techniques and improve their well-being conveniently. Dr. Spiegel expresses gratitude for the ability to connect with others and help them through hypnosis. The potential of hypnosis to provide relief and positively impact lives is a reason for optimism and continued exploration of this therapeutic technique.
In this episode Dr Hazel is joined by Dr. David Spiegel, Reveri's Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer. Dr Spiegel is a psychiatrist with more than 45 years of clinical and research experience studying stress, pain, sleep and hypnosis. He has written thirteen books, 404 scientific journal articles and 170 book chapters. He was educated at Harvard and Yale and now works at Stanford. This episode covers:
What is hypnosis and how does it differ from stage hypnosis?
What happens in the brain when we are hypnotized
How some people are more hypnotizable than others
The use of hypnosis in pain management
The use of hypnosis with smoking and vaping cessation
How we use hypnosis to support health behaviours and positive habits
Please note: it is not advisable to use hypnosis if you have psychosis or certain types of personality disorder, as it could make your condition worse. In the UK, hypnotherapists do not have to have any specific training by law. This means hypnotherapy can be offered by people with little training who are not health professionals. When looking for a private hypnotherapist please choose someone with a healthcare background – such as a doctor, psychologist or counsellor and check they're registered with an organisation that's accredited by the Professional Standards Authority
