Everyone has heard the story of the woman and her child who were in a terrible car crash.
The story goes that there was once a young woman driving with her child coming home from the store. They were involved in a terrible car crash. The woman was thrown clear of the vehicle, which had rolled over several times, however, her child was trapped under the vehicle. This woman went over to the vehicle and lifted it up off of her child pulling her child to safety. It was only after her child was safe did the woman realize that she had a broken arm, and several other injuries.
This woman managed to turn off the pain she should have been feeling from her injuries long enough to save her child. How is this possible? Whether or not this story is true is questionable. It is most likely an old wives tale or urban legend, however, there are true stories of people doing extraodinary things when faced with extraordinary circumstances. And, most stories have some bases in truth.
I know you have seen people walking on hot beds of coal and lying on beds of nails. Is this a demonstration of mind over matter? Are these people using the power of their own mind to block out the pain? NOPE! These are parlor tricks. I will not go into how they are done, but it is not mind over matter. They are illusions.
So, How can hypnosis help with pain management?
Hypnosis can help with pain management in a couple of ways. When the pain is imaginary it is in the subconscious mind. Under hypnosis the hypnotist can communicate directly with the subconscious mind and help to totally eliminate the pain. When the pain is real and not imagined the hypnotist can help the subject use the power of their own mind to block the pain, or reduce the pain to a tolerable level. Although it is not always possible to totally eliminate the pain, many people have experienced a marked improvement in their quality of life through the use of hypnosis.
In the 19th century, prior to modern medical anesthesia, a doctor by the name of Esdale used hypnosis quite successfully on patients he operated on. He even performed amputations on people using nothing but hypnosis as anesthesia. |
