MayoClinic.com on Hypnosis

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Saul Rosenfeld on December 20, 2009 at 8:03am

Roger,

Reading through that list of so-called "risks" it's obvious that they have either quite a limited and/or old fashioned understanding of induction (and waking) dynamics.

"Interesting" would be one way to characterize it.
"Amateur Hour" would be my choice.
Sigh...

Saul

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Permalink Reply by Richard Nongard - NLPBoard.com on December 20, 2009 at 8:11am

Here is what the website says: "Hypnosis that's conducted under the care of a trained therapist or health care professional is considered a safe complementary and alternative medicine treatment.

Adverse reactions are rare but may include:

Headache
Dizziness
Nausea
Anxiety or panic
Creation of false memories
Use special caution before using hypnosis for age regression to help you relive earlier events in your life. This practice remains controversial and has limited scientific evidence to support its use. It may cause strong emotions and can alter your memories or lead to creation of false memories"

Looks to me the only thing they left out was "falling out of a chair".

This article is specifically writter about CLINICAL hypnoosis, and I can't think of any other risks that come from hypnoisis itslef. Of course there are other risks: Being "boo-ed" by an 8 year older hiding in a closet of a practicioner working from home, being molested by a perpetrator practicing as a hypnotist (happens in every profession), wasting time with someone unable to structure suggestions effectively, etc. etc. etc but these risks have nothing to do with the risks of hypmnosis itself, but rather with the people who claim to be hypnotists...

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Permalink Reply by Kelley Woods on December 20, 2009 at 9:15am

Besides the brief mention that a person receiving hypnotherapy may be able to use self-hypnosis later, the gist of the post insinuates that the role of the client is more of someone who has something done to him, rather than as someone who is empowered to heal himself. Too bad, it may set up unrealistic expectations for some.

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Permalink Reply by James Hazlerig on December 20, 2009 at 9:28am

It's fascinating how an apparently educational article reveals the bias of the writer.

Why preface the phrase "stage hypnosis" with the words "so-called?" Whether you like stage hypnosis or not, it exists. But "so-called" subtly casts aspersions.

The side-effects listed make it sound like it's a pill. That section fails to consider that a skilled hypnotist makes all of those so-called side-effects much less likely. (See how well "so-called" works?) Same thing with the "not everyone can go into trance." And why call it "trance-like?" Yeesh.

Then the writer seems to play both sides:

"Hypnosis isn't considered a treatment or a type of psychotherapy."

Awesome--the article recognizes that you don't have to be a psychologist or a doctor to do hypnosis.

But wait, the first question to ask when evaluating a hypnotherapist is "Do you have training in a field such as psychology, medicine, social work or dentistry?"

Dentistry? Really? Because a dentist knows a heck of a lot more than I do about hypnosis?

But that's the first question. Next is the question of state licensing--which varies greatly from state to state. It's credentialism once again. The third question is "Where did you do your internship or residency?" implying once again that only medical doctors should be doing this non-treatment, non-psychotherapy.

And the fourth question--fourth, way after whether the hypnotist has dental training--asks how much hypnosis training the hypnotist has. Because that's way less important than having spent years and year in dentistry school.

I have to agree with Saul. It's amateur hour.

James

P.S. On revisiting the list of adverse effects, it hits me that hypnosis sounds a lot like a drinking binge without the chance of waking up next to someone who looked better last night!

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Permalink Reply by Dennis Atkinson on December 20, 2009 at 9:30am

The article is obviously written by the medical profession for the benefit of the medical profession. Thanks for sharing

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Permalink Reply by Saul Rosenfeld on December 20, 2009 at 10:23am

James,

You hit the nail on the head with each and every one of those examples!

P.S. I would have chosen another term rather than the mild rebuke "Amateur Hour", but I was
somewhat concerned that it would have been deleted by the mods, and perhaps even exposed me to some
serious "slander" and/or "libel" litigation from the folks at Mayo...; - )

Saul

www.HistoryOfHypnotism.com



James Hazlerig said:

It's fascinating how an apparently educational article reveals the bias of the writer.

Why preface the phrase "stage hypnosis" with the words "so-called?" Whether you like stage hypnosis or not, it exists. But "so-called" subtly casts aspersions.

The side-effects listed make it sound like it's a pill. That section fails to consider that a skilled hypnotist makes all of those so-called side-effects much less likely. (See how well "so-called" works?) Same thing with the "not everyone can go into trance." And why call it "trance-like?" Yeesh.

Then the writer seems to play both sides:

"Hypnosis isn't considered a treatment or a type of psychotherapy."

Awesome--the article recognizes that you don't have to be a psychologist or a doctor to do hypnosis.

But wait, the first question to ask when evaluating a hypnotherapist is "Do you have training in a field such as psychology, medicine, social work or dentistry?"

Dentistry? Really? Because a dentist knows a heck of a lot more than I do about hypnosis?

But that's the first question. Next is the question of state licensing--which varies greatly from state to state. It's credentialism once again. The third question is "Where did you do your internship or residency?" implying once again that only medical doctors should be doing this non-treatment, non-psychotherapy.

And the fourth question--fourth, way after whether the hypnotist has dental training--asks how much hypnosis training the hypnotist has. Because that's way less important than having spent years and year in dentistry school.

I have to agree with Saul. It's amateur hour.

James

P.S. On revisiting the list of adverse effects, it hits me that hypnosis sounds a lot like a drinking binge without the chance of waking up next to someone who looked better last night!

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Saul Rosenfeld on December 20, 2009 at 10:26am

Dennis,

I think it would be more accurate to rephrase your statement as follows:

"The article is obviously written by the medical profession TO THE DETRIMENT of the medical profession".

Saul

www.HistoryOfHypnotism.com




Dennis Atkinson said:

The article is obviously written by the medical profession for the benefit of the medical profession. Thanks for sharing

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Roger Moore on December 20, 2009 at 12:14pm

Besides falling out of a chair - there was the time I fell in the shower using self-hypnosis - it turned out to not be one of my most relaxing sessions. :)

Richard Nongard - HypnosisGurus.com said:

Here is what the website says: "Hypnosis that's conducted under the care of a trained therapist or health care professional is considered a safe complementary and alternative medicine treatment.

Adverse reactions are rare but may include:

Headache
Dizziness
Nausea
Anxiety or panic
Creation of false memories
Use special caution before using hypnosis for age regression to help you relive earlier events in your life. This practice remains controversial and has limited scientific evidence to support its use. It may cause strong emotions and can alter your memories or lead to creation of false memories"

Looks to me the only thing they left out was "falling out of a chair".

This article is specifically writter about CLINICAL hypnoosis, and I can't think of any other risks that come from hypnoisis itslef. Of course there are other risks: Being "boo-ed" by an 8 year older hiding in a closet of a practicioner working from home, being molested by a perpetrator practicing as a hypnotist (happens in every profession), wasting time with someone unable to structure suggestions effectively, etc. etc. etc but these risks have nothing to do with the risks of hypmnosis itself, but rather with the people who claim to be hypnotists...

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Sean Michael Andrews on December 20, 2009 at 12:55pm

Given the fact that hypnosis was one of the major reasons for the success of the Mayo Clinic and significantly contributed to their stellar record of 17,000 deep abdominal surgeries without a single anesthesia death, it's too bad that hypnosis is not treated more seriously. Dr. Henry Munro, physician and hypnotist showed the Mayo brothers how to use hypnosis to avoid anesthesia deaths/injuries. (Hypnotherapy; Dave Elman; pp 52-53)

Sean Michael Andrews
www.WorldsFastestHypnotist.com

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Michael Ellner on December 20, 2009 at 2:23pm

My Friends,

Most people who read the Mayo BS will believe what they read and it will effect their decision making! You can bet the farm that 99.9% of the people who read Mayo's disinformation will not have the access to our comments or the ability to see this for the BS that it is
(That's right Mayo- It's BS and if you don't like it - Bring it on! - I am Michael Ellner in NYC)

Let's face it, these are the perceived experts and they are positioning us as QUACKS! Our job is to get out there and expose these fakers for what they are. Like on World Hypnotism Day - Make it a point to discuss how our qualifications and ability to help is often misrepresented by mainstream organizations like the Mayo Clinic, WebMD, etc.

Deconstruct their ca-ca! Expose the bias of their writers- Are they trying to protect their readers or are they protecting their wallets and prestige?
Mock their list of side-effects. The list is quite accurate, but only if one is working with one of those unqualified dabblers. Point out the harm done to tens of thousands of people and their families by the installation of false memories was done by licensed shrinks and therapists misusing hypnosis! What the hell does where one did their internship or residency have to do with their hypnotic training, skills and abilities? Show them for what they are!

As long as we take this crap - We are the amateurs-

Love and Hugs,

Michael E.


James Hazlerig said:

It's fascinating how an apparently educational article reveals the bias of the writer.
Why preface the phrase "stage hypnosis" with the words "so-called?" Whether you like stage hypnosis or not, it exists. But "so-called" subtly casts aspersions.
The side-effects listed make it sound like it's a pill. That section fails to consider that a skilled hypnotist makes all of those so-called side-effects much less likely. (See how well "so-called" works?) Same thing with the "not everyone can go into trance." And why call it "trance-like?" Yeesh.

Then the writer seems to play both sides:

"Hypnosis isn't considered a treatment or a type of psychotherapy."

Awesome--the article recognizes that you don't have to be a psychologist or a doctor to do hypnosis.

But wait, the first question to ask when evaluating a hypnotherapist is "Do you have training in a field such as psychology, medicine, social work or dentistry?"

Dentistry? Really? Because a dentist knows a heck of a lot more than I do about hypnosis?

But that's the first question. Next is the question of state licensing--which varies greatly from state to state. It's credentialism once again. The third question is "Where did you do your internship or residency?" implying once again that only medical doctors should be doing this non-treatment, non-psychotherapy.

And the fourth question--fourth, way after whether the hypnotist has dental training--asks how much hypnosis training the hypnotist has. Because that's way less important than having spent years and year in dentistry school.

I have to agree with Saul. It's amateur hour.

James

P.S. On revisiting the list of adverse effects, it hits me that hypnosis sounds a lot like a drinking binge without the chance of waking up next to someone who looked better last night!

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Saul Rosenfeld on December 20, 2009 at 2:34pm

Michael,

It might amuse (or perhaps sadden?) you to hear that I wrote to the Mayo Clinic last year right after my book was published to offer them several complimentary (e.g. FREE!) copies, and they never even had the decency to let me know which department I should mail them to.
Oh, what a surprise...

Saul

www.HistoryOfHypnotism.com





Michael Ellner said:

My Friends,

Most people who read the Mayo BS will believe what they read and it will effect their decision making! You can bet the farm that 99.9% of the people who read Mayo's disinformation will not have the access to our comments or the ability to see this for the BS that it is
(That's right Mayo- It's BS and if you don't like it - Bring it on! - I am Michael Ellner in NYC)

Let's face it, these are the perceived experts and they are positioning us as QUACKS! Our job is to get out there and expose these fakers for what they are. Like on World Hypnotism Day - Make it a point to discuss how our qualifications and ability to help is often misrepresented by mainstream organizations like the Mayo Clinic, WebMD, etc.

Deconstruct their ca-ca! Expose the bias of their writers- Are they trying to protect their readers or are they protecting their wallets and prestige?
Mock their list of side-effects. The list is quite accurate, but only if one is working with one of those unqualified dabblers. Point out the harm done to tens of thousands of people and their families by the installation of false memories was done by licensed shrinks and therapists misusing hypnosis! What the hell does where one did their internship or residency have to do with their hypnotic training, skills and abilities? Show them for what they are!

As long as we take this crap - We are the amateurs-

Love and Hugs,

Michael E.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Melissa J. Roth on December 20, 2009 at 3:22pm

Approimately 4 1/2 years ago my daughter was at Mayo in Rochester for 3 very long weeks. I was not impressed. They had only recently added hypnotherapy to their services. When they found out what I did they asked me if I wanted to meet their hypnotherapist. Her approach to IBS hypnosis was not what I thought would work very well but it didn't matter because she hardly got any GI referrals. Her approach to Fibromyalgia was simplistic and wasn't working very well. I offered to train her in Fibromyalgia hypnosis and was told by the head of tne department that she was NOT allowed to take classes outside of the Mayo system. I'm not sure the same person is still working there but their committment to hypnosis is minimal and only to placate patients who insist on an alternative to conventional medicine. The Mayo bothers would be spinning in their graves if they knew the mindset of their current practitioners. This article was obviously written by someone who does not know hypnosis but was simply doing a literature search and pulled out sound bytes. Shame on the Mayo system.

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