Hypnosis has a proven track-record for
being effective in addressing common childhood concerns.
Children tend to be naturally responsive to
hypnosis thanks, in part, to their active imagination and their openness to try
new experiences.
Some examples of effective use of hypnosis
in children include academic performance, bedwetting, and sleep problems. These
topics were chosen to highlight some of the research in areas of concern for many
parents.
·
Academic performance
o
Hypnosis was used with 13 and 14-year olds to help with exam
anxiety and resulted in a significant drop in test anxiety and 10-15% increase
in academic performance. http://medind.nic.in/daa/t11/i2/daat11i2p337.pdf.
·
Bedwetting
o
Hypnosis was useful in achieving dry beds in 72% for children aged
from 5 to 16-years after one month and had a 68% success rate 9 months later. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8259762
o
Hypnosis was significantly
effective in helping with nocturnal enuresis in boys aged from 8-13 years over
a 6 month period. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1469-7610.1985.tb01635.x/abstract
o
Hypnosis was effective in
helping 75% (9 out of 12) 8 to 16-year-old boys with nocturnal bedwetting. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14983195
·
Sleep Issues
o
In a study of 70 children as
young as 7-years-old, 90% of the children experiencing delay of sleep onset reported
a reduction in the amount of time to fall asleep. Of 21 children who reported nighttime
awakenings, 52% reported a resolution of the awakenings and 38% reported less
awakenings following hypnosis. 87% of the children who had “body issues” (ex:
chest pains, habit cough), reported an improvement or resolution of these
problems. http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2431/6/23
o
Four children, between 8-12
years, with sleep-terrors underwent hypnosis.
After 2-3 years, the children remained asymptomatic. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1580230
o
Thirty-six clients, aged
between 6-71 years, used hypnosis for parasomnia (sleep disorders including
bed-wetting, sleep walking, night terrors, chronic movements). 45.4% were free from parasomnia one month
after hypnosis, 42.4% after 18-months and 40.5% were symptom free after five
years. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1978312/
Naturally, there are many more areas where
the use of hypnosis is applicable, including ADD/ADHD, sports performance,
fears/phobias (including fear of the dark), nail biting, thumb sucking, teeth
grinding, hair pulling, pain control and so on. Please note that a Doctor’s
referral will be required for many of these issues to ensure that hypnosis is
appropriate, not contraindicated and that the causes of the issues are not
physiological.
Hypnosis is also a wonderful tool in
helping parents and caregivers adjust or cope with the responsibilities of
balancing family, work and other responsibilities. In our hectic lives, we oftentimes forget to
give ourselves the care we deserve.
Hypnosis can offer stress reduction strategies,
self-confidence/self-esteem or other coping skills that are essential for the
parent.
For more information about children and
hypnosis, please feel free to visit: http://www.med.umich.edu/yourchild/topics/hypnosis.htm
Derrick Barnes
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