Sleep Problems

Hyp­no­sis can aid in the treat­ment of cer­tain sleep dis­or­ders, espe­cially bed-wetting and insom­nia. Although some may be skep­ti­cal of the effec­tive­ness of hyp­no­sis to treat sleep dis­or­ders, it has been used as a treat­ment for sleep dis­or­ders since the 1930s. Through hyp­no­sis, peo­ple can explore the under­ly­ing emo­tional issues that may be dis­rupt­ing their sleep.

The Prac­tice of Hyp­no­sis Therapies

When a per­son is hyp­no­tized, he enters a trance-like state in which the mind is open to sug­ges­tion within a nar­row focus. A ther­a­pist addresses the iden­ti­fied stresses or trig­gers dur­ing this stage to help induce a health­ful rest at home. A recep­tive patient can gain greater con­trol over sleep dis­or­ders with vocal encour­age­ment that addresses mem­o­ries, images and emotions.

In clin­i­cal sit­u­a­tions, an indi­vid­ual and ther­a­pist agree on what will hap­pen in the sug­ges­tive state. A ther­a­pist may keep the indi­vid­ual in a hyp­notic state to rein­force pos­i­tive behav­iors for later imple­men­ta­tion. These would include the abil­ity to reach a relaxed plateau at any time and strate­gies that reduce anx­i­ety.

Keep in mind that a hyp­notic sleep is dif­fer­ent from a nor­mal night’s cycle of deep sleep. Under hyp­no­sis, ther­a­pists and prac­ti­tion­ers can influ­ence the mind and the body. They can alter dis­or­ders and reach toward cre­at­ing effec­tive sleep pat­terns. Hyp­no­sis is an effec­tive way to re-train the mind to release the day’s wor­ries and con­cen­trate on a full night of rest. Whether a trou­bled sleeper sees a ther­a­pist or prac­tices self-hypnosis, this tech­nique helps peo­ple achieve a relaxed state of mind to reach deeper lev­els of sleep.

Treat­ing Sleep Dis­or­ders with Hypnosis

Indi­vid­u­als suf­fer from night­time issues in one of two ways: they expe­ri­ence trou­ble falling asleep and/or are sub­ject to repeated wak­en­ing through­out the night. The fol­low­ing sleep dis­or­ders respond well to hyp­no­sis therapies:
  • Bed wet­ting, a seri­ous issue for many ages, can occur as young as five and may taper off in the teens. Hyp­no­sis been proven to iden­tify and resolve behav­iors that cause bed wetting.
  • Insom­nia may be mild or crit­i­cal, tem­po­rary or long-standing. Depres­sion, emo­tional dis­tur­bances, exer­cise and med­ica­tion can induce this sleep dis­or­der. Insom­nia responds well to hypnotic-induced treatment.
  • Night­mares area sleep prob­lem that responds to hyp­no­sis. In the hyp­notic state, ther­a­pists calm the anx­i­ety or stress that may cause ter­ri­fy­ing dreams.
  • Sleep walk­ing, also known as som­nam­bu­lism, can occur at any age. It only occurs dur­ing deep sleep, rather than the final stage known as REM (rapid eye move­ment) when the brain is most active.
While doc­tors may pre­scribe hyp­no­sis alone, this treat­ment is gen­er­ally used in con­junc­tion with other treat­ments, such as med­ica­tion, ther­apy and/or sleep diaries.