Hypnotise your irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) away

Intestinal hypnosis uses deep relaxation and special stimuli in an effort to calm the digestive tract. — dpa

Your gastrointestinal tract is acting up, but you can’t nail down any problem in your diet?

Believe it or not, hypnosis may just be able to help you get a grip on the symptoms, say gastroenterologists.

Some people’s gastrointestinal tract is in constant turmoil.

They experience recurring pain and discomfort such as stomach cramps, bloating and constipation, which can seriously impair their quality of life if the condition persists.

Sometimes, medical examinations find no physiological cause for the symptoms.

The diagnosis is then often irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), estimated to affect about one in 10 people globally.

“Hypnotherapy has been shown to help in such cases,” says gastroenterologist Dr Martin Storr from the Gauting-Starnberg Internist Centre near Munich, Germany.

It’s a recommended therapy option in both German and international guidelines on IBS.

Psychological stress often has an adverse effect on the gastrointestinal tract, with a key role being played by the nerve cells lining the intestines – the body’s so-called second brain.

IBS is characterised by sustained disruption of what’s known as the brain-gut axis – the bidirectional communication between the central and enteric nervous system.

Hypnotherapy homes in on this axis.

In Dr Storr’s estimation, it’s currently the only known IBS therapy that targets both its causes and its symptoms.

This, he says, “allows IBS symptoms to be controlled much more effectively over the long term.”

You can be talked through the hypnosis by specialised therapists.

But you can also learn the procedure on your own at home with the help of audio programmes,” says Dr Storr, who designs such programmes.

This is how it works: Find a quiet place, and ideally, lie down.

Put a pillow under your head, and if you like, cover yourself with a blanket.

Then start listening to the programme and follow the instructions.

The meditative elements and breathing exercises will put you into a therapeutic trance.

Once you’ve reached a state of deep relaxation, the programme has you conjure up various images.

For example, you imagine your gut as a gently flowing river under the shining sun.

Then you may picture a pair of hands lying on your abdomen, radiating warmth into your gastrointestinal tract and arousing a feeling of well-being.

“At the conclusion of the suggestions (of soothing imagery), there’s a brief wake-up phase before you return to wakefulness,” says Dr Storr.

Shortly before going to sleep is, in his view, the best time for hypnotherapy.

It should be practised daily for the first four to six weeks, or a least five times a week, he advises.

Sometimes, professional guidance is called for, as when IBS is associated with a traumatic experience such as abuse or the sudden death of a loved one, says hypnotherapist Michael Bala.

In these cases, the underlying conflict needs to be addressed therapeutically, in addition to the gastrointestinal tract being brought into balance with hypnosis.

Studies have shown that hypnotherapy can have beneficial effects.

“The patient must actively participate and buy into the therapy though,” Bala says.

If you think it’s hocus-pocus, it won’t help you.

Dr Storr agrees, and says IBS can be treated most effectively with hypnotherapy, in combination with a change of diet and reduction of stress. – dpa