Research and studies

The solution focused approach I use at My Mind Hypnotherapy is informed by neuroscience. Here are just some of the research and studies that inform the approach
 

What's been good this week?

Martin Seligman of the University of Pennsylvania asked 411 people to  write down three good things every day. After just one week of doing this the group registered as happier, and these levels continued to be high six months later.  In another of his studies, Seligman worked with  people with depression. Again, he asked them to write down three good things each day. Within just 15 days, 94% moved from severely depressed to mildly or moderately depressed. 

This demonstrates the power of focusing on the positive things, no matter how small they might be. It is part of the reason why each My Mind Hypnotherapy session  begins with the question, "What's been good this week?"

 

It's not the events in our lives that give us difficult feelings, it's the way we think about them

Mauricio Delgardo and Megan Speer of Rutgers University, took two groups of people and put them in a stressful situation by asking them to put their hands in buckets of iced water for a set period of time. One group were instructed to do this whilst thinking about something positive, such as being on holiday. The other group were instructed to think about something neutral whilst putting their hands in the icy water, for example being in a supermarket. At the end of the study the researchers tested the levels of the stress hormone cortisol in the participants. The group that thought positively whilst in the stressful situation showed they had 85% less cortisol than the group that was thinking more neutral thoughts.

In hypnotherapy sessions I explain what's happening in the brain when we experience certain feelings and often explain that it's not what we experience in our lives that give us difficult feelings, but how we think about them. This study illustrates that. It also shows how focusing on the positives keeps stress levels low, regardless of the situation we are in.

 

Imagination and reality

The Alvaro Pascual Leone study at Harvard took two groups of students. One group practiced playing a simple tune on a piano, while the other group simply imagined playing that same tune. Regardless of if the students had practiced the tune on a piano or just imagined it, there was little difference in how well they could actually play the tune.

This is one of many studies that show how powerful our imagination is in building pathways in the brain, enabling us to achieve new things. This is used in My Mind Hypnotherapy sessions. Clients build a positive picture around achieving the next step on their journey and imagining that it's actually happening. After spending time in trance they find it relatively easy to actually do.

 

Smaller steps towards a bigger goal

Masicampo and Baumeister found that having an unfinished goal causes intrusive thoughts. This is stress inducing and causes problems with focusing on tasks associated with logical thinking. However, taking time to make plans to achieve the goal, temporarily counteracts the negative effect. When people act on those  plans and work towards their goals find they have a clearer head and were no longer bothered by intrusive thoughts.

In My Mind Hypnotherapy sessions plans will be made on what the next step towards achieving a bigger goal might be.

 

Deciding the next step on the journey

Studies inform the best and most effective way of doing this. David Rock in his book 'Your Brain at Work' explains how  when change is imposed on a person, the brain sees it as a threat and generates negative feelings from the amygdala. Dr Jeffery M Schwartz, M.D. Research Psychiatrist at UCLA School of Medicine, looked at the neuroscience behind David Rock's book, supporting what is written.

Diana Tamar and Jason Mitchel of Harvard University found, by using MRI technology, that when we express and use our own opinions, we experience a dopamine release. This is a feel good chemical of the brain that makes us feel rewarded.

This is reflected in My Mind Hypnotherapy sessions by ensuring the client decides on the next steps in their journey. If the step was imposed on them it would cause a level of stress. But by allowing the client to form their own they are rewarded with a motivating dopamine release.

 

And who would be pleased with that?

The Framingham Heart Study followed 4,739 individuals for 20 years. They found that happiness extends to three degrees of separation (the friends of our friends). It spreads from person to person and not just because we are like-minded people. This means when someone becomes happier, it increases the probability of their friends that live within a mile becoming happier by 25%.

In sessions I ask clients what they want to achieve next. We build a plan around that and when we recap it I ask, "And who would be pleased with that?" When the client is happy with the changes they are making in their life, that happiness ripples out to the people around them. The client is at the centre of the changes they are making.

 

Listening to a hypnotherapy track at night

Researcher Sid Kouider of Paris used brain scan techniques to explore the brain. He found that during sleep the brain is actively engaged in reviewing & storing memories. The brain was found to process information and extract meaning from acoustically presented material, prepare a response & come to a decision.

My Mind Hypnotherapy clients receive a track to listen to at night. It really supports the sessions and acts as a mini session between appointments.

 

 

 

 

Credentials: I hold a Hypnotherapy in Practice Diploma, (HPD), a Diploma in Solution Focused Hypnotherapy, (DSFH), and I am a member of the AfSFH, (Association for Solution Focussed Hypnotherapists). I hold a clear DBS check and I am fully insured with Holistic Insurance Services.

Disclaimer. Whilst solution focused hypnotherapy is based in research and can be a great tool to support people to make life changes, results cannot be guaranteed and may vary from one individual to another.

 

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