IBS and Hypnosis Professor Peter Whorwell on Irritable bowel syndrome
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If you are suffering from Irritable Bowel Syndrome more commonly known as IBS then you will already be aware of how much it can affect your day to day life. It can become a cycle, because the stress that thinking about IBS can cause more IBS and it can be difficult to see a way out of this.
The symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) can often be reduced by changing your diet and lifestyle, and understanding the nature of how the condition is affecting you. The NHS website gives a great deal of good advice and help for dealing with IBS and it also explains how well using hypnotherapy works. http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Irritable-bowel-syndrome/Pages/Introduction.aspx
What are the IBS symptoms that many experience?
Do you ever feel that you have some or all of the following?
Abdominal pain and cramping - often relieved by emptying your bowels. A change in your bowel habits - such as diarrhoea, constipation, or sometimes both. Bloating and swelling of your abdomen. Excessive wind (flatulence). Or an urgent need to go to the toilet.
Reducing stress can be the key to moving forward
Because stress has been shown to be one of the biggest causes of IBS then learning how to reduce the amount of stress in your life may help lower the frequency and severity of your IBS symptoms.
From the NHS Direct website...
Hypnotherapy
Hypnotherapy has been shown to help some people with IBS reduce their symptoms of pain and discomfort. Hypnosis is used to change your unconscious mind's attitude towards your symptoms. You can have hypnotherapy as an outpatient in some NHS hospital pain clinics, or you can learn self-hypnosis techniques to do at home."
If you are lucky enough to have access to NHS support for your IBS do make sure that you ask your GP about this.
Professor Peter Whorwell and IBS Hypnotherapy
Professor of Medicine and Gastroenterology in the School of Medicine and Director of the South Manchester Functional Bowel Service, has discovered a way to treat Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) using hypnotherapy.
Professor Whorwell has been researching the use of gut-directed hypnosis for over 20 years. Most recently, 250 patients who have suffered from IBS for over two years were given twelve one-hour sessions, during which they were given an explanation of how the gut works and what causes their symptoms.
“IBS is ideal for treatment with hypnosis, as there is no structural damage to the body,” Professor Whorwell explained. “During the hypnotherapy, sufferers learn how to influence and gain control of their gut function, and then seem to be able to change the way the brain modulates their gut activity. The treatment has a success rate of about 70%, and Professor Whorwell believes that hypnotherapy, although it's labour-intensive, could be an extremely effective treatment for the condition; and a less expensive alternative to new, costly drugs coming onto the market. We’ve found it to help all the symptoms, whereas some of the drugs available reduce only a few,” he said. “As IBS can be a life-long condition it could clearly be a very valuable option for patients.”
How can I help you?
I work with clients who have IBS to help to teach them how to control the stress in their lives and then I can also help you to visualise how you would like to take control of your gut so that you can change how you deal with IBS.
Most clients who work with me can already start to see a difference after the first one or two sessions and on average I see my clients for 3-4 sessions in total although of course everyone is different.
A great way to start is just to take a few minutes for yourself to really let go and relax. You can listen to me free relaxation MP3 which takes just a few minutes to start that process of taking time for yourself and see how you can feel when you learn to let go. Just CLICK HERE
I work from my Hypnotherapy practice and also via Skype so that I can work with clients across the world. You can call me on 07980 233610 or email me on [email protected]