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Could hypnotherapy work for labour?

There was a very interesting segment last week on Catalyst, the weekly science program on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). It concerned hypnosis, and the way it can be used to cure phobias, change personal behaviours and reduce the experience of pain. At one point, they showed a woman who had an acute allergy to anaesthetics, undergoing abdominal surgery with just hypnosis to block the pain.

There was a very brief suggestion that it could be used for labour and birth (really nothing more than an image of woman in labour) but it got me thinking. For years I have been very sceptical of hypnobirthing, given that there is no hard evidence that it works, and that it has the potential to create false expectations that may not be fulfilled.

The TV program made it clear that there are discernable differences in brain function when a person is hypnotised. Using brain scanning techniques, researchers showed that the bran received and registered sensations in a different way when the subject was under hypnosis, and that in some people this could be enough to block acute sensations such as pain.

It was also explained that hypnosis does not work for everyone. Ten percent of people are highly susceptible to hypnosis, an other ten percent will find they cannot be hypnotised at all and the rest will be somewhere in between. If hypnosis is to be used for any treatment, it is important to identify in advance those for whom the technique won’t work, before the treatment is begun. There will also be a number of people who may find it is not as effective as hoped.

The other important point that I noted was that the subjects had been fully hypnotised before the post-hypnotic suggestions were made. The hypnosis was administered by fully qualified medical or forensic hypnotists, who were trained professionals and very experienced.

The reason I am still sceptical about hypnobirthing is that as I understand it, the subjects (pregnant women) are not put under full hypnosis but undergo training where suggestions are made and affirmations are learned and absorbed. This may be enough for the very suggestible (the ten percent who are very easily hypnotised) but may work less well for the majority. I also question the qualifications of the “therapist” in these sessions - I am not aware of any locally who are medically qualified or professionally trained (in the sense of having an accredited, professional qualification).

Perhaps hypnobirthing will work for enough people to justify its hype and promotion - there seem to be enough “testimonials” to keep business turning over. If it works, then some women will find labour is manageable without medications. If it doesn’t then there is the risk that women will blame themselves (“ I didn’t believe in it enough”, or “I didn’t practice enough”) rather than the technique or its avid promoters. A result like this could very easily undermine a woman’s self confidence, right when she needs it most.

Posted by andrea at August 22, 2005 03:05 PM