Delivery of a Group Hypnosis Protocol for Managing Chronic Pain in Outpatient Integrative Medicine

Although strong evidence exists for using individual hypnosis to treat pain, evidence regarding group applications is limited. This project evaluated changes in multiple outcome measures in persons with chronic pain treated with 8 weeks of group hypnosis. Eighty-five adults with diverse chronic pain...

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Published inInternational journal of clinical and experimental hypnosis Vol. 70; no. 3; pp. 227 - 250
Main Authors McKernan, Lindsey C., Finn, Michael T. M., Crofford, Leslie J., Kelly, A. Gracie, Patterson, David R., Jensen, Mark P.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published England Routledge 03.07.2022
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects
Adult
Chronic pain
Chronic Pain - therapy
Complementary therapies
fibromyalgia
group
Humans
Hypnosis
Hypnosis - methods
Integrative Medicine
Outpatients
Pain
Pain Management - methods
psychotherapy
widespread chronic pain
Complementary therapies
hypnosis
widespread chronic pain
psychotherapy
fibromyalgia
group
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Summary:Although strong evidence exists for using individual hypnosis to treat pain, evidence regarding group applications is limited. This project evaluated changes in multiple outcome measures in persons with chronic pain treated with 8 weeks of group hypnosis. Eighty-five adults with diverse chronic pain etiologies completed an 8-session, structured group hypnosis treatment. Pain intensity, pain interference, and global health were evaluated at baseline, posttreatment, and 3- and 6-months posttreatment. Linear mixed effects models assessed changes in outcomes over time. In a model testing, all three outcome measures simultaneously, participants improved substantially from pre- to posttreatment and maintained improvement across follow-up. Analyses of individual outcomes showed significant pre- to posttreatment reductions in pain intensity and interference, which were maintained for pain intensity and continued to improve for pain interference across follow-up. The findings provide compelling preliminary evidence that a group format is an effective delivery system for teaching individual skills in using hypnosis for chronic pain management. Larger randomized controlled trials are warranted to demonstrate equivalence of outcomes between treatment modes.
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ISSN:0020-7144
1744-5183
DOI:10.1080/00207144.2022.2096455