My guest this week is clinical health psychologist Dr. Mark Weisberg. We talked about his specialty in clinical hypnosis, and how it can make treatment more effective. I’m sure you’ve heard of hypnosis, but the way Mark uses it might be different from the images that come to mind when we hear the word. We talked about using it to help treat stress, anxiety, irritable bowel syndrome, and other conditions. Other topics we explored included:

• How clinical hypnosis differs from popular depictions of hypnosis
• Hypnosis as a directed use of attention
• The three components of hypnosis: absorption; suggestibility; and dissociation
• When hypnosis was developed
• The ability of hypnosis to produce changes in the brain
• The artificial and outdated assumption that the mind and body are separate
• Psychoneuroimmunology
• Neuroplasticity
• How clinical hypnosis takes advantage of natural hypnotic phenomena, like altered perception of pain
• The role of hypnosis as an augmenter of therapies
• How hypnosis can help with a dysregulated immune system
• The effectiveness of hypnosis for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
• Using hypnosis to treat trauma and PTSD
• The strong correlation between chronic pain and digestive problems, and the common denominator of autonomic nervous system dysregulation
• The balancing effects of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems
• The power in knowing that anxiety is treatable
• Secondary fear, also known as anxiety sensitivity, or fear of fear
• Neurohormonal retraining
• Learning how to befriend our body and anxiety sensations so they’re no longer a threat
• How spirituality can fit into psychotherapy
• Our ability to self-hypnotize: “All hypnosis is self-hypnosis”
• Integrative medicine and empowerment

Mark’s book on treating IBS and other gut problems with drugs is available here: Trust Your Gut (affiliate link). 

To learn more about clinical hypnosis, visit the website of the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis.

Mark Weisberg, PhD, ABPP, is a board-certified clinical health psychologist in Minneapolis. He’s an adjunct faculty member at the University of Minnesota, and a fellow of the American Psychological Association, the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis, and the American Academy of Clinical Health Psychology.

Mark is also past president of the Minnesota Society of Clinical Hypnosis, and past vice-president of the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis.

He’s worked at the Minnesota Head and Neck Pain Clinic in St. Paul for over 30 years, and he has an independent practice in Minneapolis.

Mark teaches nationally and internationally on mind-body medicine and treatment of chronic physical conditions, and he has many publications in the medical, dental, and psychological scientific literature.

He’s the co-author of Trust Your Gut: Get Lasting Healing from IBS and Other Chronic Digestive Problems Without Drugs, which is a self-help book on integrative treatment of digestive disorders.

To learn more about Mark and the work he does, visit his website.