Questions & Answers

  • Helpful Resources
  • Get Well Now
  • Improve your heart health


  • Helpful Resources:

    Visit these websites for topics, questions and answers and general information regarding hypnosis, hypnotherapy and therapeutic hypnosis.


     

    University of Maryland Medical Center
    This site includes an interesting article about the mind-body connection.


     

    American Academy of Family Physicians
    This site provides a good overview of hypnosis, including medical conditions that may respond well to hypnosis.


     

    Newsweek
    This article on the mind-body connection quantifies how the medical community is recognizing the import of the mind-body connection. The article features great statistics on how many Americans use “alternative” therapies, how much the government is spending on research.


     

    WebMD
    This popular site presents information on health care, general medicine and alternative therapy options, including hypnosis and therapeutic hypnosis .


     

    More information about alternative healing programs:
    www.acupunctureherbalsolutions.com
    www.drweil.com
    www.drweilselfhealing.com


     

    WebMD Article
    WebMD article on hypnosis treating Irritable Bowel Syndrome –This article communicates how hypnotherapy was used to treat patients suffering from IBS with impressive results.


    If you have a question that you would like answered, please email it to Jtwhite@CenterForMindBodyHealing.com.


     

    Get Well Now

    Using the mind-body connection to achieve optimal health

    By James T. White

    Published in Tidewater Women, March 2007 Edition

    Tidewater Women Magazine

    Despite the emergence of technology that’s intended to simplify our lives, most everyone, women in particular, have too many demands on their time – work, family, friends and community involvement. While Americans are more productive than ever, our health is suffering. To achieve more balance in their lives and improve overall wellness, many people are discovering the power of the mind-body connection through activities like yoga, meditation and therapeutic hypnosis. These practices, though only recently embraced by western cultures, have been proven to restore physical, emotional and spiritual health, even when other approaches have failed.


     

    What is the Mind-Body Connection?

    According to familydoctor.org, the mind-body connection describes how our bodies respond to the way we think, feel and act. When we’re stressed, anxious or upset, our bodies often try to tell us that something isn’t right. For example, high blood pressure or a stomach ulcer might develop after a particularly stressful event, such as the death of a loved one. Although this may seem logical, the mind-body connection has emerged as one of the fastest growing areas in health research today. David Felton, a neurobiologist with the University of Rochester earned a MacArthur “genius grant” for exploring the relationship between our emotions and our physical health, and Newsweek recently devoted its entire “Health for Life” report to this growing field. According to a recent government poll, almost half of all Americans use mind-body techniques. The respondents embrace practices ranging from deep breathing and progressive muscle relaxation to meditation, and guided imagery and hypnosis. One of the most exciting applications for establishing good health is therapeutic hypnosis.


     

    What is Therapeutic Hypnosis?

    Therapeutic hypnosis refers to a technique of engaging a person’s unconscious through deep relaxation – allowing them to more quickly identify, understand and overcome emotional and behavioral challenges. Therapeutic hypnosis goes beyond traditional therapy by working with the unconscious mind - which provides a comprehensive record of a person’s motivations, experiences and conditioned responses. Combining the healing powers of hypnosis with the power of counseling, therapeutic hypnosis enables people to build self esteem, manage emotions and stress, and create healing.

    According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, therapeutic hypnosis “can actually teach people how to master their own states of awareness. By doing so they can affect their own bodily functions and psychological responses.” Simply put, therapeutic hypnosis allows us to access the unconscious so we can identify the root of certain behaviors and make swift and profound changes in our lives.


     

    How Does Therapeutic Hypnosis Work?

    During hypnosis, a person's body relaxes while his or her awareness become more focused. Like other relaxation techniques, hypnosis decreases blood pressure and heart rate, and alters certain types of brain wave activity. In this relaxed state, a person will feel very at ease physically yet fully aware as they access the unconscious.

    As the University of Maryland Medical Center describes, in hypnotherapy the trained therapist guides you to the unconscious and the unconscious leads you to the first reaction, separating the memory from the learned behavior. Once a person discovers the origin of their individual challenge they can address it from a position of strength, and everything on the conscious level that supported the problem falls apart for an immediate and lasting change.


     

    What are the benefits of Therapeutic Hypnosis?

    According to WebMD, “[Therapeutic hypnosis] can improve the success of other treatments for many conditions, including: phobias, fears and anxiety; sleep disorders; depression; stress; post-trauma anxiety; and grief and loss.” It has also proven effective in helping people to manage pain and for people with severe health symptoms.

    Because of the changing and healing powers of hypnosis, we can reduce medical costs, improve physical health, and restore balance to our lives.


     

    Techniques to Improve your Heart Health

    Local expert offers Xpress Destress package for busy professionals to reduce job stress, improve health and increase productivity

    By James T. White

    February 2007

    New research suggests that a midday nap may reduce the risk of fatal heart problems, especially among working men. While an afternoon “siesta” is common in many European cultures, corporate America is not likely to embrace this practice –despite its proven health benefits. To help busy professionals manage stress, improve their overall health and ultimately increase workplace productivity, The Center for Mind Body Healing is introducing an Xpress Destress offer. The executive package includes four 30-minute sessions weekdays from 12-2 p.m., and teaches effective techniques for self-induced relaxation to improve overall wellness.

    “Even if we’re too busy to take a midday nap, we can learn how to reduce our own stress levels to create the same health benefits,” says James T. White, founder of Norfolk’s Center for Mind Body Healing. “The new research is exciting because it provides further evidence that our bodies really do respond to the way that we’re thinking and feeling.”

    In the study released by the Archives of Internal Medicine, researchers evaluated 23,681 healthy Greek men and women for an average of six years. Those who napped three times a week for 30 minutes had a 37% lower risk of dying from a heart attack or other heart problems compared to those who did not nap. Researchers factored in diet, exercise, smoking and other habits, and determined that napping seemed to offer the greatest health benefit.

    “The key to this research is that getting relief from job-related stress led to improved health,” White adds. “What we learn from this is that we’re empowered to improve our own health, and that relaxation in the midst of our hectic lives is the cornerstone of wellness. One of the most powerful tools to achieve this balance is through hypnotherapy.”

    According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, hypnotherapy “can actually teach people how to master their own states of awareness. By doing so they can affect their own bodily functions and psychological responses.” During hypnosis, a person's body relaxes while his or her awareness become more focused. Like other relaxation techniques, hypnosis decreases blood pressure and heart rate, and alters certain types of brain wave activity. In this relaxed state, a person will feel very at ease physically yet fully aware as they access the unconscious.

    During the Xpress Destress session, White explains that the first five minutes is spent discussing any specific concerns or issues that may be causing stress. Then, White works with the client to focus the mind in preparation for hypnosis. Once in a state of deep relaxation, an exchange takes place through the unconscious. White works with the client to uncover the resources inherent in the individual’s unconscious mind to replace feelings of stress with focus and tranquility. At the end of the session, the client shifts back to the conscious state and will immediately realize a heightened sense of awareness and the ability to manage stressful situations with a sense of relaxed composure. Once the client has harnessed the power of the unconscious mind, the personal health effects are powerful and long-lasting; employers also benefit from more relaxed, productive professionals.

    The Xpress Destress package includes four 30-minute sessions that may be scheduled between 12-2 p.m. on weekdays. The rate for single sessions is $55 or $199 for the four session package. Corporate and group rates may apply. For more information please contact The Center for Mind Body Healing at (757) 461-4589 or visit www.hypnosisvirginia.com.