Evidence-Based Hypnotherapy Research

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Evidence-Based Hypnotherapy Research

Insomnia

  1. Hypnotherapy for insomnia: A randomized controlled trial comparing generic and disease‑specific suggestions (Lam et al., 2018) — This RCT found that hypnotherapy (generic and disease-specific) produced similar improvements in sleep and daytime functioning. PubMed+1

  2. Hypnotherapy and insomnia: A narrative review of the literature (2022) — Reviewed 25 studies (10 case, 11 RCTs, 4 pre/post studies) and concluded that while results are promising, key methodological elements are still lacking. ScienceDirect+1

  3. Hypnosis Intervention Effects on Sleep Outcomes: A Systematic Review (2018) — Examined 24 studies: about 58% reported benefits on sleep outcomes, though methodological issues remain. PubMed

 

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)

  1. The Efficacy of Hypnotherapy in the Treatment of Irritable Bowel Syndrome: A Meta‑analysis (2014) — Found that hypnotherapy improved abdominal pain by a standardised mean difference of −0.83 at 3 months. PMC+1

  2. Gut‑Directed Hypnotherapy for Irritable Bowel Syndrome (2024) — Recent systematic review: 12 studies, 1,158 patients; gut-directed hypnotherapy was superior to comparators for global IBS symptoms and pain. PubMed+1

  3. Systematic review: the effectiveness of hypnotherapy in the management of irritable bowel syndrome (2006) — Earlier review, cautious conclusion: most studies showed improvement but evidence quality was limited. NCBI

 

Migraine / Headache

  1. Systematic Review of the Effectiveness of Hypnosis for the Management of Headache (2018) — Found 8 studies: hypnosis (with relaxation/imagery) was effective in reducing headache activity in migraine sufferers. PubMed

  2. Effectiveness of Mindful Hypnotherapy on Psychological Inflexibility, Pain Acceptance, Headache Disability and Intensity in Females with Chronic Migraine Headache: A Randomized Clinical Trial (2022) — RCT showing mindful hypnotherapy reduced headache intensity significantly in chronic migraine. PubMed

  3. Effect of an Online Hypnosis Intervention in Reducing Migraine Headache Symptoms (2019) — Found an online hypnosis intervention helped reduce migraine duration in sufferers. PubMed

 

Phobias

  1. Hypnotherapy for agoraphobia—Feasibility and efficacy study (RCT) (2023) — A more recent RCT showing hypnotherapy was more effective than waitlist for reduction in anxiety symptoms in agoraphobia. Frontiers

  2. The effectiveness of hypnosis for the treatment of anxiety disorders (2007) — Older systematic review: concluded that evidence for anxiety/phobic disorders is insufficient (only a few RCTs, low quality). NCBI+1

 

Anxiety & Stress

  1. Randomised trial: Randomized trial estimating effects of hypnosis versus progressive muscle relaxation on test anxiety in medical students (2022) — Found hypnosis more effective than PMR for test anxiety in students. PMC

  2. The role of hypnosis in reducing anxiety and its physiological correlates – a systematic review (2024) — A systematic review/meta-analysis exploring hypnosis effects on anxiety and stress responses. Frontiers

  3. But: The earlier review (2007) found insufficient evidence for generalised anxiety disorders. See above. NCBI