It's been 30 years since I first began using hypnosis. For me, it's been a great therapeutic tool. As an adjunctive technique, hypnosis has allowed me to integrate several behavioral therapies that often form the basis of my treatment strategy.

My early education in its use taught me that hypnosis is a method of sustained, focused concentration. Hypnosis allows the subject to process information in a manner different from the way it is processed in the regular alert state. Because of the power of hypnosis, when integrated into a behavior modification strategy it can be used in various ways to treat many disorders.
​
For many people, including plenty of mental health professionals, hypnosis brings to mind mental weakness, mind control, sleep, or loss of consciousness. Women are often considered more hypnotizable than men. Those are myths. Hypnosis is neither mind control nor a strategy for the weak-willed. Clearly, women are not more hypnotizable than men, and finally, the old wives' tale that people go to sleep or lose consciousness when they are hypnotized is just that-an old wives' tale. On the contrary, a hypnotized person enters a highly alert state in which the person's focus or concentration is heightened. Continue reading.

Originally posted on Psychology Today(US).

What is stress?

​Whether it's a short-term frustration like a traffic jam or a major life event like divorce or job loss, psychological stress can affect our bodies.

Stress can be highly personal, with one person's unpleasant experience another's exhilarating adventure. And a little bit of stress is thought to be good for memory and motivation. However, about 70% of doctor visits and 80% of serious illnesses may be exacerbated or linked to stress.

Here are 25 ways that stress can affect the body. The good news is that there is much you can do—exercise, meditation, and more—to reduce the impact of stress in your life. Continue reading.

Originally posted on Health.Com.

If your partner is stressed, the chances are high that you may suffer stress too, say researchers, including one of Indian-origin, who have found that stress is contagious.

The study, in mice, also showed that stress alters the brain on a cellular level.

"Brain changes associated with stress underpin many mental illnesses including PTSD (posttraumatic stress disorder), anxiety disorders and depression.

"Recent studies indicate that stress and emotions can be 'contagious'. Whether this has lasting consequences on the brain is not known," said Jaideep Bains, Professor, Physiology and Pharmacology at the University of Calgary.

For the study, published in the journal Nature Neuroscience, the research team studied the effects of stress in pairs of male and female mice. They removed one mouse from each pair and exposed it to a mild stress. Continue reading.

Originally posted on The Quint.