Abstract
Hypnosis is used as part of a psychological approach in dealing with phobic patients. The patient focuses on the stimuli of images offered by the therapist's voice. The critical faculty is bypassed, and selective thinking is established. The induction is the choice of the therapist, and imagery is introduced using numerical concepts associated with left-brain-related logic rather than right-brain-related nonverbal emotionality.1,2 There is an emotional component in the perception of pain, and this is a large factor in the development of dental phobia.3 Clinical skill and a sympathetic manner are not sufficient to ensure absence of pain perception in the patient: there must be a lack of awareness of any of the stimuli of dentistry. The hypnotic diversion of attention from dental treatment, aiming at the elimination of the emotional perception of pain, is described in this article.
Full text
PDF
Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
- Crasilneck H. B., Hall J. A. Clinical hypnosis in problems of pain. Am J Clin Hypn. 1973 Jan;15(3):153–161. doi: 10.1080/00029157.1973.10402238. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Nathan P. W. Pain and nociception in the clinical context. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 1985 Feb 19;308(1136):219–226. doi: 10.1098/rstb.1985.0022. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Sperry R. W. Hemisphere deconnection and unity in conscious awareness. Am Psychol. 1968 Oct;23(10):723–733. doi: 10.1037/h0026839. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]