Tim Brunson DCH

Welcome to The International Hypnosis Research Institute Web site. Our intention is to support and promote the further worldwide integration of comprehensive evidence-based research and clinical hypnotherapy with mainstream mental health, medicine, and coaching. We do so by disseminating, supporting, and conducting research, providing professional level education, advocating increased level of practitioner competency, and supporting the viability and success of clinical practitioners. Although currently over 80% of our membership is comprised of mental health practitioners, we fully recognize the role, support, involvement, and needs of those in the medical and coaching fields. This site is not intended as a source of medical or psychological advice. Tim Brunson, PhD

The relation of self-reports of hypnotic depth in self-hypnosis to hypnotizability and imagery produ



The relationship of self-reports of hypnotic depth obtained during self-hypnosis to hypnotizability and to the kinds of imagery produced during self-hypnosis is investigated. The sample consisted of 22 highly hypnotizable Ss who practiced self-hypnosis in 1-hour daily sessions for 4 weeks and kept daily journals in which they detailed the contents of their self-hypnosis experiences. The journals were coded for imagery production by scoring for both reality-oriented and primary process imagery. Ss had been taught to monitor their hypnotic depth using a slightly revised version of the Extended North Carolina Scale (ENCS) of Tart (1979). Previously, ENCS has been used only with heterohypnotic Ss. The self-reports of depth using ENCS correlated highly with hypnotizability as measured by the Revised Stanford Profile Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility. Form I of Weitzenhoffer and Hilgard (1967) and with imagery production. Results demonstrate that ENCS scores are also a valid indicator of self-hypnotic depth among highly hypnotizable Ss. Furthermore, they indicate that both hetero-hypnotizability and imagery production are related to self-hypnotic depth, but that the association between imagery and hypnotizability is due to their individual relationships to self-hypnotic depth.

Int J Clin Exp Hypn. 1989 Oct;37(4):290-304., Kahn SP, Fromm E, Lombard LS, Sossi M.

Breast biopsy and distress: feasibility of testing a Reiki intervention.



PURPOSE: The purpose of this randomized pilot was to determine feasibility of testing Reiki, a complementary therapy intervention, for women undergoing breast biopsy (BB). BACKGROUND: Increasingly women face the possibility of BB, the definitive test for breast cancer. Psychological distress associated with BB includes anxiety and depression. Reiki was proposed as an intervention to decrease anxiety and promote relaxation. METHOD: Thirty-two women scheduled for BB were randomized to Reiki intervention versus conventional care control. Anxiety and depression were evaluated using self-report questionnaires. FINDINGS: Analysis found no significant mean differences between groups over time. Comparably low baseline anxiety levels (possible selection bias) decreased naturally with time allowing little room for observing treatment effect. CONCLUSIONS: Reiki, when administered in the naturalistic setting of a complementary therapy office, did not suggest evidence of efficacy. An intervention offered within the bounds of the conventional care setting may be more feasible for addressing BB distress.

J Holist Nurs. 2007 Dec;25(4):238-48; discussion 249-51. Potter PJ. University of Washington School of Nursing.

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