Autoimmune disorders and emotional health

An autoimmune disorder arises due to overactivity of the immune system, in which the body attacks and damages it's own tissues. Such conditions include rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, IBD, MS, Guillain-Barre, psoriasis, Graves' disease, Hashimoto's thyroiditis, Myasthnia gravis and vasculitis.

Obviously if any of these conditions are suspected, it is very important to seek proper medical advice by visiting your GP who will be able to refer you to the relevant specialist. However once a diagnosis has been reached hypnotherapy can provide a safe and effective complementary treatment to help a patient cope with a health condition.

Autoimmune conditions are complex, with many factors involved including genetic, environmental, hormonal, immunological factors and stress. Many people with autoimmune disease experience flare ups during or following stressful periods in their lives. Unfortunately, not only does stress contribute to the onset of disease, but the disease itself causes significant stress in the patient, creating a vicious cycle.

If you can reduce your stress or anxiety levels it may be possible to see an improvement in symptoms. Studies have shown that stress management techniques can reduce levels of stress hormones in your body. These hormones have been shown to be linked with inflammatory processes in the body, that is they contribute to the inflammation behind many autoimmune diseases.

Hypnotherapy techniques can provide a truly effective means of stress management and of reducing stress. Hypnotherapy for stress is extremely effective at triggering the antidote to the stress response – the relaxation response. Also, through hypnotherapy you can learn to respond in a more positive manner to the triggers of stress.

Another approach is mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) techniques to help reduce the impact of stress. MBSR involves simple exercises such as concentrating on one’s breathing to train the body and brain to remain calm during stress. MBSR may be beneficial to those with chronic inflammatory conditions by changing the way they relate to their condition and their symptoms, and in so doing, may reduce the vicious cycle of stress and symptoms.