HYPNOSIS IN THE TREATMENT OF MIGRAINE HEADACHE

[IMPORTANT: In the treatment of migraine, hypnotherapy should be used in cases that

have been screened by a thorough physical examination to establish the diagnosis. Pain is often
a warning signal, a symptom of an underlying disorder that needs to be treated. Therefore in all
cases involving the management of pain chronic as well as acute pain -- get a medical referral.
Hypnosis should be used only when there is certainty that there is no underlying organic
disorder.]

It is estimated that 8% - 10% of the population suffers from some form of migraine
headache. Over $13 billion is spent annually on treatment costs and lost workdays as a result of
debilitating pain.
The cost of chronic pain to society is astronomical; to the sufferer, its effects can be devastating
The most frequent cause of headache is muscular tension resulting in pain. The ",
cause ofmrgraine headache is 'contraction of blood vessels that go to the scalp and brain
followed by dilation and inflammation that produces pain. Vision disturbances occur when
blood vessels narrow. Headache begins when they widen again. Migraine is an intense,
incapacitating headache, accompanied by other symptoms, that occurs repeatedly in some
persons.
The nature of attacks varies between persons and from time to time in the same person.
Symptoms ofa classic migraine attack appear in the following sequence:
* Inability to see clearly I followed by seeing bright spots and zigzag patterns. Visual
disturbances may last several minutes or several hours, but they disappear once the headache
begins,
* Dull, boring pain in the temple that spreads to the entire side of the head. Pain becomes
intense and throbbing,
* Nausea and vomiting. In other types of migraine attack these symptoms may not be present.
Some persons become pale, with bloodshot eyes and a runny nose or eyes. While overseeing
experiments at the Menninger Clinic in biofeedback and autogenic training9 (a form of self-
hypnosis), researchers Elmer and Alyce Green inadvertently made a djscovery that has
revolutionized the treatment of migraine. Greens had combined an autogenic training technique
(my hands-are-warm) with biofeedback, and were testing a group of volunteers. The slightest
increase in hand-warming would give the volunteers a signal. During the training session one of
the volunteers, a housewife, began to have a migraine headache, Still hooked up to the
equipment, the Greens allowed her to continue the experiment in a darkened room. The Greens
were surprised to see the hand-temperature indicator increase by 10 degrees. The volunteer said
that her headache vanished the moment her hands warmed with a surge of blood. During a
migraine attack, the blood vessels in the head dilate, and the blood vessels in the hands contract.
Normal hand temperature is about 90 degrees; migraine sufferers may have a hand temperature
as low as 70 degrees.
Using self-hypnosis and visualization techniques, a number of subjects were able to
increase their hand temperatures by fifteen to twenty degrees. This redistribution of the blood
resulted in fewer migraine attacks and less severe headaches.
 Crasilneck and Hall have reviewed the literature of hypnosis in the treatment of
headache. The usual duration for treatment of recurrent headache by hypnosis is about 3 months
(weekly visits), and the success rate seem comparable to that for smoking cessation. The
migraine sufferer is taught to use self-hypnosis as soon as there are indications of a
pending..headache. The client is instructed to use visualization and imagine the head become
cooler and the hands becoming warmer. This will bring the resulting blood flow away from the
head.
SCRIPT FOR MIGRAINE HEADACHES: Hypnotize the client to light trance or
deeper. Then say... You are now deeply relaxed... Relaxing more and more. ... Relaxed muscles
mean a more relaxed body. . The blood flow can move more readily to parts of the body where
it is needed... as the muscles of the scalp... the head and the neck relax.
The more the muscles relax ... the Less pressure there is as a source of discomfort...
Those muscles in the neck are re1axing ... letting go even more... muscles are becoming loose...
relaxed ... and flexible. The neck muscles are becoming loose... relaxed... flexible.
Now the muscles at the base of your skull are letting go and relaxing letting go and
relaxing... becoming loose... relaxed... flexible... Now your forehead and temples are relaxing,
letting go, letting go... relaxing more and more.
The less pressure there is... the easier it is to dissipate a headache once it gets started... or
to prevent it entirely. As the muscles of your scalp... temples... and... jaw relax... you feel the
tightness going away... And with this relaxation you are beginning to feel so good, you are
feeling better and better... Now your forehead and temples are re1axing... letting go, letting go...
The muscles are relaxing and you are feeling light and free... as the relaxation grows deeper and
deeper.
Now breathe deeply... and hold your breath for a moment of time... and as you slowly
exhale ... let all of the muscles of the scalp, the head, and the neck relax... letting go, letting go...
As these muscles relax you are feeling so much better... so very much better and as the relaxation
grows deeper and deeper, feel even better.
While you continue to relax, at the same time visualize yourself outdoors under a blue
sky with a bright sun: The warm light from the sun is directly above and it is shining down on
your body. ... Your attention has now shifted to a gentle cool breeze blowing on your face... You
can hear the wind, you can feel it on the top of your head. ... The coolness is now slowly
descending from above and your entire head feels cool... all the way down to your shoulders...
As you breathe the cool, icy air and feel it entering your nostrils... it is so cold that you develop
an icy feeling inside your head as well as the icy feeling outside your head... This tingling
numbness now enables you to filter the hurt out of the comfort, by focusing more on the
numbness than on the discomfort
At the same time imagine that the sun is shining brightly on the rest of your body...
Relax, while your head and neck are cold and numb ... you experience the warmth of the sun on
the rest of your body... You especially notice the penetrating rays of the sun warming your
hands... Feel the light from the sun beginning to penetrate the skin... and the muscles... and the
nerves... and the bones in your hands from the wrist to the tips of the fingers. ... Both hands are
getting warmer and warmer... experience this warmth
You now have a contradictory experience: the icy cool breeze is cooling your head, but
the penetrating rays of the sun is warming your hands... This contradictory experience neutralizes
the extreme sensations that take place with the migraine... and by doing that ... you bring about a
sense of relief. ... Do the self-hypnosis procedure you were taught to maintain this feeling of
coolness in your head and warmth in your hands... and in this way you can develop a new sense
of mastery over your headaches.