Scientists discover a way to make people more hypnotizable with electrical brain stimulation

Scientists have found a way to hypnotize people more easily – by pulsing electrical waves through their brains.

Hypnosis, an altered state of consciousness and increased relaxation that allows better focus and concentration, has been used for years to help with chronic conditions such as fibromyalgia – where patients experience extreme pain when they move their body.

But the treatment option – which aims to change the way a person experiences pain to reduce symptoms – has failed for many who are not hypnotized effectively.

Now, however, researchers have… Stanford University California says they have “cracked the code” to significantly increase the chances of a patient being hypnotized.

In a study of 80 people with fibromyalgia, half received electrical waves in the prefrontal cortex – an area at the front of the brain involved in processing pain.

The results showed that participants who received the electrical stimulation were significantly easier to hypnotize.

About four million adults in the US have fibromyalgia, while another 51 million suffer from chronic pain – pain they have struggled with for years without relief.

Many of these adults may also be overweight or obese, have an unhealthy diet or lack of exercise, and some are offered hypnosis as a treatment for their pain.

During a hypnosis session conducted by a psychiatrist, patients are described as being put into a trance-like state where they have improved their focus and concentration.

Patients are initially asked to relax and imagine a pleasant location, such as a beach or a tropical island. During the session, psychiatrists then suggest that they feel sensations associated with these locations when they experience pain.

Experts say this helps change the way patients perceive and respond to pain signals from their body.

Other treatments for fibromyalgia include painkillers, physical therapy, and lifestyle changes such as a better diet and more exercise.

For the study, participants were divided into two groups upon arrival at the clinic.

They received two 46-second applications of electrical waves to their brains, delivering 800 pulses during each session. The pulses are not thought to hurt or cause discomfort.

These were administered using a transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) device placed on the head.

The second group of participants underwent a placebo treatment in which a device was placed on their heads that mimicked the TMS device but did not emit any electrical pulses.

Researchers conducted a hypnosis session with each patient before and immediately after they were exposed to the TMS device.

They also did another hypnosis session an hour after the treatment.

The trial was double-blind, meaning neither patients nor researchers knew who was in which group.

The results showed that participants who received the treatment were significantly more likely to be hypnotized afterwards – but the effect wore off within an hour.

No effect was recorded in the placebo treatment group.

Doctors assessed how hypnotizable a patient was using a medically approved questionnaire.

Dr. Noah Williams, a psychiatrist involved in the study, said: 'We were pleasantly surprised that with 92 seconds of stimulation we were able to change a stable brain property that people have been trying to change for 100 years.

“We've finally cracked the code on how to do it.”

Dr. Afik Faerman, a psychiatrist who was also involved in the study, added: 'We know that hypnosis is an effective treatment for many different symptoms and disorders, especially pain.

'But we also know that not everyone benefits equally from hypnosis.'

Research shows that approximately two-thirds of the population is susceptible to hypnosis, while another 15 percent are considered highly susceptible.

The research was published in the journal Nature mental health.