Scientists Lightly Zapped People’s Brains and Made Them Easier to Hypnotize

In a groundbreaking study, Stanford University researchers have demonstrated that people's susceptibility to hypnosis can be enhanced using short sessions of non-invasive brain stimulation. This suggests that hypnosis could become a highly effective therapeutic tool for numerous health problems, such as chronic pain. However, further research is required to substantiate these claims.

Hypnosis has a long-standing history in medicine, particularly in psychotherapy, assisting individuals to reach a heightened state of concentration and tranquility. This condition facilitates the acceptance of suggestions to alter particular behaviors or thought processes. While hypnosis has been utilized to treat a variety of medical and psychological conditions, its effectiveness differs for each health issue.

Research over the years has indicated that people's openness to hypnosis varies along a spectrum, similar to a personality trait, and remains relatively constant throughout adulthood. The research team, led by Afik Faerman, a postdoctoral scholar in psychiatry at Stanford Medicine, sought to determine if this characteristic could be modified.

According to Faerman, only approximately 20% of the population is highly hypnotizable, a distribution that aligns with a bell-shaped curve. The researchers aimed to find if they could train the brains of less hypnotizable individuals to respond and operate as if they were highly hypnotizable, a breakthrough that could enhance therapeutic outcomes.

The research focused on two brain areas linked with high hypnotizability: the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, responsible for decision-making, and the anterior cingulate cortex, associated with our perception of stimuli. Highly hypnotizable individuals appear to have increased functional connectivity or communication between these areas.

The researchers applied transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), a non-invasive procedure that delivers electrical pulses to the brain via the scalp, to intensify this connectivity and possibly boost the hypnotizability of their subjects. The study involved 80 fibromyalgia patients, a chronic pain condition where hypnosis has proven beneficial. These patients were not highly hypnotizable.

The volunteers underwent brain scans and then were randomly divided into two groups: one receiving two 46-second TMS bursts, and the other a placebo treatment. Their hypnotizability was tested pre and post sessions on a one-to-ten scale. The treatment group demonstrated an improved ability for hypnosis, while the placebo group saw no significant change. However, the enhancement was short-lived and had disappeared an hour later.

The researchers have coined the term SHIFT (Stanford Hypnosis Integrated with Functional Connectivity targeted Transcranial Stimulation) for their method and regard these findings as a proof of concept for the technique. As the team continues their work, Faerman envisages a broad potential for hypnosis in medical treatment.

As a clinical psychologist, Faerman's vision is that soon, patients will undergo a brief stimulation session prior to therapy to boost treatment effectiveness. This could offer drug-free treatments, improve patient well-being and simultaneously save patients and the healthcare system time and money.