Treat Psoriasis with Hypnosis

Psoriasis is a disorder most often affecting the skin. Psoriasis is caused by the build-up of skin cells. The severity of the disorder varies from person to person. Some people experience psoriasis in a small area and some people have it all over their body.

Psoriasis can also affect a person`s joints. This inflammation can lead to psoriatic arthritis. Approximately 10-15% of people with chronic psoriasis also have psoriatic arthritis. Symptoms of this form of psoriasis include pain, stiffness, and inflammation of the joints. The symptoms can be pretty severe in some cases and can be disabling.

Treating psoriasis can be a challenge because the exact cause is not known. Many doctors believe that the disorder is genetic in nature. Doctors have found that certain factors can irritate psoriasis including stress, drinking alcohol, and smoking.

Psoriasis can have a negative impact on ones quality of life. The disorder often causes severe itching, which can lead to pain. These side effects can interfere with different areas of life. Many people with psoriasis lack self-esteem and often become depressed because of their disorder.

Many doctors put emphasis on controlling the symptoms of psoriasis because there is no known cure. Ointments, phototherapy, and prescription drugs are often prescribed, but many sufferers look to alternative therapy to help relieve their symptoms.

A study appeared in a 1999 issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics testing the effectiveness of hypnosis on patients with psoriasis. The study was performed by researchers in the department of dermatology at The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

The study involved 11 patients with chronic psoriasis. All 11 participants received a form of hypnosis and all of them were either highly or moderately hypnotizable. Five patients received hypnosis with positive suggestions focusing on the improvement of their psoriasis. The remaining 6 patients received neutral hypnosis without suggestions specifically aimed at treating their psoriasis. Using these methods, all patients received hypnosis for three months.

After the initial three months, all patients were studied for an additional three months and all eleven participants received active suggestions targeting their psoriasis during their hypnosis sessions.

The researchers found that the highly hypnotizable subjects reported a much greater improvement than those who were moderately hypnotizable. They realized that it did not matter whether the form of hypnosis used active suggestions or neutral suggestions.

The researchers concluded that hypnosis should be a form a treatment in those who are highly suggestible and suffer from psoriasis. More research should be performed investigating the role hypnosis plays on treating psoriasis sufferers` symptoms.