APPLICATION OF HYPNOTIC STRATEGIES SUSTAINED BY A POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY ORIENTATION IN TREATING OCD PATIENTS

ABSTRACT The hypnotherapeutic literature is abundant with numerous techniques aimed at helping practitioners deal with different types of patients and problems during hypnotic psychotherapy. Yet hypnosis and hypnotherapy textbooks have only minimally addressed the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) patients. Those that do discuss this topic refer mainly to the field as a whole and do not offer specific hypnotic interventions. The objective of the present paper is to promote psychotherapy for OCD patients by proposing that practitioners use strategically oriented hypnotic intervention enhanced by a 'positive psychology' orientation

The effects of music relaxation and muscle relaxation techniques on sleep quality and emotional measures among individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder

The aim of the present study was to examine the effects of music and muscle relaxation techniques on sleep quality and emotional measures in individuals with Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Thirteen PTSD patients, who had no other major psychiatric, sleep, or neurological disorders, participated in the study. The study comprised one 7-day, running-in, no-treatment period, followed by two 7-day experimental periods. The treatments were either music relaxation or muscle relaxation techniques at desired bedtime. These treatments were randomly assigned. During each of these three experimental periods, subjects' sleep was continuously monitored with a wrist actigraph (Ambulatory Monitoring, Inc.) and subjects were asked to fill out several questionnaires concerned with a wide spectrum of issues, such as depression, anxiety, and life satisfaction. Analysis revealed a significant increase in objective and subjective sleep efficiency and a significant reduction in depression level following music relaxation. Moreover, following music relaxation, a highly significant negative correlation was found between improvement in objective sleep efficiency and reduction in depression scale. The study findings provide evidence that music relaxation at bedtime can be use as treatment for insomnia in individuals with PTSD

The effects of music relaxation and muscle relaxation techniques on sleep quality and emotional measures among individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), an anxiety disorder with lifetime prevalence of 7.8%, is characterized by symptoms that develop following exposure to traumatic life events and that cause an immediate experience of intense fear, helplessness or horror. PTSD is marked by recurrent nightmares typified by the recall of intrusive experiences and by extended disturbance throughout sleep. Individuals with PTSD respond poorly to drug treatments for insomnia. The disadvantages of drug treatment for insomnia underline the importance of non-pharmacological alternatives. Thus, the present study had three aims: first, to compare the efficiency of two relaxation techniques (muscular relaxation and progressive music relaxation) in alleviating insomnia among individuals with PTSD using both objective and subjective measures of sleep quality; second, to examine whether these two techniques have different effects on psychological indicators of PTSD, such as depression and anxiety; and finally, to examine how initial PTSD symptom severity and baseline emotional measures are related to the efficiency of these two relaxation methods. Thirteen PTSD patients with no other major psychiatric or neurological disorders participated in the study. The study comprised one seven-day running-in, no-treatment period, followed by two seven-day experimental periods. The treatments constituted either music relaxation or muscle relaxation techniques at desired bedtime. These treatments were randomly assigned. During each of these three experimental periods, subjects’ sleep was continuously monitored with a wrist actigraph (Ambulatory Monitoring, Inc.), and subjects were asked to fill out several questionnaires concerned with a wide spectrum of issues, such as sleep, depression, and anxiety. Analyses revealed a significant increase in objective and subjective sleep efficiency and a significant reduction in depression level following music relaxation. Moreover, following music relaxation, a highly significant negative correlation was found between improvement in objective sleep efficiency and reduction in depression scale. The study‘s findings provide evidence that music relaxation at bedtime can be used as treatment for insomnia among individuals with PTSD

Patterns of patient reluctance to receive complementary-medicine treatments in a hospital setting: A cross-sectional study

Objective: We aim to characterize the patient population that exhibits reluctance to undergo complementary medicine (CM) treatments in a hospital setting. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional prospective study among patients prior to hospitalization using structured questionnaires in a single center in Israel. Participants were asked to rate their degree of consent to receiving CM treatments during hospitalization. Results: The CM-reluctant group was 7.1 % of the study cohort. The CM modalities most commonly refused were spiritual guidance, acupuncture, and energy and healing therapies. The CM-reluctant population showed a weaker relation to spiritual content and tended to value complementary medicine's effectiveness less in comparison to the CM-consenting group. The main reason for reluctance was skepticism of the perceived effectiveness of CM. Conclusions: With skepticism playing a major role in decision making, we should question whether the Stakeholders in the field of CM and public health services are succeeding in explaining the benefits and risks of CM treatments