Gastroentologist says hypnotherapy eased IBS

by William Hobson

Thousands of people who suffer from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) could find help from hypnotherapy, according to a gastroentologist at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital.

IBS is a bowel disorder where patients suffer from abdominal pain, discomfort and other problems with their digestive habits. Although other medical conditions and illnesses may present the same symptoms as IBS, the condition itself is characterised by a complete absence of any detectable organic cause. This has made it hard to develop an effective medical treatments.

However, psychological treatments often help relieve the pain of some sufferers - and hypnotherapy may be among the most effective of such methods, according to Professor Roland Vaori.

Speaking in a podcast accompanied newly launched medical journal Frontline Gastroenterology, Valori said that he had first hand experience of the power of hypnotherapy.

Professor Valori has been referring IBS patients for hypnotherapy since the early 1990's and says that "to be frank, I have never looked back."

He said that when he audited the first 100 IBS patients referred for hypnotherapy treatment, nine out of ten patients showed a significant improvement in their symptoms. Valori says that four of ten of his patients actually had their condition clear up completely, whilst the remainder said they felt more in control of their pain and bowel movements.

Valori believes that hypnotherapy works by relaxing patients, the aim of most of the psychological therapies used to treat IBS.

"Of the relaxation therapies available, hypnotherapy is the most powerful," he said. "It is pretty clear to me that it has an amazing effect."

"It seems to work particularly well on younger female patients with typical symptoms, and those who have only had IBS for a relatively short time."