Children can be taught to use their imagination to tackle frequent bouts of stomach pain, research shows.

A relaxation-type CD, asking children to imagine themselves in scenarios like floating on a cloud led to dramatic improvements in abdominal pain.

The US researchers said the technique worked particularly well in children as they have such fertile imaginations.

It has been estimated that frequent stomach pain with no identifiable cause effects up to one in five children.

The research, published in Pediatrics, follows on from studies showing hypnosis is an effective treatment for a range of conditions known as functional abdominal pain, which includes things like irritable bowel syndrome.

“ There is really a dearth of information on how to manage children with abdominal pain ”
Professor David Candy
In this study, the children had 20 minute sessions of “guided imagery” – a technique which prompts the subject to imagine things which will reduce their discomfort.

One example is letting a special shiny object melt into their hand and then placing their hand on their belly, spreading warmth and light from the hand inside the tummy to make a protective barrier inside that prevents anything from irritating the belly

The researchers, from the University of North Carolina and Duke University Medical Center, said a lack of therapists led them to the idea of using a CD to deliver the sessions.

In all 30 children aged between six and 15 years took part in the study – half of whom used the CDs daily for eight weeks and the rest of whom got normal treatment.

Among those who had used the CDs, 73.3% reported that their abdominal pain was reduced by half or more by the end of the treatment course compared with 26.7% in the standard care group.

In two-thirds of children the improvements were still apparent six months later.

Anxiety
It is not clear exactly how the technique works but studies have shown it is partly about reducing anxiety but there is also a direct effect on the pain response.

Some researchers think hypnosis-like techniques reduce “hypersensitivity” in conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome.

Study leader Dr Miranda van Tilburg said it was especially exciting that the children were able to use the technique on their own.

“Such self-administered treatment is, of course, very inexpensive and can be used in addition to other treatments, which potentially opens the door for easily enhancing treatment outcomes for a lot of children suffering from frequent stomach aches.

“Children are very good at using their imagination – when you use this in adults you have to overcome a barrier first.”

Professor David Candy, a consultant paediatric gastroenterologist at Western Sussex Hospitals, said his team had tried hypnosis in a small group of children with severe abdominal pain problems and had 100% success rate.

He added they are now keen to try the guided imagery technique to see if they can replicate the US findings.

“There is really a dearth of information on how to manage children with abdominal pain and it’s a very common problem which keeps children out of school.”

Technorati Tags: Abdominal Pain, Care Group, Dearth, Dramatic Improvements, Duke University Medical, Duke University Medical Center, Fertile Imaginations, Floating On A Cloud, Frequent Bouts, Guided Imagery, Hypnosis, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Minute Sessions, Professor David, Protective Barrier, Shiny Object, Stomach Pain, Type Cd, University Medical Center, University Of North Carolina

The role of hypnosis on memory has been a topic of debate for decades. Studies have found both positive and negative results when testing hypnosis with memory. Many factors play a role when using hypnotherapy to enhance memories including a patient’s suggestibility and the questions used by the hypnotherapist. When used correctly, hypnosis can enhance recall and hypnotherapy has several positive implications on memory.

Chandler (1993) points out one of the benefits of using hypnosis on the memory. Many people use hypnosis as a form of therapy, to help them overcome roadblocks and to help promote change at the subconscious level. Hypnosis is often used to change negative memory associations. Negative memory associations can include just about anything, but can have a major impact on people’s well-being and can prevent them from reaching their goals.

Changing negative memory associations into positive associations can dramatically change a person’s life. The result of using hypnosis is a healthier perspective on life. Changing a negative association with a memory can have a profound positive effect on people’s life and causes a shift in perceptual predisposition.

Pettinati (1988) describes what occurs when using hypnosis to enhance recall. The induction and deepening are given to the participant; immediately following this, the participant becomes more suggestible. They are now able to access subconscious thoughts instead of just conscious thoughts.

The advantage to this method is that it helps the participant access the actual memory. This occurs due to lack of cognitive interference and increased ability to visualize. The disadvantage to this is that they can be more suggestible to cues by the hypnotist. This is where it is important that the hypnotherapist not put any inaccurate suggestions into the mind of the participant.

According to Reisen (1983), investigative hypnosis has become very popular in police science. The Federal and State courts have ruled that hypnotically enhanced recall of events is admissible. Delivered correctly, hypnosis is an accurate way to refresh past events in court and memory does not always become tainted by hypnosis. This helps investigators determine sequence of events with the help of eye-witnesses who would not normally have remembered exactly what they saw.

These three studies show that hypnosis, when used properly, can positively affect memories. Whether someone has negative memory associations or if they are recalling serious past events, hypnosis can help memory. This can have major implications on a person’s well-being and on police investigations. More research should be done to see other ways in which hypnosis can impact memory.

Sources:
Chandler, G.M. (1993). A hypnotic intervention for anger reduction and shifting perceptual predispositions. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 15(2), 200-205.
Pettinati, H.M. (1988) Hypnosis and memory. New York: Guilford Press.
Reisen, M. (1983). Investigative hypnosis: Scientism, memory tricks, and power plays. National Criminal Justice Research Service: NCJ 093422.
by Steve G. Jones, M.Ed., citizen journalist, NaturalNews

Technorati Tags: Conscious Thoughts, Cues, Decades, Hypnosis, Hypnotherapist, Hypnotherapy, Hypnotist, Improve Memory, Induction, Interference, Memories, Participant, Perspective, Police Science, Predisposition, Roadblocks, State Courts, Subconscious Level, Subconscious Thoughts, Suggestibility

It’s Not All In Your Head: Descending Neural Mechanisms Of Placebo-induced Pain Control.

(Aug. 29, 2009) — A new study reveals that when it comes to pain control, the “placebo effect” involves evolutionarily old pain control pathways in the human brainstem, the part of the brain that is continuous with the spinal cord. The research, published by Cell Press in the August 27th issue of the journal Neuron, provides fascinating mechanistic insight into how and why simply expecting that a treatment will reduce pain can act as an effective analgesic.

Placebo analgesia refers to an individual’s relief from pain following administration of a chemically inert substance and is thought to be due to a person’s belief that a potent pain medication was administered. Endogenous opioids, which are naturally produced by the brain in small amounts and play a key role in the relief of pain and anxiety, have been implicated in placebo analgesia. Brain imaging studies have shown that placebo analgesia stimulates release of endogenous opioids from higher brain regions associated with pain modulation and is associated with a decrease in signals from pain-sensitive areas.

“It has been hypothesized that placebo analgesia also recruits the opioidergic descending pain control system, which inhibits pain processing in the spinal cord and, therefore, subsequently reduces pain-related responses in the brain, leading to a decreased pain experience,” explains lead study author Falk Eippert from the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf in Germany. However, thus far this has not been demonstrated experimentally.

Eippert and colleagues employed sophisticated brain imaging techniques to examine both higher cortical and lower brainstem responses in two groups of subjects: one receiving a drug called naloxone, which blocks opioid signaling, and one group with a natural opioid state. Expectations of pain relief were induced in both groups using an established placebo analgesia paradigm.

The researchers found that naloxone reduced behavioral placebo effects as well as placebo-induced decreases in pain-related brain responses. Most importantly, they also observed that, under placebo, cortical areas interacted with brainstem structures implicated in pain control and that these interactions were dependent on endogenous opioids and were related to the strength of experienced placebo effects.

“Taken together, our findings show that opioid signaling in pain-modulating areas and the projections to downstream effectors of the descending pain control system are crucially important for placebo analgesia,” concludes Eippert. “It will be interesting to see whether opioid-dependent activation of the descending pain control system is a common feature of different forms of pain modulation, such as hypnosis and attentional distraction, which share some common neuroanatomical features.”

The researchers include Falk Eippert, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany; Ulrike Bingel, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany; Eszter D. Schoell, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany; Juliana Yacubian, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany; Regine Klinger, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany; Jurgen Lorenz, Hamburg University of Applied Sciences, Hamburg, Germany; and Christian Buchel, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.

http://www.sciencedaily.com

Technorati Tags: Analgesia, Brain Imaging, Brain Regions, Control Pathways, Endogenous Opioids, Hamburg Eppendorf, Inert Substance, Naloxone, Neural Mechanisms, Neuron, Operative Pain, Pain Experience, Pain Medication, Pain Modulation, Placebo Effect, Sensitive Areas, Sophisticated Brain, Spinal Cord, Study Author, University Medical Center

A song for Comfort Before Surgery for H.J.L.
Listen!
Because I know You will hear me
As I fear this unknown I must enter,
Surrendering my self, my authority,
If only for a brief while.
Listen!
Because I know You will hear
As I praise You at this season
Spreading warmth of renewal over cold earth,
Even as my soul’s chill is warmed.
Listen!
Because I know You are there:
Hearing me,
Warming me,
Renewing me,
Leading me through this time
To a place of health and vigor.

Technorati Tags: Chill, Cold Earth, Health, L A Song, Prayer, Vigor, Warmth

Psalm 77
When I cry my voice trembles with fear
When I call out it cracks with anger.
How can I greet the dawn with song
When darkness eclipses the rising sun
To Whom shall I turn
When the clouds of the present eclipse the rays of tomorrow.
Turn me around to yesterday
That I may be consoled by its memories.
Were not the seas split asunder
Did we not once walk together through the waters
To the dry side
Did we not bless the
Bread that came forth from the heavens
Did your voice not reach my ears
And direct my wanderings
The waters, the lightning, the thunder
Remind me of yesterday’s triumphs
Let the past offer proof of tomorrow
Let it be by comforter and guarantor.
I have been here before
Known the fright and found your companionship.
I enter the sanctuary again
To wait the echo of your promise.

Technorati Tags: Anger, Clouds, Comforter, Companionship, Darkness, Dawn, Ears, Eclipse, Eclipses, Fear, Guarantor, Lightning, Memories, Prayer, Proof, Psalm 77, Rising Sun, Sanctuary, Triumphs, Wanderings

Psalm 16,
These are among David’s golden words.
Watch over me, God,
for I seek refuge in You.
You said to the Lord:
“You are my Master,
But my good fortune is not Your concern.
“Rather, the holy ones on the earth
-You care for them
And for the great ones whom I should emulate.
“When their pain multiplies,
They know to speedily turn to another.
But I cannot even pour their libations because of guilt,
I cannot even lift their names to my lips.”
The Lord is the Portion, which is mine by right,
My Cup.
You nurture my destiny.
Labor pains turn into pleasantness—
So, too, I just see my inheritance of beauty.
I will bless the Lord who counsels me,
Though at night my conscience afflicts me.
I keep the Lord continually before me;
Because of God-Who-is my Right-Hand,
I shall not break down.
So my mind is happy,
My whole being joyful;
Even my body rests secure.
For You shall not abandon my soul
To the world of the dead,
Nor let the one who loves You
See his own grave.
Give me directions on life’s road.
With Your Presence,
I am filled up with joys,
With the delights that ever come
From Your Strong Arm.

Technorati Tags: Conscience, Destiny, Earth, Good Fortune, Guilt, Inheritance, Labor Pains, Libations, Lips, Pleasantness, Prayer, Presence, Psalm, Strong Arm

Breast cancer, the growth of malignant cells in the breast, is the most common cancer among women. It is rare but does occur in men breast cancer usually originates in the milk carrying ducts, although it may arise in the milk producing lobules or, more rarely, in the dense connective tissue of the breast. A breast tumor is not in itself life threatening, but there is a high risk that the cancer will spread to other organs via the lymph nodes or the bloodstream, so early detection is imperative. In 90 percent of cases, only one breast is affected, although those who have had cancer in one breast are at increased risk of eventually developing it in the other. In all cases, early detection treatment and cure improve the outlook significantly.

You must accept the fact that not all patients who undergo breast cancer treatments are able to survive. It is but natural for you to want to know about the breast cancer survival rate before you decide to go for a particular treatment.

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death, second only to lung cancer. One in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer during her lifetime. Fortunately, there are measures you can take to help reduce your risk of developing breast cancer.

Breast cancer risk factors:

Menstrual cycle is other factor that should be considered; common in the ladies who have a longer menstrual life, i.e. the onset of menarche is earlier and cessation of menstruation is late.

- The women that smoke and drink alcohol increase the risk of developing breast cancer.

- Breast cancer is developed more frequently in spinsters and married woman that have not given birth to children, or if given birth then have not breast fed their offspring.

- The women that have had a breast cancer on one side have greater risk to develop cancer on the opposite side, and if there are antecedents of breast cancer in their families (mother, sisters and daughters), there are greatest risks too.

Technorati Tags: Breast Cancer, Breast Cancer Prevention, Breast Cancer Risk, Breast Cancer Risk Factors, Breast Cancer Survival, Breast Cancer Survival Rate, Breast Cancer Treatments, Breast Tumor, Cancer Breast, Cancer Death, Cancer Risk Factors, Cancer Survival Rate, Cause Of Cancer, Dense Connective Tissue, Drink Alcohol, Lobules, Malignant Cells, Menarche, Prevention And Cure, Sisters And Daughters

Bless those in need of healing with r’fua sh’leima,
The renewal of body, the renewal of spirit, and
Let us say, amen.

Technorati Tags: Fua, Prayer, Spirit

May the source of strength who blessed the ones before us
Help us find the courage to make our lives a blessing and
Let us say, amen.

Technorati Tags: Blessing, Courage, Prayer

Heal us, Adonai, and we shall be healed,
Save us and we shall be saved,
For You are our glory.
Send complete healing of every illness to me.
For You, O God, are the faithful, merciful Physician.
Praised are You, Adonai, who heals the sick of the people Israel.

Technorati Tags: Glory, Israel, Prayer