Self-Hypnosis Brings Relief To Children And Teens With Tourette Syndrome

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According to the study published online in the July issue of the Journal of Development and Behavioral Pediatrics, children and adolescents with Tourette Syndrome found their symptoms reduced and their quality of life improved with the aid of videotape training.

The participants ranged in age from 6 to 19 years, with an average of 13 years. All of the research participants had motor tics and three had verbal tics in their initial evaluations.

Improvements such as improved tic control and personal satisfaction with the technique were reported by 79% of thirty-three research participants. It is the largest case series of patients with Tourette Syndrome being treated with the self-hypnosis technique. The authors, Jeffrey Lazarus, M.D., and Susan K. Klein, M.D., Ph.D., were with University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital and the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine at the time of the study.

“Self-hypnosis,” according to Dr. Lazarus, “helps the patient experience a state of mind that combines relaxation with concentration on a desired point of focus while other thoughts or feelings fade into the background.” The research subjects were assigned to practice the self-hypnosis technique three times a day and do homework consisting of answering questions designed to increase their awareness of tics and how they felt about experiencing them.

Subjects were shown video clips of a young boy with Tourette Syndrome before, during, and after his self-hypnosis training. Following that, each child or teen in the study was taught self-hypnosis in individual sessions.

Dr. Lazarus explained, "Once the patient is in his or her highly focused 'special place,' work is then done on controlling the tic. We ask the patient to imagine the feeling right before that tic occurs and to put up a stop sign in front of it, or to imagine a tic switch that can be turned on and off like a light switch. Further suggestions are made, including encouraging the patient to invent his or her own images."Almost all of the participants experienced a dramatic increase in tic control after only a few sessions: 12 after two sessions, 13 after only three visits, and one after four visits.

Because some the medications used to treat tics can be associated with undesirable side effects, Dr. Lazarus said that this non-pharmacological therapy for tics is attractive. Physicians are also reluctant to prescribe medications for mild or moderate tic disorders which many children often outgrow as they get older.
"This case series suggests that self-hypnosis might be able to be taught effectively in fewer sessions than another technique known as habit reversal, but we'll need to study this further. However, the use of videotape as a teaching aid presents several advantages: It can help standardize the technique of teaching the method, it may shorten the length of time needed to teach the technique, and it makes the technique more accessible to younger children. Viewing a series of videotapes of another patient gives patients the reassurance that they are not the only ones in the world with this problem, and it gives them hope and the motivation that they can take control of their bodies and life challenges," said Dr. Lazarus.
 
Robert Galarowicz ND
Childrens Hypnosis
Paramus, NJ 07652
New Jersey

Source:

University Hospitals Case Medical Center (2010, July 12). Children and teens with Tourette syndrome find relief with self-hypnosis.