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The pilot plan starts today with 18 patients who will participate in seven sessions.
/ A.M. Costa Rica wire services photo

Social Security uses hypnosis to relieve patient pain

By the A.M. Costa Rica staff

The National Center for the Control of Pain and Palliative Care of Social Security says that the pilot plan to relieve pain with hypnosis, as a complementary therapy, has been initiated for patients with chronic pain which is not related to any type of cancer.

Social Security experts say that hypnosis is a therapeutic tool in which the patient works with the suggestion whether it is given by a health professional or by him/her self. "Chronic pain is formed by a series of reactions that occur in the nervous system and also has a particular psychological interpretation in each individual. Hypnosis can be very effective in relieving a person's pain, as evidenced in many studies worldwide," said Social Security on its statement.

Dr. Catalina Saint-Hilaire Arce, general director of the National Center, " the idea is to open the range of options that can be offered to patients, to improve their quality of life".

Dr. Ericka Arroyo Salas, a clinical psychologist, thinks that "it is a complementary therapy to medicine, for patients with chronic pain who have had several changes in medication, and who remain in total pain, not only physical but also emotional and social ".

The pilot plan starts today with 18 patients who will participate in seven sessions, one per week, of two hours each, where specialized therapists will teach them the technique so that the patients can then perform their self-hypnosis.

"With the professional help of the hypnologist, the patient can receive suggestions that allow him/her to modify the experience of pain, the individual perception of this pain, and finally the way to handle it, so the pain could reduce and even be relieved," said Dr. Arroyo.

Patients who started this type of therapy had already participated in a course of chronic pain relief. In addition, they will be receiving the support of the Costa Rican Association of Hypnosis.

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Have you ever tried hypnosis to relieve pain? We would like to know your thoughts on this story. Send your comments to: news@amcostarica.com

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