tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22953417241399501112024-03-12T17:19:40.686-07:00PsyPostweb page at:http://therapist.psychologytoday.com/40786Geoff Michaelson, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/13864282713165951409noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2295341724139950111.post-5490419038632524362019-03-25T21:39:00.001-07:002019-03-25T21:43:00.831-07:00Sex Addiction is RealThe World Health Organization has listed sexual compulsion in its International Classification<br />
of Diseases. Although not a substance, like other " process" compulsions like debting and gambling<br />
the disorder is typified by behavior that lurches out of control despite relationship, monetary, and other personal consequences and failed attempts to stop. Despite controversy over the addiction<br />
model, research suggests the involvement of neural pathways that mimic the same processes in the mind of addicts with substance and other addictions. Despite the controversy, the problem remains of how to help people with sexual compulsion. Some have mood disorders, others PTSD linked to traumas and abuse. There are established treatment protocols for these problems. Some co-exist with substance abuse and other addictions. Integrating treatment that involves social, biological, as well as<br />
intrapsychic issues is important. Many people do well in supportive recovery<br />
groups for individuals and partners. Help is available for betrayed partners whose<br />
reality and trust are shattered by discovery of the addicts activities. Recovery and<br />
managing to free oneself of sexual compulsion is difficult but hardly impossible.<br />
Many have found intimacy and meaning in their lives they never felt possible.<br />
Geoff Michaelson, Ph.D., Certified Sex Addiction TherapistGeoff Michaelson, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/13864282713165951409noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2295341724139950111.post-5958109648392493572014-03-05T18:24:00.002-08:002014-03-05T18:24:33.902-08:00Managing Stress with Mindfulness and Related Techniques1. Four Words: Body, Image, Talk, Feeling<br />
<br />
When you feel overwhelmed and its an image that is bothering you,<br />
say the word 'image' about every four seconds to yourself until the<br />
intensity of your experience subsides.<br />
<br />
If you are overwhelmed with an emotion, use the word 'feeling'.<br />
<br />
If you are overwhelmed by a physical sensation, use the word 'body'.<br />
<br />
If you are ruminating and its getting to you, use the word 'talk'.<br />
<br />
Why should this simple technique work? When we are experiencing<br />
intensity and it is over the top, whether sensation, emotion, imagery,<br />
or the chatter of rumination, the emotional and arousal centers of the<br />
lower brainstem are very active. Saying the applicable word stimulates<br />
the higher order cognitive centers in the neo-cortex. This naturally<br />
tunes down the over arousal. This technique was shared with me by<br />
one of John Cabot Zinn's colleagues and is used in their stress clinic<br />
for cancer patients.<br />
<br />
2. The Ten Second Pause<br />
<br />
At the top of every hour take a deep breath, let it out and tell yourself<br />
that these ten seconds exist for the pure pleasure of your being alive.<br />
Why should this work? The breath helps, but more importantly, if the<br />
river of stress in your life is not interrupted, it does not decline, and<br />
it may rise. When you start interrupting it, you are hitting the pause button.<br />
Stopping even if for 10 seconds frequently helps.<br />
<br />
3. Visualize for 1 to 3 times a day for 1-3 minutes each time your favorite<br />
relaxing place, perhaps on the beach or wherever you can really let go and<br />
unplug. The more days you do this the better you will feel until you feel<br />
like you are never far away from that experience. Remember, the more<br />
time you rhearse stressful anxious thoughts and worries the more conditioning<br />
you give your body and mind to go in that directions. Changing the<br />
conditioning and the mind and body will follow, and more associations<br />
will form in the brain with these pleasant visualizations and thoughts.<br />
<br />
4. Slow breath<br />
<br />
We teach people with panic disorders to do controlled breathing. Breathing<br />
3 seconds in and three seconds out is all that is necessary and keep going until<br />
you are thinking more clearly. This breath stabilizes carbon dioxide in the blood<br />
stream and corrects the often shallow and quick breath that they take. It is not necessary<br />
to take huge amounts of air or to stress already sore chest muscles that are common with stress<br />
and anxiety. Breath slowly through the nose unless you are stuffed up. As your muscles<br />
relax your chest will expand exactly as it needs to with no effort on your part.<br />
<br />
5. Self Suggestion<br />
<br />
Often when we are panicked, anxious, overwhelmed, our mind is triggered by the<br />
body to provide associations for these experiences. That's where the worries and fears and<br />
catastrophic thinking come from. Respond to these emotional and out of proportion reactions<br />
by telling yourself that that's what they are. Take a moment to refocus your mind on some very<br />
happy moment, or moment of success, or other positive experience. Circle back to the<br />
irrational out of proportion thoughts and direct your thoughts to this thought by saying<br />
I have more positive and constructive and important things to think about and do, more<br />
pleasurable and happy and exciting thoughts and experiences to focus on. Thank you<br />
for the fire alarm, but there is no fire. As you continue to cycle back to the more important,<br />
pleasurable, and happy things in your life, your mind is competing with the stressful<br />
thoughts and sensations. Because the positive thoughts and experiences are so much more<br />
compelling and enjoyable, the stress and anxiety loses its hold. Geoff Michaelson, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/13864282713165951409noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2295341724139950111.post-52729353463971214142009-09-22T10:12:00.000-07:002009-10-14T21:15:33.659-07:00What can Hypnosis Help?Hypnosis can help with lots of things including<br />anxiety, depression, habit problems, weight control,<br />smoking cessation, and pain, to name just a few.<br />However, the most important thing to understand about<br />hypnosis is its power as an "adjunct" therapeutic technique<br />that may increase the effectiveness of other treatments.<br />So, in a very important sense, hypnosis is a strategic<br />consideration, rather than a stand alone therapy.<br /><br />An example of this effect is what I have seen combining<br />cognitive behavioral methods with sensate focus<br />exercises, mindfulness, and hypnosis in the treatment<br />of sexual disorders. Since hypnosis is a natural way<br />of enhancing a relaxed state of focused attention, it<br />can be very useful when helping a couple attain the<br />benefits of sensate focus exercises when they need to<br />relax and focus on pleasurable experiences.<br /><br />Geoff Michaelson, Ph.D., is a Fellow of the Academy<br />of Clinical Sexology, certified as a sex therapist by the<br />American Board of Sexology, and an Approved<br />Consultant by the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis.Geoff Michaelson, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/13864282713165951409noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2295341724139950111.post-69477885251798441472009-01-31T12:38:00.000-08:002009-01-31T13:04:46.106-08:00How Does Coaching Work?How often do we say, "Someday I'll get around<br />to..." followed by one of our cherished dreams:<br />write a novel, find a mate, learn a language,<br />find a new career, succeed in business, spend<br />more time with my family, and the list goes on.<br />While coaching doesn't substitute for counseling<br />when it comes to serious emotional blocks and<br />problems, it has helped many people achieve<br />their goals.<br /><br />How does it work? By crafting a coaching plan<br />with a clear set of step by step goals, meeting<br />and dedicating time to this plan on a regular basis,<br />creating an accountability that matches the client,<br />challenging the coaching client and supporting<br />them in moving outside their comfort zone, very<br />wonderful things can happen. People may get<br />past obstacles, procrastination, and uncertainty,<br />and the fear of acting on what they really want.<br /><br />The relationship with the coach is another key.<br />A professional or executive coach is like a partner<br />on your team who helps you craft your plan, but<br />you retain all the profits or benefits. The process<br />is akin to a personal seminar on the most important<br />things in your life.<br />******************************************<br />Geoff Michaelson, Ph.D. has been a professional<br />and executive coach since 1995. He was a member<br />of the Mentor/Coach LLC Trainers Team, coaching<br />numerous coaches on how to help their clients. He<br />has coached CEO's and COO's in the financial and<br />manufacturing sectors, published authors, music<br />company executives, literary agents, actors, among<br />many others.<br />******************************************Geoff Michaelson, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/13864282713165951409noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2295341724139950111.post-5332312383062522612009-01-13T20:51:00.000-08:002009-01-13T21:26:05.548-08:00Pain ManagementHere are 5 tips to managing pain from a psychological<br />perspective.<br /><br />1) Since muscle tension around a pain area can increase<br /> the perception of pain, finding a way to relax despite<br /> the felt pain can help. Everyone is different regarding<br /> what can help in a painful situation. Some strategies:<br /> a) Diaphragmatic breathing( can be taught in minutes}<br /> b) Hypnosis (can be taught for muscle relaxation in a<br /> single session).<br /> c) Mindfulness training (simple techniques taught in minutes)<br /> d) Visualization (designed with individual preferences for<br /> analgesic imagery) . There are many more simple<br /> techniques for relaxation.<br /><br />2) We have good and bad pain days. Take a break every day<br /> from worry and thinking about symptoms. Call your doctor<br /> if need be and let him/her worry or think about it. Mentally<br /> practice this rest from fear or worry for as long as you want<br /> or can. Its your moment or time to reclaim from pain.<br /><br />3) Make a practice of focusing your mind on something that<br /> is pleasurable whether or not your pain is significant. Realize<br /> that a pleasure can co-exist with pain. Practice focusing<br /> on the pleasureable sensation whether it involves touch, taste,<br /> sound, sight or any other sense.<br /><br />4) We sometimes think we know how a day will go depending<br /> on how it starts. Practice letting go of knowing. Your muscles<br /> may let go as well.<br /><br />5) Watch your self talk. Telling yourself that your pain is horrible<br /> may be true at times and sometimes continuously, but drop the<br /> emotional adjective. "Its a 9 on the scale" is enough. It can<br /> add to a lower sense of self. Our pain can feel bad, but we are<br /> not our pain. It is something we have and we need not feel<br /> bad about ourselves by remembering we are so much more<br /> than the feeling od pain.Geoff Michaelson, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/13864282713165951409noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2295341724139950111.post-55058078807712020762008-12-24T15:06:00.000-08:002008-12-24T16:06:28.446-08:00Five Most Important Questions About Good SexPeople ask me all the time in my role as a sexologist,<br />"How can I have good sex?" Their number one question<br />is simply "What's the most important thing in having good<br />sex?" Here's the answer: It's all about your capacity to focus<br />on physical sensation and pleasure. Your body knows how to<br />become aroused.<br /><br />Question 2: "If its so natural and simple, why do people have<br />so many problems?" The answer: Everything else besides sensation<br />is a distraction.<br /><br />Question 3:<br />What are the top distractions? " Performance anxiety is king or<br />or queen. When people worry about what will happen and how<br />they perform they tense their muscles and breathe less deeply.<br />Tense muscles decrease blood flow and this is critical for sex.<br />When there is less blood flow to the pelvic region it's a kind of<br />"reverse-Viagra" effect. If they are in a relationship other emotions<br />from the relationship can enter in and provide distraction.<br />Interestingly the next most problematic distraction is an over<br />preoccupation with partner pleasing that dampens personal pleasure.<br /><br />Question 4: So how do people overcome these problems? The<br />Gestalt therapist Fritz Perls had a saying: "Lose your mind and<br />come to your senses". I use a combination of relaxation and<br />self-hypnotic techniques to enhance muscle relaxation and blood<br />flow. I teach visualization and mental practice techniques to enhance<br />the focus on sensation. These are combined with cognitive or thinking<br />strategies that relieve the individual of irrelevant preoccupations.<br />Behavioral exercises for partners are used for practice and homework<br />to enhance their sense of sexual competency and to encourage them<br />to play and have fun. Then they are more able to put aside distraction.<br /><br />Question 5: Why not just have people take a pill? Medications don't<br />work for everyone, some people don't like the side effects, and some<br />people simply don't want to use medication. The truth is that for some<br />people medications are a "godsend"when other measures don't work.<br />There are also situations in which combining medical treatment and<br />sex therapy may work best. The main point is that people should have<br />the available options for treatment so they can make informed<br />choices based on their needs.Geoff Michaelson, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/13864282713165951409noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2295341724139950111.post-78579306666895771282008-09-14T13:09:00.000-07:002008-09-14T16:44:32.960-07:00Hypnosis and Sex TherapyHypnosis can be a powerful tool in helping clients with<br />a variety of sexual problems. First of all there is the issue<br />of relaxation that has its place in treating erectile dysfunction<br />(ED) especially when there is performance anxiety involved.<br />Relaxation enhances blood flow and this is very useful<br />with ED.<br /><br />Subjects who are able to alter sensation can apply their<br />training in self-hypnosis to ejaculatory control problems.<br />Sexual pain disorders involving muscle contraction and spasm<br />may respond to hypnotic relaxation along with other sex<br />therapy techniques.<br /><br />Masters and Johnson's "Sensate Focus" techniques can<br />be enhanced with hypnosis since hypnosis involves a<br />relaxed state of focused attention. Sensate focus<br />requires focusing on sensation and pleasure during<br />lovemaking and couple exercises. Combining the<br />two techniques may assist couples in moving<br />more quickly through their learning experience.<br /><br />In addition, the use of mental practice and visualization<br />as part of sex therapy "reconditioning" can be applied<br />to arousal and desire disorders as clients explore what<br />feels pleasurable to them. Hypnosis can help the clients<br />immerse more deeply in what they are experiencing.<br /><br />Hypnosis also has its place in encouraging sexual self-esteem<br />as clients learn to appreciate their sexual selves and identity.<br /><br />Hypnotizability matters. Some clients are more<br />talented than others with hypnosis. So, measuring this<br />ability is part of any initial assessment and treatment plan.Geoff Michaelson, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/13864282713165951409noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2295341724139950111.post-59632763594816590432008-05-09T21:38:00.000-07:002008-09-14T16:56:12.546-07:00The Power of One Word<p>The Power of One Word (First Published in 2003)<br />=====================================<br /> For years I've been telling clients and friends how<br /> one trip to a hypnotherapist busted my writer's block<br /> and helped me finish my dissertation. Eighteen years<br /> later, while preparing a virtual class for book writers,<br /> I discovered the secret magic formula within the<br /> suggestion (or incantation?) that untied my<br /> Gordian knot.</p> <p>Let me tell you about my block, the single phrase<br /> suggestion, and the secret that went undiscovered<br /> till I meditated on it 18 years later. I never quite<br /> understood how this worked. Now I know the source<br />of the 'power' within the phrase.</p> <p>Two years after most of my classmates had finished<br /> their dissertations, I was frozen solid, stuck,<br /> totally blocked. My chair seemed to keep changing things<br /> to the point where I was convinced the work would go on<br /> forever, I would never graduate, and all the years of<br /> sacrifice would go unrewarded. I couldn't write a thing,<br /> dreaded approaching any member of my committee, and was<br /> convinced there was nothing I could do to change things.</p> <p>I believed the situation was hopeless.</p> <p>A friend suggested the hypnotherapist. I arrived at the<br /> office very curious about what would happen. The hypnotherapist<br /> spoke to me in a matter of fact way. I offered my lament<br /> about what the chairperson seemed to be doing. I remember<br /> him saying in a very curious way, with a Cheshire smile,<br /> 'Isn't it nice that things can change?' I started laughing.<br /> I wasn't consciously aware of why this happened. Something<br /> was different.</p> <p>He said something else that sounded like the first phrase but<br /> was more personal. I associated to all the good changes that<br /> had occurred in my life and to the wonder of many changes<br /> within the world, such as the change of seasons. Something<br /> was melting. I began to feel a sense of freedom and hope.<br /> The session was over, but something had changed, big time!<br /> What remained obscure was the phrasing of the second<br /> suggestion and why the impact of this one session and two<br /> simple phrases had been so profound.</p> <p>Within a few short weeks I confronted my chairperson and<br /> refused the direction he was taking. There was a brief,<br /> brutal, intellectual and administrative struggle. He was<br /> replaced and I survived. Within a few months I completed my<br /> work and graduated in the fall of that year. A lot changed<br /> very quickly.</p> <p>In the ensuing years I repeated the story emphasizing<br /> the phrase 'Isn't it nice things can change.' But some-<br /> thing was missing. It wasn't just 'nice”. Something powerful<br /> had happened. There was something more.</p> <p>This past week, as I prepared a section of my class on<br /> writer's block, I thought about the session in the hypno-<br /> therapist's office. I was preparing a meditation to be<br /> used in my teleclass as an illustration of a method for<br /> dealing with writers block. I began to meditate on the<br /> words and experiences of 18 years ago. I closed my<br /> eyes and took a deep breath. A visual image of one word<br /> appeared eidetically in my mind's eye: 'YOU'! He had said<br /> or implied, 'Isn't it nice that 'You can change things!'?'</p> <p>I was indeed the only one who could change my situation.<br /> I had to take a profound action. I confronted my fear and<br /> acted in the situation. What was missing from consciousness<br /> all these years was the awareness that 'You can change<br /> things!'. Having overcome my fears and acted, the writing<br /> was easily completed.</p> <p>The power to act was always potentially there. The hypno-<br /> therapist helped me unlock my potential by leading me to<br /> the opposite of what my fear of change had locked me into.<br /> The power was within my grasp. He helped me by pointing<br /> out the simple eloquence and power within 'You!'.</p> <p>So now I have it in spades. The single most powerful word<br /> I know: 'You'! Therein lies the power. It is within you,<br /> each and everyone of us to transform our lives. Not only<br /> are you the block, but also the power to undo it and the<br /> power to complete your work on this planet.</p> <p>Geoff can be reached at 703-883-1770 (voice) or<br /> GeoffMichaelson@hotmail.com (e-mail)</p>Geoff Michaelson, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/13864282713165951409noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2295341724139950111.post-67932662062839763952008-02-15T21:54:00.000-08:002008-02-15T22:08:48.992-08:00Real Couples TherapySo many couples come to therapy and rehash<br />their complaints. They get angry and have one<br />more complaint. It doesn't change anything!<br />While its good for me as a therapist to know<br />the complaint list, that's not what change is<br />about. The first question I have is: What do you<br />really want in your relationship? The second is:<br />How hard are you willing to work to get it?<br />Third: How will you attempt to sabotage our<br />every effort?<br /><br />A major blockage in couples work is constant<br />referencing of past grievances. Its important<br />to "grieve the grievances". Ultimately we must<br />let them go and replace them with something<br />more satisfying. This brings us to the "most<br />important thing" in couples work: Finding the<br />fun, joy, and pleasure you are looking for.<br /><br />If you are going to "work" on your relationship,<br />the relationship must become intrinsically<br />rewarding. That is the motivational key.Geoff Michaelson, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/13864282713165951409noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2295341724139950111.post-11019226631325140432008-02-11T20:24:00.000-08:002008-02-15T22:20:48.280-08:00Couples: The CommunicationIts almost a given in my couples work that the<br />"most important thing" couples say they receive<br />regarding communication is the capacity to hear<br />and be heard and to understand and be understood.<br />That's the core issue in their communication.<br /><br />It sounds so simple. So how do we go about not<br />accomplishing this very or most important thing?<br />Well, that takes assuming you know what your partner<br />means or what the meaning of something is for them.<br />Sometimes you only know what the meaning is for you<br />and you attribute it to them. You end up relating<br />to your own thought or emotion rather than to the<br />person you are with.<br /><br />So, ask your partner what they mean or what something<br />means to them. Make very few assumptions and really<br />listen to what they say. Tell them what you think you've heard<br />and get their confirmation. Now you are actually relating to<br />them, not the idea you have been carrying around in your<br />head.Geoff Michaelson, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/13864282713165951409noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2295341724139950111.post-76514175981249754942008-02-01T05:34:00.000-08:002008-02-01T21:37:48.804-08:00Injury Prevention in SportsIts fascinating that predictors of injury in athletics<br />are similar to predictors of performance. For example,<br />an athlete's ability to mitigate a stress response during<br />competition allows them to play more effectively.<br />The stress response also contributes to injury. How<br />does this happen?<br /><br />During the stress response, performance concerns,<br />overly tense muscles, anxious sensations (butterflies,<br />etc.) pull the athlete off task. They are not as focused<br />on what they have to do. A lack of proper focus or task<br />appropriate muscle tension can pull an athlete off track.<br />Performance is hampered and worse, you may not be<br />aware of things happening around you or even your<br />physical trajectory. Then accidents are more likely to<br />happen.<br /><br />A basic question becomes, who is more likely to be<br />injured let alone suffer poorer performance than<br />their skills and training would suggest? Some athletes<br />more easily focus on task. Focusing on competition<br />and winning counts. But, when an athlete is more<br />focused on the win, the end result, and less focused<br />on the task, the play by play, of getting there,<br />then injury and sub-par performance are more likely.<br /><br />The good news is that athletes can enhance their focus<br />and task orientation through sports psychology skills<br />training. They can improve resilience to the stress<br />response through mental skills training as well. By<br />enhancing mental skills, they can reduce injury<br />incidence.<br /><br />Once an injury occurs, the athlete can also enhance the<br />recovery process by embracing rehabilitation as "part<br />of their game". Injury and recovery are just part of<br />what an athlete prepares for, deals with, and in most<br />cases overcomes. Mental skills training can also<br />optimize recovery time. Having clear goals for rehab,<br />carrying out the plan, good support from family,<br />friends and the sports medicine team all make a<br />a difference. <br /><br />Pain, setbacks, and anxiety can be big challenges<br />for the athlete. Mental skills are crucial to over-<br />coming obstacles and dealing with the emotional<br />roller coaster that sometimes accompanies the<br />ups and downs of physical recovery and return<br />to competition. Athletes can learn psychological<br />skills to manage pain, stress, and anxiety during<br />rehabilitation from injury.Geoff Michaelson, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/13864282713165951409noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2295341724139950111.post-57925352960302836602008-01-30T06:00:00.000-08:002008-01-31T18:08:44.872-08:00Hypnosis for Depression?<div style="text-align: justify;">Hypnosis may be a useful adjunct to the treatment of depression.<br />For example, some people are both de-energized and chronically<br />tense over extended periods of depression, particularly when<br />waiting for their medication to "kick in" or the right prescription<br />and therapeutic dosage. They also report feeling very "stuck",<br />unable to make headway with their cognitive therapy while their<br />minds continue to spin with negative thoughts. Particularly<br />frustrating are the thoughts that "this will never stop" and a<br />sense that they are not getting any help.<br /><br />When hypnosis is considered as an adjunct to their treatment<br />several things can happen. First, if a combined relaxation/self-<br />hypnosis training is accomplished, the individual can experience<br />periods of relaxation and calming that they have not experienced<br />in many months or longer. This can instill a sense of greater<br />efficacy and control, combating the sense of helplessness and<br />hopelessness. In addition, some people may apply the technique<br />to insomnia and night time waking to aid in their sleep. Second,<br />the individual may experience a degree of variability, even if only<br />slightly, that contrasts with the ongoing drone of their depressed<br />mood.<br /><br />Another utility of hypnosis is combining the procedure for<br />relaxation and focusing with the cognitive-behavioral exercise<br />of challenging negative thoughts. It can be very difficult to focus<br />and do the cognitive exercises. Hypnosis is a relaxed state of<br />focused attention. Utilizing this state may help the individual<br />develop some focus to do the cognitive work.<br /><br />As can be seen from the above, hypnosis is not a treatment that<br />necessarily removes depression by suggestion. Rather, it can be<br />a tool the individual uses to strengthen their resources to cope and<br />to accomplish their treatment program. Many hypno-therapists<br />complain that it is very difficult or "impossible" to get their clients<br />into a "relaxed and safe inner space". The challenge can be lessened<br />by understanding that one should not send some people directly to<br />an inner experience since this may simply lead them to focus where<br />they already unhappily are. They may need to transition through<br />a number of progressive mental states to get to or create a "positive<br />relaxing place".<br /><br />For example, before doing any hypnosis at all and especially with<br />younger clients, its sometimes useful to discuss the things they like to<br />do, see, listen to, feel, in short what sensory experiences give them<br />relief. For other people, it is their pets that accomplish the beginning<br />shift out of sameness. Then a therapist can help the client creatively<br />utilize their experience as a resource to build a state of mind that<br />varies from depression. Working first with eyes open helps too. So,<br />first you help the client gather their internal and external<br />resources. Then they build an experience. Then, having constructed<br />something durable and comfortable, they may open the door, go<br />inside that space, and perhaps even invite you along.<br /><br />When I feel really stuck with a patient in training self-hypnosis I<br />want to know everything about their environment in terms of who<br />and what is stressful. Working with this who and what may be<br />necessary before any hypnosis training is possible. Finally if the<br />clinician hasn't assessed hypnotizability in some fashion, he or she<br />may be leading themselves and their client down the path of<br />frustration and disappointment. I like informal methods of<br />assessment ("arm-drop","eye roll", etc.) to begin with as they<br />may be less draining in terms of time and energy for the client<br />while standard scales and techniques (HIP, Harvard, etc.) may<br />be added.<br /><br />There are some new cognitive techniques (C-BASP) for depression<br />coming along and I have corresponded with one of the researchers<br />about combining a new technique with hypnosis and visualization.<br />I have had preliminary anecdotal success by adding this on to<br />existing techniques, by self-report from clients. The point is, don't<br />give up either as a patient or clinician. Be creative while building on<br />to what works rather than discarding the foundation of<br />cognitive therapy and medical intervention.<br /><br />Resources: Books and articles by Dr. Michael Yapko on Hypnosis<br />and Depression, The American Society of Clinical Hypnosis (lists<br />specialists in hypnosis and their certification).</div>Geoff Michaelson, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/13864282713165951409noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2295341724139950111.post-81278386857975941372008-01-10T22:01:00.000-08:002008-02-01T21:43:04.205-08:00Slideways Into 2008My metaphor for the new year occurred during a snow tubing<br />adventure at White Tail in Pennsylvania. The awareness that<br />there is no real control as you slide sideways, backwards, and<br />head first down the slope was freeing. Nothing to do but laugh<br />all the way to the bottom over and over again. And so we go<br />slideways into the future, the only control being how we want<br />to be about the direction it takes us...fighting the flow or "digging"<br />the snow. I am reminded that in sports and life we control<br />what we choose to do and how we react to what else is beyond<br />our control. On a tube there is no preparation, no goal, no plan,<br />just the ride. The more you let go, the better the ride.<br />Happy New Year!<br /><br />Geoff Michaelson, Ph.D.Geoff Michaelson, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/13864282713165951409noreply@blogger.com0