IBS SymptomsIBS symptoms vary between individuals, some experiencing chronic IBS symptoms, others more mild. Some may experience symptoms worsening in certain situations, or after consuming certain foods. Others experience it for no identifiable reason. Many experience abdominal pain, cramping, bloating, wind, and complex bowel habits (diarrhoea and/or constipation). IBS is often diagnosis by elimination, yet the symptoms are similar to some very serious health conditions and it is always worth having symptoms checked out by your GP. Hypnosis for IBSIn my practice I have used the North Carolina Protocol for IBS.
The North Carolina Protocol is a 7 week programme, delivered fortnightly, with a home-practice audio to listen to between sessions. In their first study, the authors found that 17 out of 18 participants reported improvements in IBS symptoms - statistically significant improvements were noted in abdominal pain, bloating, and bowel functioning. IBS-related anxieties were also significantly reduced in this group. In their second study, the authors found that 21 out of 24 participants reported improvements in the above, also noting a reduction in depression. Improvements were still noted at 10 month follow-up. I have used this protocol with great success within my own private practice, and the author in his 2006 paper noted at the time that he had worked with 70 people in practise, enjoying success, noting that 80% of patients experience marked improvements in their IBS symptoms. Hypnotherapy and Psychology are recommended for people who don't respond to pharmacological interventions by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).
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In my previous microblog post on the power of visualisations, i talked about how it was demonstrated that visualising sinking a basketball in the hoop can be almost as effective as actual physical practice.
In this microblog post I'm going to mention a study from 2013 where the researchers took 18 young and healthy participants and randomly assigned them to one of three conditions: 1 - Internal motor imagery 2 - External motor imagery 3 - Control group (no practice) So, what is the difference between internal and external motor imagery? The internal motor imagery group imagined themselves actually doing the exercise - they were asked to visualise and imagine the feeling of physically engaging in elbow flexion contraction (i think it's like a bicep curl?). Apparently, some participants even imagined putting their arms under a table and trying hard to mentally lift the table. The external motor imagery group imagined themselves actually doing the exercise, yet saw this happening from a third person perspective. Not through their own eyes. The training sessions lasted 15 minutes, 5 days a week, for 6 weeks. Not surprisingly, those in the control arm of the study experienced no change. Every single participant in the internal motor imagery group experienced clinically meaningful strength gains (a medium effect size), whereas only 50% of those in the external motor imagery group experienced similar. This small study demonstrates how powerful the use of mental imagery can be. With the use of visualisation significantly improving voluntary muscle strength. The authors suggest that the findings hint towards a stronger reinforcement in the neural circuitary that controls the signals to the corresponding muscle when the someone visualises through their own eyes, rather than from a dissociated perspective. It is quite impressive to think that we could, potentially, increase our physical strength by 10.8%, just by imagining ourselves exercising muscles for 6 weeks. Visualising outcomes may seem a little new age, some people may deem it nonsensical, and others wholly onboard with the concept.
In this brief post I want to discuss how visualisations can impact us, physically. This can then lead into a later post about how we can use some of these techniques to help us in other ways. In his 1958 dissertation, as part of his thesis for a doctorate in education, L Verdelle Clark, reminisced on his physical educator, Chiltern Kemp, who incorporated mental imagery into his training programmes for his students playing basketball. This influenced L Verdelle Clark to such a degree that he dedicated a chunk of his doctoral thesis to the study of mental imagery in sports learning. In his research he recruited students from US Schools, in Detroit. He had one group physically practicing 5 warmup shots, then 25 shots to score. Another mentally rehearsed 5 warmup shots, then mentally took 25 shots for a score. They repeated this for four days, on the fifth day both groups took 25 warmup shots, and 25 shots for a score. The findings demonstrated that there's only a 1% difference in improvement between the physical practice group and the mental rehearsal group (the physical group improved by 16%, the mental rehearsal group, 15%). The mental rehearsal group was also shown to demonstrate a statistically significant improvement in arm strength during the course of the experiment. This really demonstrates how visualisation and incorporating mental imagery can be a way to success for anyone wanting to improve or develop skills. |
AuthorI am Dr Tim Mahy, also simply known as "Tim". I changed careers in my 20s, shifting from the world of Offshore finance, to that of Psychology (with 7 years of university to bridge the gap). Archives
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