What is it?
Hypnotherapy uses deep relaxation to help people become aware of their inner thoughts and find ways to manage them.
Why use it
It may help improve mental wellbeing and overcome mental blocks around anxiety, fear, low self-esteem, pain, insomnia and unwanted habits such as smoking.
What to expect
A trained therapist will ask you about your current health and medical history and discuss your reasons for having hypnotherapy. They will then guide you into a deeply relaxed state, known as an altered state of consciousness. In this relaxed state, your subconscious can focus on your treatment goals, making them more achievable for your conscious mind.
What is the evidence?
Clinical studies show that hypnotherapy can help people cope with pain, anxiety, fatigue, hot flushes and nausea and vomiting related to cancer treatment.
→ READ MORE: Light and temperature therapies
Meditation and Relaxation Podcast
Listen to more of our meditation and relaxation podcast for people affected by cancer
Key resource
Download a PDF booklet on this topic.
More resources
A/Prof Geraldine McDonald, Director Patient Experience and Wellbeing, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, VIC; Laura Carman, 13 11 20 Consultant, Cancer Council Victoria; A/Prof Christine Carrington, Senior Consultant Pharmacist Cancer Services, Princess Alexandra Hospital and Metro South Health and The University of Queensland, QLD; Kellie Giannarelli, Consumer; Dr Suzanne Grant, Senior Research Fellow, Integrative Oncology, NICM Health Research Institute, Chris O’Brien Lifehouse, NSW; Vivienne Hansen, Bush and Western Herbal Medicine Practitioner, WA; Karla Jaji, Administration Officer, Nepean Cancer and Wellness Centre, NSW; Dr Laura Kirsten, Senior Clinical Psychologist, Nepean Cancer Services, Nepean Blue Mountains Local Health District, NSW; A/Prof Judith Lacey, Director of Supportive Care and Integrative Oncology, Chris O’Brien Lifehouse, NSW; Adjunct Professor Danforn Lim, Western Sydney University and University of Technology Sydney, NSW; Dr David Mizrahi, Senior Research Fellow and Accredited Exercise Physiologist, The Daffodil Centre, University of Sydney and Cancer Council NSW; Professor Avni Sali AM, Founder and Director, National Institute of Integrative Medicine, VIC; Gillian Thompson, Consumer; A/Prof Kate Webber, Medical Oncologist, Monash Health, VIC; Tanya Wells, Integrative Oncology Consultant and Naturopath, Melbourne Integrative Oncology Group, VIC; Prof Kate White, Professor Cancer Nursing, Cancer Care Research Unit, The Daffodil Centre, University of Sydney and Cancer Council NSW.
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