Trying Hypnotherapy for Fibromyalgia Pain

I've had fibromyalgia for about six years now, and to be honest I'd never considered hypnotherapy before. I was a little bit cynical about it, but after some research online I found a hypnotherapist who specializes in treating chronic pain, and so I thought I'd give it a go.

The hypnotherapist I found was very welcoming and very approachable, and talked about the fact that hypnotherapy doesn't work for everyone. It works best for people who have a vivid imagination and are able to visualize things easily. That's definitely me, so I had a lot of hope for the session.

We talked about how I cope with my fibromyalgia, what I find most difficult, and what kind of things trigger a flare-up. Then we did some breathing exercises and she talked in a way that enabled me to relax my body, and focus on my breathing and being calm. It was good, but not at all what I’d imagined hypnotherapy to be like.

My therapist explained that the point of hypnotherapy is to almost trick your mind into thinking that you're in a situation you're not. She asked me to think of a happy place that I would find calming, and she started to talk to me and give me exercises to do to help trick my mind, and I could feel my body relaxing as she took me through the exercises.

She gave me a CD to take away to help me practice some of these things at home, and I have found that since that session I've gone to my happy place when my body has felt particularly sore or when I’ve been in a situation that would normally trigger a flare-up.

I’ve booked two extra sessions, and I'm really looking forward to continuing the process and seeing if it has any long-term effects on the way I manage my pain.

If you're interested in trying hypnotherapy to help you cope with fibromyalgia, I would recommend that you make sure the therapist specializes in chronic pain, and has a full qualification, rather than just someone who's done a two-day course in hypnotherapy.