Hypnoanesthesiology in Surgery and Childbirth
- TM "Trance in Dental Medication"
- Two of My Own Operations
- Positive Statements in the Operating Room
- Patients and Doctors Talk
Susanna Grabinger, ready to operate having been prepared with Hypnoanesthesia as the only anesthetic. The anesthesiologist was on hand just in case if there was to be some problem. Just as with any anesthetic including chemical the results are not known until the process is in motion. Fortunately with today's marvelous quick acting anesthetics many patients could try this method knowing if it did not work up to total satisfaction they, in a matter of seconds, could switch to chemical andbe under right away. This allows for many more patients to try this methodand experience a pain free operation the quick recovery associated with Hypnoanesthesia
During the operation the patient indicates no sensation of pain or discomfort while being able to communicate and even argue with the doctor. Hypnoanesthesia allows for the patient to be full aware of what is happening and to be prepared to make decisions along with the surgeon regarding what should be done and how. Susanna was a Nurse and had her own opinionsabout medical matters. Susanna, could fend for herself throughout the operation. It is only under chemical anesthesia the patient does not have this advantage.
This particular operation was performed locally at Fairview Southdale Hospital in Edina. Ittook about two hours. It consisted of a three inch deep incision that was six inches long.
This operation was the feature (Lead) story on KARE 11 News. It was also a feature on Channels, 4 and 9. Articles appeared in the "Minnesota Physician" and in the "Journal of the American Academy of Medical Hypnoanalysis"
Other operations have been performed at Methodist Hospital in St Louis Park and North Memorial Hospital in Robbinsdale.
TM:Trance in Dental Medication
This particular client sought to reduce her expereince of pain in the dental office. With a few sessions of hypnotic training she was able to accomplish what you see in the photographs below.
I have used self hypnosis in lieu of novacaine and other analgesics for my dental work since I learned the hypnoanesthetic method many years ago.
My Own Operations - Achilles Tendon
Patient: Medical Hypnoanalyst and Hypnoanesthesiologist: Bill Ronan, LICSW
What: Preoperative Diagnosis: Partial right Achilles tendon rupture as well as a large Haglund deformity.
Postoperative Diagnosis: Partial right Achilles tendon rupture as well as a large Haglund deformity.(A bursitis in the region of the Achilles tendon. Everything in italics and parentheses is mine, BR)
Name Of Operation
1. Excision of a large Haglund deformity, right calcaneus.
2. Repair of the right Achilles tendon.
Anesthesia: Hypnosis.
Operative Indications: Mr. Ronan presented with partial avulsion of the right Achilles tendon secondary to a large Haglund deformity. Informed consent was obtained for the above-mentioned procedure. He elected to do self-hypnosis for the procedure.
Operative Procedure: After adequate induction of a comfortable state of hypnosis, the right leg was sterilely prepped and free-draped in the usual fashion. No tourniquet was used. An 8-cm, midline, dorsal incision was made over the right Achilles and calcaneus. The Achilles was split longitudinally. There was a large retrocalcaneal bursa (A sac-like cavity with fluid occurring at the area of a tissue where friction would occur. There are hundreds of bursa all over and one hears of Bursitis quite often when inflammation affects one or more. I had a bursa at the back of my Achilles tendon adjacent to the calcaneus) that was excised. The tendon was partially avulsed from the calcaneus, and there was a large area of calcification in the tendon. This calcified piece measured 2.0 x 1.2 cm. This was excised in total. This was followed by using an osteotome ( A knife or chisel to cut thru bone)to remove the large Haglund deformity. The deformity was removed in total. Th is was followed by inserting 3 super Mitek anchors (they are probably devices for bringing together separated tendon areas which have been avulsed that is to say torn apart for whatever reason) into the calcaneus. The tendon was sutured down securely to the calcaneus. A longitudinal incision into the Achilles was then also repaired with the aid of 1 suture.
The wound was closed in layers. A sterile dressing and a short leg cast were applied with the foot in 5 degrees of plantar flexion.
He tolerated the procedure well and was taken to the recovery room in satisfactory condition.
Surgeon: J Chris Coetzee, MD
Where: Minneapolis Sports Surgery Center.
When: 3/26/03, 9:00am 9:40am
How: The only anesthetic was Ideas, supplied by the patient practicing self-hypnosis
Why: Reduce pain, and speed up recovery
This operation was covered on Channel 4 nightly local news, three nights in a row in May of 2003.
My Own Operations - Torn Meniscus
This is a picture taken from my last operation using hypnosis as a general and local anesthetic.
The operation took place on October 3, 2005.
The Surgeon who is posing with me holding a bone fragment she had dug out of my knee during an operation to remove a torn meniscus (A cushiony material that protects the bones from wearing & injury)
Positive Statements in the Operating Room
Can comments made during surgery by your doctors, nurses and other staff affect the outcome of your operation? Can you hear their conversations even while you're anesthetized? The answer to both questions is an emphatic "yes," according to Dr. Henry Bennett, Ph.D.Dr. Bennett, a psychologist, has conducted several experiments on chemically anesthetized patients. His findings convinced him that the operating room environment itself can help or hurt the patient, depending on what is said there.
According to Dr. Bennett's findings, a chemically anesthetized patient is not "asleep." The patient is aware of much more that even the operating room staff believes. The chemically anesthetized state may be more like a deep state of hypnosis (without the benefits of actual hypnoanesthesia) than it is like the "out" state we normally think of with total unconsciousness. Because of this, comments made about the patient during the surgery can have a profound effect on the outcome of the surgery. The last thing that a patient should hear, even in a stupor, is "This looks bad," or "He's not going to make it." Instead, Dr. Bennett suggests that operating room staff always speak positively about the surgery to the patient, "as if the patient were awake." In addition. Dr. Bennett suggests using the anesthetized state purposefully, as a vehicle to deliver even more positive suggestions, similarly as can be done in the hypnotized state. Such suggestions could be as simple as "You are doing very well;" or the y could be more elaborate and specific to the surgery, such as "When the doctor introduces the new organ, it will be easily accepted by your body and will function perfectly."
In two different studies where such positive suggestions were made to patients during surgery, there was a documented positive effect. In one case, a woman was instructed to have her body move the blood away from her back during her spinal surgery. She experienced a blood loss that was 50 per cent less than normal for this operation. In a different study a researcher gave the suggestion to hysterectomy patients that they would feel like getting up out of bed and walking around shortly after surgery. The patients receiving the suggestions ambulated sooner and had fewer complications than the test group who did not receive the suggestions.
This is reason enough to ask your doctor and his staff to monitor their "O.R. chatter." But what if you want to go even further? You may not be able to convince your doctor to rattle off a list of positive statements during your operation. (His mind might be, you hope, focused on the more immediate task of performing the surgery itself).
Nonetheless, you can still obtain the positive effects of positive statements made during surgery. Start by finding a qualified Medical Hypnoanalyst. Ask the Medical Hypnoanalyst to create an audiotape containing positive statements about your surgery (the Medical Hypnoanalyst may have one or more such tapes ready made, or they might make one up specifically for you). Check with your doctor before showing up in O.R. with your tape; but since more and more patients are listening to tapes during surgery, the doctor should not be surprised at your request.
An even better idea would be to visit the Medical Hypnoanalyst one or more times prior to the surgery to pre-program the mental suggestions for positive results even more strongly. Armed with knowledge and a positive attitude, you will be ready for a successful operation and a speedy recovery.
Patients and Doctors Talk About Their Experience with Hypnoanesthesia
"I can't see giving birth without hypnosis. I don't think I could really consider it."
Pam Alonso, birth mother
"I want to thank you for the Medical Hypnoanalysis, which was so effective in preventing my usual nausea and vomiting and controlling my pain after my rather extensive surgery. "
Surgery Patient, Joyce E. Lindgren
"I appreciate your assistance during surgery. . . she was very pleased with her surgery, anesthesia and hypnotic relaxation. I will certainly refer patients to you for benefits of hypnosis.If asked my opinion, I would say all patients should have some hypnosis education prior to surgery."
Allan Greenwood, MD, Hennepin Faculty Associates Dept of Anesthesiology, Fairview Southdale Hospital
"Bill Ronan assisted in the management of one of my patients (Joyce E. Lindgren), I was impressed."
Surgeon, Norman S. Solberg, MD, Ob/Gyn Dept, Methodist Hospital
"It was indeed the best surgical experience I had had in the past 18 months with five surgeries. I had minimal pain and could move, turn and walk around without great discomfort! I actually had to remind myself I just had a two-hour surgery."
"Would I do surgery again using hypnosis? Without a doubt! In my mind, it is the best thing I could have done for myself. My thanks go out to Bill Ronan (for providing hypnoanesthesia for my hernia operation) and a surgeon that believed in giving hypnosis a chance to prove itself."
Susanna Grabinger, RN, Quoted in: the Minnesota Physician and The Journal of American Academy of Medical Hypnoanalysis
Featured story on KARE 11 News, Minnesota 9 News and Channel 4 News