What does hypnotherapy have to do with Alopecia Areata?

August 28th, 2006

I’ve had a keen interest in hypnosis for a while now and its been very interesting to see just how it can be applied in so many circumstances. It can help improve and even cure anything from phobias and weight loss to stopping smoking and becoming more creative.

However in terms of curing an autoimmune disorder such as Alopecia Areata or any form of hair loss this form of therapy, up till now has been highly controversial. This may be about to change though as some interesting new research has come to light. A preliminary study by Dr Ria Willemsen from the Free University in Brussels published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology has concluded that people with Alopecia Areata may actually experience better mental wellbeing and clinical outcome with hypnotherapy.

Dr Ria Willemsens team used a base of 21 individuals with hair loss on 30 percent of their scalp, that had hair loss for over three months and that had previously not experienced any regrowth with traditional steriod treatment. They were also followed for a reasonable length of time, from six months to six years.

After this treatment (including hypnotherapy and other medical treatment), 12 patients experienced hair growth with nine of these achieving total hair growth. Whilst these finding are mixed and how hypnosis might stimulate hair growth is still unknown, Willemsen and colleagues speculate that hypnosis could lead to certain immune system changes.

Willemsen’s team are careful not to place too much emphasis on the results but it still makes interesting reading and I think further research into this area is welcome. I’d personally like to see more research into stress factors and Alopecia Areata so we can establish whether stress is definately a clinical factor in this condition. Perhaps then we can place more faith in hypnotherapy and the mental wellbeing that it can bring as a defacto treatment for Alopecia Areata.

SOURCE: Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, August 2006.

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