The International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis
Volume 58, Number 2 - April 2010 - English

Hypnosis in the Treatment of Depression: An Overdue Approach for Encouraging Skillful Mood Management
MICHAEL D. YAPKO

Abstract: According to the World Health Organization, depression is the leading cause of disability in the world and the fourth leading contributor to the global burden of disease. Depression, despite its many causes, is established on a foundation of hopelessness and helplessness, leaving the individual sufferer with a crippling sense of disempowerment. Hypnosis as a treatment tool has demonstrated a significant capacity for empowering people in a wide variety of ways, yet the use of hypnosis in the treatment of depression has historically been actively discouraged for unfounded reasons. The result has been a glaring paucity of clinical and research literature on the subject. Thus, this issue’s special focus on treating depression with hypnosis is both appropriate and timely. There is a great deal hypnosis can contribute to the effective treatment of depression, but researchers and practitioners have only barely begun to explore this new terrain.

Hypnosis in the Treatment of Depression: Considerations in Research Design and Methods
BARBARA S. MCCANN AND  SARA J. LANDES

Abstract: Depressive disorders constitute a serious problem in the United States and around the world.  The appearance of practice guidelines and lists of evidenced-based therapies suggests that adequate treatments for depression exist.  However, a careful consideration of what is known and not known about the treatment of depression leaves plenty of room for improved approaches to addressing this condition.  Although there has been a dearth of research on the treatment of depression using hypnosis, there are several compelling arguments for the inclusion of hypnotic approaches in the array of current strategies for dealing with depression.  However, traditional “gold-standard” research methods, namely randomized controlled trials, have many potential shortcomings for identifying the potential impact of hypnosis on depression.  Other strategies, notably single-case design and benchmarking approaches, may offer a more practical solution to the problem of determining “what works for depression.”

Evidence-Based Hypnotherapy for Depression
ASSEN ALLADIN

Abstract: Cognitive hypnotherapy (CH) is a comprehensive evidence-based hypnotherapy for clinical depression. This article describes the major components of CH, which integrates hypnosis with cognitive behavior therapy as the latter provides an effective host theory for the assimilation of empirically supported treatment techniques derived from various theoretical models of psychotherapy and psychopathology. CH meets criteria for an assimilative model of psychotherapy, which is considered to be an efficacious model of psychotherapy integration. The major components of CH for depression are described in sufficient detail to allow replication, verification, and validation of the techniques delineated. CH for depression provides a template that clinicians and investigators can utilize to study the additive effects of hypnosis in the management of other psychological or medical disorders. Evidence-based hypnotherapy and research are encouraged; such a movement is necessary if clinical hypnosis is to integrate into mainstream psychotherapy.

Hypnotically Catalyzing Experiential Learning Across Treatments for Depression: Actions Can Speak Louder Than Moods
MICHAEL D. YAPKO

Abstract:  A number of psychotherapeutic approaches for the treatment of major depression have received empirical support in the literature, most notably cognitive-behavioral and interpersonal therapies. Recent studies have shown the therapeutic value of the behavioral activation component of such interventions. Depressed individuals actively learning and applying new skills on their own behalf is widely considered a critical component of recovery. This article describes the use of hypnosis to catalyze experiential learning and encourage behavioral activation in the depressed client by directly addressing and transforming cognitive and perceptual patterns that can impede such behavioral activation, especially global thinking and ruminative coping style.

Hypnosis, Rumination, and Depression:  Catalyzing Attention and Mindfulness-Based Treatments
STEVEN JAY LYNN, SEAN BARNES, AMANDA DEMING, AND MICHELLE ACCARDI

Abstract: Over the past 30 years, mental health practitioners, encouraged by rigorous empirical studies and literature and meta-analytic reviews, have increasingly appreciated the ability of hypnosis to modulate attention, imagination, and motivation in the service of therapeutic goals. This article describes how hypnosis can be used as an adjunctive procedure in the treatment of depression and rumination symptoms, in particular. The focus is on attention-based treatments that include rumination-focused cognitive behavioral therapy, cognitive control training, and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. The authors provide numerous examples of techniques and approaches that can potentially enhance treatment gains, including a hypnotic induction to facilitate mindfulness and motivate mindfulness practice. Although hypnosis appears to be a promising catalyst of attention and mindfulness, research is required to document the incremental value of adding hypnosis to the treatments reviewed.

Systemic Hypnosis with Depressed Individuals and Their Families
CAMILLO LORIEDO AND CHIARA TORTI

Abstract: Historically, depression has been considered almost exclusively from an intrapersonal viewpoint, focusing almost entirely on the depressed individual in treatment. In this article, the focus is shifted to an interpersonal view of depression, emphasizing the role of family and cultural influences on the evolution of depression and its successful treatment. Patterns of hypnosis that can be applied in a systemic treatment framework are described and illustrated with case examples.