Can Hypnotherapy Help My Child?

December 21, 2018

When it comes to raising children, parents are showing an increased interested in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). The boundaries of CAM are everchanging as different types of care become more understood and accepted by doctors and requested by patients.

One category of complementary and alternative medicine is mind-body practices which include a wide variety of techniques and procedures designed to enhance the mind’s positive impact on the body. Techniques such as hypnotherapy have been demonstrated to be highly successful in treating pediatric patients.

What is hypnotherapy?

The American Psychological Association defines hypnotherapy as the use of hypnosis in the treatment of a medical or psychological disorder or concern. In regards to pediatrics specifically, clinical pediatric hypnosis is a highly effective, evidence-based tool for helping children in a variety of areas, both physical and emotional.

What conditions can it treat?

Holly Springs Pediatrics is now offering pediatric clinical hypnosis for children with the following:

• Anxiety disorders affect one in eight children, and left untreated can lead to poor performance in school, social withdrawal and a higher risk of substance abuse. In many cases, pediatric clinical hypnosis can be an alternative to prescription anxiety medications.
• Headaches can happen at any age beginning from age 2-3 and up. If your child’s headaches are frequent (more than two or three a week) or are interfering with daily life, talk with your pediatrician about whether he or she may benefit from hypnotherapy.
• Sleep problems in children are not uncommon. To support their rapid mental and physical development, babies, children, and teens need significantly more sleep than adults. There are a variety of reasons that can cause sleep loss in children such as sleep apnea, night terrors and attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Hypnotherapy may be able to help your child get the recommended hours of sleep for their age and help achieve better quality sleep.
• Habits such as nail biting, hair pulling or thumb sucking can be difficult to break. Hypnotherapy can help change the subconscious programming responsible for these habits.

In the future, we will also offer pediatric clinical hypnosis for the treatment of warts and bed wetting.

What can I expect?

Holly Springs Pediatrics offers pediatric clinical hypnosis in the convenience of our office. Our certified pediatric nurse practitioner, Stacey Talarico, is specially trained to perform clinical hypnosis. The number of sessions needed varies with each patient but anywhere from one to six sessions could be typical, with each sessions lasting 30-40 minutes. Parents are always allowed to be present during hypnosis but depending on the age/comfort level of the child/adolescent, sessions without the parent may also be beneficial.

Schedule an Appointment

For more information about pediatric clinical hypnosis, schedule an appointment with Holly Springs Pediatrics. If your child is a current patient, you can request an appointment via our patient portal. New patients can request an appointment online or call 919-249-4700.