Hypnotherapy for mental health: a complement to your care

Maybe you take an antidepressant, or a pill that helps you sleep, and you wonder whether there is something you could add. Maybe your doctor has suggested medication, and you want to understand your options before you decide. Either way, the question behind it is a good one: what else can help? Hypnotherapy for mental health is one possible answer. Not as a replacement for medication or medical care, but as a complement that works on a different level.

This article explains what psychotropic medications are, what hypnotherapy can add and how the two can fit together safely.

Why so many people take psychotropic medication

Psychotropic medications act on the brain and on how we think, feel and sleep. They are widely prescribed. In Switzerland, a bulletin by the Swiss Health Observatory (Obsan) reported that the number of prescriptions rose from 2017 to 2020, the period it covered, and then leveled off.

Behind every prescription is a person going through something hard. For many, medication makes it possible to get through an acute phase, to sleep again, to go back to work, to function. That is real help, and it deserves respect.

The four main groups

Doctors usually distinguish four groups of psychotropic medications.

Antidepressants are prescribed for depression, anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder, and in some cases for chronic pain, migraines, eating disorders and persistent sleep problems. They are the most commonly used group.

Anxiolytics and sedatives are used for anxiety disorders, states of agitation and tension, and sleep problems. Benzodiazepines belong to this group. They can cause side effects such as fatigue, poor concentration and slower reactions, and prolonged use can lead to dependence. That is one reason why doctors monitor them closely.

Antipsychotics are used when hallucinations, delusions or severe mood swings are involved. They are sometimes prescribed off label, outside their approved use, for example to help with sleep.

ADHD medications are meant to reduce hyperactivity and impulsivity and to improve concentration. They make up the smallest share.

Every one of these medications has benefits and risks. Weighing them for your situation is your doctor’s job. It is not something a hypnotherapist decides.

What hypnotherapy for mental health adds

Medication works on the chemistry of the brain. Hypnotherapy works on a different level: on the experiences, emotions and learned reactions stored in the subconscious.

The idea behind cause-oriented hypnotherapy is that symptoms rarely come out of nowhere. There is usually a reason why low mood, anxiety, sleep problems or chronic pain develop.

Often, that reason is a stressful event that was never processed in the subconscious. It may be a single event, several events or a whole phase of life. Such an emotional wound often goes back to childhood. Later, a difficult situation can act as a trigger and tear the old wound open again. Symptoms such as depression, anxiety, compulsions, chronic pain or psychosomatic complaints can follow.

In a session, the hypnotherapist and the client look for that cause together. The goal is to separate the negative emotion from the old experience, so that the memory stays but loses its charge. When that works, the subconscious has less reason to keep producing the old reaction.

This is close teamwork. The client’s subconscious leads the way, and the hypnotherapist guides the process.

What hypnotherapy cannot do

Honesty matters here, because the stakes are high. Hypnotherapy does not cure depression, anxiety disorders or any other mental illness. It does not replace psychiatric or psychotherapeutic treatment, and it is never a reason to stop taking medication.

Some conditions need specialized care first, for example severe depression, psychosis, bipolar disorder or eating disorders. If you are in crisis, feel unsafe or have thoughts of harming yourself, contact your doctor or your local emergency services right away.

Within these limits, hypnotherapy can be a meaningful addition. Many clients use it to work on the stress, fears and old patterns beneath their symptoms, while their medical treatment continues.

Hypnosis alongside medication: how it works in practice

If you are considering hypnosis alongside medication, a few principles keep you safe.

Talk to your doctor first. Tell your doctor that you want to try hypnotherapy. Your doctor needs to know what else you are doing and can tell you whether anything speaks against it in your case.

Tell your hypnotherapist everything. A responsible hypnotherapist asks about diagnoses, medication and ongoing treatment before the first session. That is not bureaucracy. It is the basis for working safely.

Never change your medication on your own. Stopping psychotropic medication suddenly can cause withdrawal symptoms or bring the original symptoms back. If you feel better over time and want to reduce or stop a medication, make that decision with your doctor, who can plan a safe, gradual taper. A hypnotherapist does not advise for or against any medication.

Keep everyone in the loop. When your doctor, your therapist and your hypnotherapist know about each other, each of them can do their part well. You get support on more than one level.

What to expect from a session

A first session usually begins with a conversation. You talk about what brings you, what you have tried and what you want to change. The hypnotherapist explains what hypnosis is and what it is not: you stay aware, you hear everything, and you can stop at any time.

Then the hypnotherapist guides you into hypnosis, a state of focused attention in which the critical, analyzing part of the mind steps back. In that state, it becomes easier to reach the emotional memories connected to your concern. If you want to know more about what happens in the mind, read our article on how hypnosis works.

Hypnotherapy is a short-term approach. It is not meant to keep you in sessions for years. A good hypnotherapist agrees on a clear goal with you and tells you honestly if hypnosis is not the right tool for your concern.

Talk to your doctor, then decide

Your mental health deserves good care, and often that means more than one kind of help. Medication can stabilize. Psychotherapy can help you understand and cope. Hypnotherapy can help you work on the emotional roots of a problem. These approaches do not compete. Used together, with your doctor involved, they can complement each other.

Learning to work this way

If you work with people, as a therapist, coach, nurse or physician, you may want to learn how to use hypnotherapy responsibly alongside medical care. In the OMNI training, you learn to work at the cause of a problem, and to recognize when a client belongs with a doctor first.

Your next step: see Module 3: OMNI Hypnotherapist (online) to find out how you learn cause-oriented hypnotherapy and how the path to certification works.