Could past trauma be causing your psoriasis hell?

A growing number of psoriasis sufferers are finding relief from their debilitating condition through emotional healing.

What is Psoriasis?

Psoriasis is an auto-immune skin problem that can be caused by emotional issues, physical issues, or a mixture of both. Psoriasis causes dry, rough, and raised skin, with a red discoloring in the effected areas. Psoriasis can be painful in some cases, and can also be emotional painful in others where the skin problems are in more prominent features of the body such as the face or arms.

What Causes Psoriasis?

A variety of factors — ranging from emotional stress and trauma to streptococcal infection — can cause an episode of psoriasis. Recent research indicates that some abnormality in the immune system is the key cause of psoriasis. As many as 80% of people having flare-ups report a recent emotional trauma, such as a new job or the death of a loved one. Most doctors believe such external stressors serve as triggers for an inherited defect in immune function.

Emotional Causes of Psoriasis

For most of the clients we have worked with, the event which seems to trigger it of is a childhood trauma or a period of high stress. Things like :-

• Divorce
• Moving home
• Changing schools
• Bereavement
• Bullying
• Significant illness
• Abuse
• Birth of sibling

Of course this list is not exhaustive but it would cover the majority of the clients we have seen. These sort of events can create internal conflict, low-self-esteem, anger, frustration or low self-confidence within the client at a very young age. This type of self-conditioning can be powerful and become deep rooted.

Can Hypnotherapy Help with Psoriasis Treatment?

Hypnodermatology is an informal label for the use of hypnosis in treating the skin conditions that fall between conventional medical dermatology and the mental health disciplines.

The use of hypnosis to provide relief for some skin conditions is based on observations that the severity of the disease may correlate with emotional issues. In addition, hypnotherapy has been used to suggest improvement on dermatological symptoms, such as chronic psoriasis,[1] eczema,[2] ichtyosis, warts[3] and alopecia areata.[4]

Philip D. Shenefelt, a research dermatologist at the University of South Florida School of Medicine, has identified two dozen dermatologic conditions that have shown response to hypnosis in the literature.

These include successful results in controlled trials on verruca vulgaris, psoriasis, and atopic dermatitis.[5][6]

A 2005 review in the Mayo Clinic Proceedings stated that, “A review of the use of hypnosis in dermatology supports its value for many skin conditions not believed to be under conscious control”.[6]

The most comprehensively studied skin conditions in relation to hypnotherapy are psoriasis and warts.[3] Hypnosis may have positive effects on dermatological conditions in both adults and children.[7]

Break Free from Psoriasis today with Hypnotherapy. Call 9650-6520 to arrange a Free Consultation

Hypnotherapy and Psoriasis Research

1. Tausk, F.; Whitmore, S. E. (1999). “A pilot study of hypnosis in the treatment of patients with psoriasis”. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics 68: 221–225. doi:10.1159/000012336.
2. Mirvish, I. (1978). “Hypnotherapy for the child with chronic eczema: A case report”. South African Medical Journal 54: 410–412.
3. Mendoza, M.E.; Capafons, A. (2009). “Efficacy of clinical hypnosis: A summary of its empirical evidence”. Papeles del Psicólogo 30 (2). p. 98-116. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
4. Willemsen, R.; Vanderlinden, J.; Deconinck, A.; Roseeuw, D. (2006). “Hypnotherapeutic management of alopecia areata”. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology 55: 233–237. doi:10.1016/j.jaad.2005.09.025.
5. Shenefelt, P. S. (2008). “Relaxation, meditation, and hypnosis for skin disorders and procedures”. In De Luca, B. N. Mind-body relaxation and research focus. New York: Nova Science Publishers. pp. 45–63.
6. Stewart, A.C.; Thomas, S.E. (1995). “Hypnotherapy as a treatment for atopic dermatitis in adults and children”. British Journal of Dermatology 132: 778–783.
7. Saadat, H.; Kain, Z. N. (2007). “Hypnosis as a therapeutic tool in pediatrics”. Pediatrics 120 (1): 179–181. doi:10.1542/peds.2007-1082.