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ASSEN ALLADIN AND ALISHA ALIBHAI
disrupts the depressive cycle, enhances divergent thinking, facilitates
the reconstruction of dysfunctional “realities,” and helps to develop
antidepressive pathways. Many patients commented that the hypnosis
reduced their anxiety and made it easier for them to think about and
discuss materials that they were previously too anxious to confront.
Although Edmonston (1981), from his review of the literature, has con-
cluded that hypnosis and relaxation are the same, Lazarus (1973) has
provided evidence that the effect size is larger in patients’ positive
expectancy of hypnosis. As pointed before, hypnosis can create posi-
tive expectancy. If such an expectancy is coupled with positive experi-
ence, the treatment effect will increase (Barber, 1979).
Apart from inducing relaxation response, the purpose of inducing
positive mood, substantiated by practicing with the Positive Mood
Induction Technique, was to develop antidepressive pathways. Goldapple
et al. (2004) provided functional neuroimaging evidence to show that
CBT produces specific cortical regional changes in treatment respond-
ers. Similarly, Kosslyn, Thompson, Costantini-Ferrando, Alpert, and
Spiegel (2000) demonstrated that hypnosis can modulate color percep-
tion. Their investigations showed that hypnotized subjects were able to
produce changes in brain function (measured by PET scanning) similar
to those that occur during visual perception. These findings support
the claim that hypnotic suggestions can produce distinct neural
changes correlated with real perception. Moreover, Schwartz (1976)
has provided electromyographic evidence that depressive pathways
can be developed through conscious negative focusing. His investiga-
tion led him to believe that if it is possible to produce depressive path-
ways through negative cognitive focusing, then it would be possible to
develop antidepressive or happy pathways by focusing on positive
imagery (Schwartz, 1984). From the foregoing evidence, it would not
be unreasonable to infer that the positive affect and images, coupled
with ego-strengthening suggestions, produced by the hypnosis and
Positive Mood Induction Technique might have exerted some cortical
changes in the brains of the depressives subjected to repetitive positive
hypnotic experience. To verify the extent and locus of changes, further
studies involving hypnotherapy and brain imaging are required.
Posthypnotic suggestions.
Posthypnotic suggestions were used to
counter problem behaviors, dysfunctional cognitions, and negative
emotions. The tendency of depressives to ruminate with negative
self-suggestions, particularly after a negative affective experience (e.g.,
“I will not be able to cope”) can be regarded as a form of posthypnotic
suggestion, which can become part of the depressive cycle. Yapko (2003)
regards posthypnotic suggestions to be a very necessary part of the ther-
apeutic process if the patient is to carry new possibilities into future
experience. Hence, many clinicians use posthypnotic suggestions to
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