Dr Roland Valori, editor of Frontline Gastroenterology, said of the first 100 of his patients treated, symptoms improved significantly for nine in 10.

He said that although previous research has shown hypnotherapy is effective for IBS sufferers, it is not widely used.

This may be because doctors simply do not believe it works. However, research has shown repeatedly that hypnosis is very effective. One of the pioneers is Professor Whorwell, who treats patients at the South Manchester Hospital.

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Research conducted by Edward Blanchard of the Center for Stress and Anxiety Disorders, State University of New York at Albany, found significantly more anxiety disorders among  people seeking treatment for irritable bowel syndrome than among comparable age and sex samples of treatment seeking patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease. So he has developed a programme to deal with these emotional and psychological factors as a way to treat the IBS.

His programe, the Albany Multicomponent Behavioral Therapy Program for IBS, employs techniques drawn from a cognitive behavioural therapy, so that you deal with any unhelpful thinking patterns and responses to situations.

In Britain, Professor Peter Whorwell, at South Manchester University Hospital, has also found this and has developed a psychological programme using hypnotherapy. He has found that the gut is very responsive to suggestions of relaxation and coolness, such that the gut rhythms change for the better. His team enjoy considerable success.

As a cognitive behavioural hypnotherapist, I draw from both these protocols. And they work well. Fast, effective and safe.
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If you want to bone up on the enteric nervous system, the system controlling all the goings on in your gut, then this is the place.

The nervous system in your gut is almost as complex as your brain. Amazingly the gut can (if necessary) work on its own, without any connections to your brain. Because is so similar in terms of structure, we are sometimes offered anti-depressants to deal with the symptoms of IBS. That also may be why hypnotherapy is so useful.
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IBS is called a functional disease, because it is a problem of the working of the gut, rather than being caused by the biology of the gut (which is known as organic disease). Of course, as time passes, the gut does become damaged, so there is these days some controversy about the distinction between a functional and an organic disease.

IBS is a syndrome because there are a wide range of symptoms (or a cluster of symptoms) including back pain and chest pain, as well as the more understandable bloating, constipation etc. And not everyone has all the possible symptoms.

This makes diagnosis quite tricky. It involves excluding any organic disease, and then checking to see if the characteristic symptoms are presenting. If diagnosis is not properly conducted, you can end up with painful, unnecessary and possibly damaging internal examinations.

These are the symptoms normally considered to be symptomatic of IBS. They are called the Rome II criteria.

At least 12 weeks, which need not be consecutive, in the

preceding 12 months of abdominal discomfort or pain that

has two of three features:

Relieved with defecation

and/or

Onset associated with a change in frequency of stool

and/or

Onset associated with a change in form (appearance) of stool

Supportive symptoms:

Fewer than three bowel movements per week

More than three bowel movements per day

Hard or lumpy stools

Loose (mushy) stools

Straining during a bowel movement

Urgency

Feeling of incomplete bowel movement

Passing mucus during a bowel movement

Abdominal fullness, bloating or swelling
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Hypnosis is successful in the treatment of refractory IBS - that is, where the symptoms have not been resolved with other treatments. Hypnosis is an attractive option for many IBS sufferers with chronic and severe symptoms for a number of reasons.

First, it has a track record of success. Published scientific studies show success rates of over 80%.

Second, it is non-invasive. No surgery, no physical poking about. No drugs.

Third, it uses the power of your own mind, and after the treatment, you retain the skills you learned.

A fourth and very interesting result is that other problems, like migraine, end up treated - a beneficial side effect. improvement in IBS symptoms.

And fifth, the improvements last. According to research, individuals who improve from hypnosis treatment for IBS can generally look forward to years of reduced bowel symptoms.
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