Ever wished for a better night's sleep? Ever woken up feeling unrefreshed even after what felt like a good night's sleep? If so, you might be surprised to discover that you may not be getting enough deep sleep, also known as "slow wave" sleep. This type of sleep is crucial for improved memory and cell renewal, and it also promotes physical health. Why? It could be that your REM (rapid eye movement) sleep is working overtime trying to process your anxiety. This is the part of sleep where you dream. Sleep researchers from the University of Zurich found that women who were "highly hypnotizable" experienced an 80% increase in slow wave sleep after listening to a hypnotic recording. Psychologist, Mark Tyrell of Uncommon Practitioners believes that this could be due to the hypnotic state closely resembling REM sleep. In anxious and depressed people, time spent in REM is longer than normal, because it acts like an emotional de-arousal tool. Many anxious people wake up during the night and are unable to get back to sleep again. This is possibly a result of REM working too hard - your brain is more active during REM than when you are awake! Mark concludes that during hypnosis, REM is re-created and leaves more space for deep, slow wave sleep. Studies are continuing into this fascinating area, but based on feedback I receive from many of my clients, their sleep generally improves after just one or two hypnosis sessions. I have now started listening to hypnotic recordings before bed, in the hope that my frequent "hormonal" awakenings will reduce! So can hypnotherapy help with sleep? Yes it can!
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