Cases | REPORT

24. Pre-surgical hypnosis

PERSON: old woman (95 years).
DESCRIPTION: severe reactions of terror and disorientation after her hospitalization, caused by her intense pain (femur fracture after a fall) but also by the fact that she has never been in a hospital and she didn't understand her situation.
APPROACH: near her bed; endless cries and no attention at all to me; my authoritarian, repeated, loud request to her: "I want to know where are the spines! I want to know where are the spines!"; attention captured; explanation that a spine in a finger hurts greatly, thus a big spine in a leg hurts even more; simple information about the reason of the hospitalization, and about the surgical intervention; post-hypnotic suggestions in the form of basic advices for a quick healing.
RESULT: no more cries from her; permanent calmness even during the following days.
UPDATE (6 months): serene entrance in the operating room, no emesis after surgery, good appetite, healing incredibly fast (discharged even before all the other surgical patients in her ward, and able to tolerate a second general anaesthesia for a dermatological surgery on her arm); rehabilitation easy and very effective.

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