Hypnotherapy in Palliative Care

When people hear the word ‘hypnotherapy’, they often think of giving up bad habits, or sharpening a sports performance. Few people realise that hypnosis has a very long history within medicine — particularly in the management of pain, anxiety and distress.

In palliative care, where the focus shifts from cure to comfort, these areas become profoundly important.

I work as a pro bono hypnotherapist with patients, families and carers at my local hospice. This work has offered a deeply moving insight into the challenges faced by those living with life-limiting illness and people at the end of life, as well as the acute pressure on their carers. It has also been enormously satisfying to help people who would not otherwise have had hypnotherapy, as part of a tremendously talented and caring medical and complementary team.

Supporting the human experience

Palliative care is not solely about physical symptoms; it encompasses the total human experience — physical, emotional and psychological.

People may be living with:

• Pain or discomfort

• Breathlessness

• Sleep difficulties

• Anxiety

• Fear

• Emotional distress

• Overwhelm

Until you have come into contact with a hospice you may not realise that much of the work happens in the community and with out-patient care — I certainly didn’t. Hospices don’t just provide medical treatment on wards to people at the very end of life, they also provide social work services, spiritual care, counselling, bereavement support, different types of wellbeing services and complementary therapies. And that’s where I come in.

It should go without saying, but hypnotherapy does not replace medical care. Rather, it works alongside it as a complementary therapy, hopefully alleviating how symptoms are experienced and supporting people emotionally.

What does the research say about hypnotherapy in palliative care?

While hypnosis is not yet a routine component of palliative care, research continues to highlight its promise as a complementary intervention.

I record Subjective Units of Distress (SUDs) for each patient I work with. In general, within a short series of sessions, my patients typically experience a 50% reduction in their SUDs, although of course the results vary by patient according to hypnotisability, motivation and commitment. (NB, these are my clinical observations and not controlled data.)

Helping to ease pain and symptoms, as well as improve comfort and sleep

Clinical hypnosis has been widely studied in various types of symptom management.

In one, Elkins, Fisher and Sliwinski (2012) conclude:

“Hypnosis as an adjunct treatment for cancer patients and survivors can be effective in treating pain, nausea, fatigue, hot flashes, and sleep disorders.These are symptoms commonly encountered in serious illness” although it should be acknowledged that “additional research will be needed for clinical hypnosis to become a well-established evidence-based treatment for the palliative care of cancer patients”.

Vayne-Bossert and Hardy (2025) observe:

“Hypnosis has been shown to have a favourable impact on psychological symptoms, especially anxiety, as well as chronic pain conditions… in the absence of significant adverse effects, it offers great promise as a complementary therapy.”

This is particularly relevant in palliative settings, where anxiety and distress can also amplify physical symptoms.

A mind-body approach to palliative care, reducing anxiety

Importantly, hypnosis can be a means of relieving suffering and can also offer positive mind-body and spiritual effects.

Brugnoli (2016) notes that:

“Clinical hypnosis in palliative care increases comfort by lessening pain, controlling symptoms (physical, psychological and spiritual), and lessening stress for the patient and family, and should not be delayed when it is indicated.”

Furthermore, Alladin (2018) notes that:

“Cognitive hypnotherapy (CH), an evidence-based multimodal treatment for depression can be applied to a wide range of depressed patients in palliative care.”

Living with life-limiting illness brings psychological challenges that are often underestimated.

Alladin (2018) highlights that psychiatric distress in palliative care is:

“Well documented, yet often undetected and untreated, adding further to the burden of suffering.”

Support for families and carers

Serious illness affects entire families.

Hypnotherapy may help carers and loved ones manage:

• Stress

• Sleep disruption

• Anxiety

• Emotional exhaustion

The impact of hypnotherapy can be quite surprising for the patients themselves, both while caring for loved ones and after their loss. After five sessions, a bereaved gentleman told me that his “dark thoughts” where “lighter and briefer” and not present every morning. As he put it, “Something happened, something left me.”

Comfort, not cure

It’s very rewarding for a hypnotherapist to be able to help provide moments of mental and physiological relief and comfort during extraordinarily difficult times.

Hypnotherapy offers a very gentle way to help patients to:

• Reduce pain perception

• Ease muscular tension

• Calm the nervous system

• Improve sleep quality

• Support anxiety and promote calm

• Reduce anxiety-driven symptom escalation

• Increase a sense of control

  
  

Given that hypnotherapy is generally considered safe and low in side effects, it is an excellent complementary therapy that can offer substantial support for complex patients. Sessions are gentle, personalised to each individual, taking into account their symptoms, emotional state and preferences. In general, after hypnotherapy most people feel some immediate relief, they feel more relaxed and positive and they often experience improvements in sleep. While just one session can help the patient feel better, it's often the case that successive sessions increase the benefits.

One in-patient I treated recently experienced an improvement in her Subjective Units of Distress (SUDs) from 9/10 to 5/10 in one session and reported that she felt, “lighter and free”. This is illustrative of the effects possible when a suitable patient works with the right hypnotherapist.

Personally, I am excited about the potential of hypnotherapy in hospice settings. In my experience so far, I have been able to help in-patients, out-patients with life-limiting illnesses, and their carers, to reduce symptoms and improve mood and energy. This is a specialism within hypnotherapy that I am keen to continue and develop. There is also a need for more research to explore and demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of hypnotherapy and I am hoping to conduct a pilot study with the medical team at St Raphael’s.

At its heart, palliative care seeks to reduce suffering and preserve dignity. Hypnotherapy cannot change a diagnosis, but it can help soften distress, fear and discomfort. With continued research, its place within compassionate end-of-life care may become increasingly clear.

Please do get in touch if you would like to explore this complementary support at the end of life for yourself, a loved one or a carer. In addition to therapy room or online sessions, hypnotherapy visits for end of life patients can also be arranged at home, in a care home, or within a hospice.

References

Elkins G, Fisher M, Sliwinski J. ‘Clinical hypnosis for the palliative care of cancer patients’. Oncology, Nurse Edition. 2012 Aug 27.

Vayne-Bossert P, Hardy J. ‘Is there a role for hypnosis in palliative care?’ Palliat Care Soc Pract. 2025 Feb 25.

Brugnoli MP. ‘Clinical hypnosis for palliative care in severe chronic diseases: a review and the procedures for relieving physical, psychological and spiritual symptoms.’ Annals of Palliative Medicine. 2016 Oct 21.

Alladin, A. ‘Cognitive hypnotherapy for psychological management of depression in palliative care.’ Annals of Palliative Medicine. 2018 Jan 26.