A technique that involves rubbing a patient’s arms can ease anxiety and depression, according to a study by hypnotist Paul McKenna.
In Havening, participants imagine walking up stairs or on a beach as they rub their arms or have them rubbed by a therapist, and carry out distracting tasks. One session was found to help people feel calmer and help clear the mind of traumatic memories.
McKenna worked with psychologists and an academic from King’s College London to publish the paper in Health Science Journal. About 15 per cent of the population are thought to suffer common mental health disorders such as anxiety.
McKenna said he had used the technique on about 1,000 patients, including rape victims and those who had suffered bereavement.
“It’s possibly one of the most significant breakthroughs in psychology in the last 200 years,” he said. “What we are able to do in minutes used to take months.”
In the study, participants said one session had a “positive impact” on their probable depression or anxiety, both after a week and after two months.
In the session, negative events and associated emotional states are recalled and a therapist applies touches to the forearms, coupled with distracting tasks.
“This increases serotonin, which can disrupt reconsolidation of the link between the traumatic memory and the distress it causes,” the paper said.
The findings were said to be preliminary as only 27 volunteers took part.
