Postmenopausal women can hypnotize their hot flashes away: study

You are getting very… chilly.

One study suggests a surprising new method for treating one of the most uncomfortable signs of menopause — one that affects 85% of women.

And its one that doesn’t involve any patches, pills or creams.

Older women may be looking for alternative, nonhormonal treatments for hot flashes and night sweats. fizkes – stock.adobe.com

A study published in JAMA involving 250 postmenopausal women had some participants undergo self-administered hypnotization, while the rest put themselves under fake hypnosis.

The results? After six weeks, the self-hypnotized group experienced far fewer hot flashes — more than 53% fewer, in fact.

While traditional hormone therapy is common, nonhormonal treatments like hypnotism could be a better choice for some women, especially for those who have a history of breast cancer — like 25% of the women in the study.

Hormonal treatments can increase the risk of developing certain cancers, like breast or uterine. There’s also a possibility of experiencing stroke, heart disease or blood clots.

A study shows that self-administered hypnotism can reduce hot flashes in older menopausal women. WavebreakmediaMicro – stock.adobe.com

Meanwhile, nonhormonal treatments are limited to either antidepressants or lifestyle changes, which can cause side effects like dizziness, nausea, dry mouth and constipation, or aren’t as effective.

Hypnosis isn’t exactly a new treatment for hot flashes, as previous studies showed that therapist-induced hypnotization resulted in fewer and far less severe sweating.

And other studies have shown that self-administered hypnotherapy, like the one in the above study, have helped other conditions like irritable bowel syndrome and chronic pain.

Even the Menopause Society recommended clinical hypnotism as a treatment for these symptoms back in 2023.

Hot flashes can last for years during menopause, disturbing sleep and everyday life, with some women experiencing them for up to 13 years.

But until now, no study has looked at the effects of menopausal women hypnotizing themselves to reduce vasomotor symptoms — hot flashes and night sweating — that occur in later life.