The Healing Power of Relaxation

    Many abstracts of scientific papers on the negative effects of stress on our health and the positive effect of Guided Imagery, Relaxation and Self Hypnosis are available in www.pubmed.com. In all the studies, a variety of relaxation techniques were applied to experimental groups, and their effects were compared to those derived from control groups. The following are summaries of the outcomes of such studies on a variety of diseases.

Insomnia

    Patients who were participants in the experimental group and suffered from insomnia, about 75% experienced improvements in sleep onset, extent of insomnia, and overall sleep quality.

Cardiovascular Diseases

    The following significant changes were observed in the relaxation group as compared with the control group: greater reduction in both systolic and diastolic blood pressures; plasma cholesterol concentrations and the number of cigarettes smoked were lower; the patients had less angina and a reduced need for treatment of hypertension and its complications; there has been a reduction in the level of stress and an improvement in the quality of sleeping. In a follow up study a few years later, patients in the control group had a higher incidence of Ischaemic heart disease, fatal myocardial infarction, and electrocardiographic evidence of Ischaemia.

Essential Hypertension

    The following significant changes were observed in the relaxation group as compared with the control group: reduction in the pulse rate, systolic blood pressure, and diastolic blood pressure; reduction in the level of stress and improvement in the quality of sleeping.

Gastrointestinal Diseases

    Patients in the experimental group, who suffered from ulcerative colitis experienced less frequent pain, greater pain relief, less distress due to pain, taking fewer anti-inflammatory drugs. The quality of life had improved, and the frequency of doctor visits was reduced.

    Patients in the experimental group, who suffered from irritable bowel syndrome reported significant improvements of the symptoms of abdominal pain, diarrhea, flatulence, and bloating. The quality of life of those patients had improved, and the frequency of doctor visits was reduced.

Surgery

    The following significant changes were observed in the relaxation group as compared with the control group: less anxiety and pain during the procedure, and decreases of blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, and reports of pain. Significantly fewer patients reported anxiety, lower cortisol levels were recorded one day after surgery; less surgical wound erythema was observed; considerably less pre-operative and post-operative anxiety and pain were recorded, and the patients required almost 50% less narcotic medications after their surgical procedures. The number of post-operative hematomas was reduced significantly, and there were shorter periods of pyrexia. Less time in hospital was usually required, and the patients were generally rated by nurses as having made a better than expected recovery.

Inflammatory Rheumatic Diseases

    The following significant changes were observed in the relaxation group as compared with the control group: reduction in joint tenderness, in pain and mobility difficulties; improvements in the muscle function of the extremities, and a related upgrading of the quality of life.

Pain

    The following significant changes were observed in the relaxation group as compared with the control group: improvement in three domains: bodily pain, vitality, mental health and improvement in the quality of life.

Cancer

    The following significant changes were observed in the relaxation group as compared with the control group: positive changes the emotional adjustment variables such as tension, depression, anxiety, fatigue and hostility. Amelioration of the overall mood, improvement in the quality of life, attenuation of the emotional distress presented during radiotherapy treatment, and both the improvements in anticipatory nausea and vomiting and post-chemotherapy nausea and vomiting.

Skin Diseases

    Patients in the experimental group, who suffered from herpes experienced reductions in herpes frequency. Those who suffered from acne vulgaris experienced significant reduction in acne severity. Those who suffered from psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, and chronic urticaria experienced significant improvement in skin status. All patients who suffered from skin diseases experienced improvements in psychosocial parameters.

Bronchial asthma

    The following significant changes were observed in the relaxation group as compared with the control group: decrease of trait fear, alleviation of asthma-specific complaints and asthma attacks, decrease in sleep disturbances and in morning coughing urge, reduction in the required quantities of controlled-dosage aerosol, and a modified attitude toward the disease in the sense of an improved subjective coping competence. Significant increases occurred in the forced expiratory volume and peak expiratory flow. The heart rate showed a significant increase in the coefficient of variation, root-mean-square of successive differences and at the high frequency range, in addition to a significant reduction at the low and middle frequency ranges.

Epileptic Seizures

    Patients in the experimental group, who suffered from Epileptic Seizures experienced a reduction in seizure frequency and an improvement in their quality of life.