The Power of Hypnotherapy for People Living with Dementia

by Kathy Balland

Last year as I was working away in my hypnotherapy practice (which included weight loss, smoking,
stress and pain relief), it occurred to me that we have an aging population that has special needs. I
really felt that I wanted to tap into this growing population of aging baby boomers, and work with
them. It is even more noticeable here in the state of Arizona; a state that many people retire to.
(Actually, the top three states with the largest elderly population are California, Texas and Florida.)

When you consider that one person in 20 from the age of 65 and over has dementia, not to mention the
fact that young onset dementia (under the age of 65) is on the increase, it becomes obvious that there is
a growing need for help in this area. Although Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia with
5.4 million people in the US diagnosed with the disease, there are actually over 100 types of dementia,
and unfortunately many people go undiagnosed. Therefore, the numbers are even greater.

My own personal experience with dementia included watching helplessly as a family member that was
diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease slowly deteriorated over a period of several years. No therapies
were used as she sat in her chair feeling scared and anxious, while she became disoriented and lost the
ability to take care of and feed herself. Whenever I saw her I could see the fear in her eyes, and at times
she verbally expressed her anxieties.

Eventually she deteriorated to the point that there was little emotion left, and she just lay in a hospital
bed in her home day after day. After a large amount of weight loss and other complications from the
disease, she passed away. Needless to say, it was a long, stressful and traumatic experience for the
entire family.

My own observations and experience in the area of dementia led me to do some research, including
speaking with a local assisted living facility that uses alternative approaches such as aromatherapy and
massage. The director of the facility inquired: “Would hypnotherapy work for dementia?” She
continued to explain that they were having problems dealing with anxiety and Sundowner syndrome. It
was then that a “light bulb” went on in my mind, and I became curious about the possibilities of
whether hypnotherapy could improve the quality of life for people living with dementia.

I began to do some research, and every time I found an article or website that mentioned hypnotherapy
for dementia, it also mentioned the work of Dr. Daniel Nightingale. As it turned out, Dr. Nightingale
was the pioneer in this area. In particular, there was a study published in Alzheimer’s Care Today that
comprised the work of Dr. Nightingale. The study showed the dramatic impact that hypnotherapy had
in improving seven areas of quality of life:

1. Immediate Memory
2. Memory for Significant Events
3. Concentration
4. Relaxation
5. Activities of Daily Living
6. Motivation
7. Socialization

The study contained three groups: A discussion group, a treatment as usual group, and a group of
people living with dementia that received weekly hypnotherapy sessions. The results were impressive;
not only during the therapy period (which lasted nine months), but in some areas there were continued
positive results one year after the hypnotherapy sessions were completed.

I decided that I wanted to learn more, so I contacted Dr. Nightingale. At the same time, there was a
former UCLA Alzheimer’s researcher that had also contacted Dr. Nightingale. The researcher was
interested in learning Dr. Nightingale’s techniques of hypnotherapy for dementia as an alternative
approach. This was due to the fact that the chemicals that she had worked with in her drug research for
Alzheimer’s disease negatively affected her health.

Together, the Alzheimer’s researcher and I brought Dr. Nightingale to the US for some in depth
training. As I got to know Dr. Nightingale, I was also amazed by the other dementia therapies that he
was using to improve the quality of life for people living with dementia. This includes adapting
Montessori techniques (such as the ones used with children) which helps people with dementia to feed
themselves.

Also in the process, I discovered that the UK has legislation called “Always a Last Resort” which
means that anti-psychotic drugs are only used on people living with dementia after all other therapies
have been exhausted. Unfortunately, in the US we have become all too accustomed to using drugs for
the anxiety that results in people that are living with dementia. (This anxiety takes up some of a
person’s cognitive abilities, and with hypnotherapy we can reduce anxiety. In a person with dementia,
this results in the ability to function more affectively.)

I learned from Dr. Nightingale (who is a leading UK dementia consultant, hypnotherapist,

psychotherapist, social worker and registered nurse) how important it is to understand what stage the
person living with dementia is at, so that we can understand as a hypnotherapist how to treat them.
There is so much to understand about the disease and the process of working with clients who are
living with dementia. It is very important to have proper training before you have a hypnotherapy
session with a client living with dementia. (There is no hypnotherapy script that can take the place of
this important training.)

Needless to say, I became passionate about helping people with dementia, which gives me the
opportunity to really make a difference with my work. My hope is that many other gifted
hypnotherapists acquire the necessary skills to assist people living with dementia. Together, we can
make a huge impact to improve their quality of life, which will positively impact a great number of
people.

Kathy Balland is the Co-Founder of Dementia Therapy Specialists, which provides therapy and
training that improves the Quality of Life for people living with dementia; including how to complete a
dementia assessment and the correct use of hypnotherapy for people living with dementia. Information
is available at: http://dementiatherapyspecialists.com/calendar-of-events/