Contact: 0775 1022 380
Auto Immune Diseases
The immune system is a biological marvel. Identifying foreign bodies and destroying them in an effort to keep us healthy. Unfortunately, sometimes the immune system malfunctions resulting in the immune systems wrongly identifying parts of the body which belong there, and are carrying out vital work. This malfunction can manifest itself in many different forms; from Multple Sclerosis, the immune system attacking neurone sheaths, to Rheumatoid Arthritis, the inflammation of joints and surrounding tissue.
All cells have something called an antigen. This is a chemical marker that allows the body to recognise as being native or not. The body reads these signitures to determine whether it is to be destroyed or not. Incorrect indentification can allow foreign bodies to carry on unhindered or can result in the hosts functions being disrupted. This can take the form of; changes in organ function, abnormal organ growth, or destruction of body tissue. Areas of the body typically affected are the skin, blood vessels, connective tissues, endocrine glands, joints, and red blood cells.
We are not entirely sure why some people develop autoimmune diseases. There may be a hereditary factor, an inability for the immune system to return to normal after an infection, or the action of stress. Relatively recent research indicates that people can develop autoimmune disorders after being under stress. There is a link between immune system activity and the amount of stress people are experiencing, and this is not necessarily the big, acute stressors, more the persistant recurring stressful events.
As the body releases glucocorticoids (stress hormones) the body's immune system kicks in and begins to manufacture white blood cells to repell any invaders. As hormonal release continues so does the increasing activity of the immune system. When the hormones have accumulated to a certain level, the immune system begins to slow down again as its is very costly energy wise to maintain, and activity returns to normal levels.
Problems begin to occur when immune activity is not reduced and is maintained at a very high levels, on defensive alert, manufacturing white blood cells. This happens either due to the cumulative effect of repeated stress events building up, or when the secretion of stress hormones is at a consistently low level, thus never reaching the hormonal cut off which will trigger a negative feedback and homeostatic response. When the immune system is ran very hard for long periods of time, like any other system, it is prone to breaking down.
Not only do we see evidence for the cause of some autoimmune disorders in stress, but also their exacerbation. Stress can make symptoms worse and encourage cyclical relapse in those diseases which have remission phases. Hypnotherapy is a fantastic method with which to reduce stress and our perception of stress. Shifting our interpretations can make us appreciate a problem or issue in a different light, thereby lessening the consequences of stress and the impact it has on autoimmune diseases.
Hypnotherapy can also be directly effective in addressing some autoimmune diseases more directly through guided imagery. It is the subconscious mind that ultimately controls the functioning of the immune system. Hypnotherapy, through the medium of language, can re-programme the subconscious to affect immune system activity, thereby having therapeutic affect upon conditions arising from the immune system.