What happens to our brains when we undergo hypnosis, and can you see its effects? Researchers at the University of Geneva put these questions to the test back in 2009. Placing study participants into an MRI scanner, subjects were asked to press a button with either their right or left hand when instructed while snapshots of their brains were taken. However, some of the participants had been instructed through hypnosis that their left hand was ‘paralysed’, while others were not, and a small group was asked to pretend their hand was paralysed. Here’s what the brain scans revealed. HYPNOTISED UNHYPNOTISED UNHYPNOTISED & PRETENDING
“Hypnosis is much more than a theatrical performance we can see on stage”
Hypnotised Not hypnotised Shown in pink, the brain motor cortex responsible for the movement of the ‘unparalysed’ hand fired up to prepare for further movement. When instructed to use the left hand, the right region of the motor cortex became active. Shown in yellow, the neurons typically associated with motor skills, such as moving the arms, fired up. However, following the suggestion that the left hand was paralysed, these neurological signals failed to reach the region of the brain responsible for movement and were instead directed to the posterior region of the brain called the precuneus.
Hypnosis can be utilised as a form of therapy
Pretending When only pretending to have been paralysed by hypnotic suggestion the redirection of brain signals seen in those who had been hypnotised did not occur and the regions of the brain that became active followed those who were not hypnotised, shown in purple. This area of the brain is responsible for our ability to visualise memories and is thought to play a part in our self-consciousness – the awareness of yourself. It’s believed that the reason this area of the brain is fired up is due to the visualisation of the hypnotic suggestion that the left hand is too heavy to lift and therefore paralysed.