Mindful Hypnotherapy (2026)
Victor Julian Padilla
Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Baylor University, Waco, Texas USA
Correspondence: victor_padilla2@baylor.edu
Key words: mindfulness; hypnosis; hypnotherapy; mindfulness-based intervention; behavioral medicine
Several authors have proposed that hypnosis and mindfulness have substantial physiological and phenomenological overlap (Elkins & Olendzki, 2019; Grant, 2012; Yapko, 2011). Mindfulness has been defined as “paying attention in a particular way, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgmentally” (Kabat-Zinn, 1994) and is considered one practice arising from Buddhist philosophy. Complementary to mindfulness, hypnosis has been defined as “a state of consciousness involving focused attention and reduced peripheral awareness, characterized by an enhanced capacity for response to suggestion” (Elkins, Barabasz, Council, & Spiegel, 2014).
Mindful hypnotherapy represents a synthesis of mindfulness and hypnosis to create a synergistic effect and optimize hypnosis to support mindfulness goals such as increased present-moment awareness, loving-kindness, compassion, relaxation, and self-regulation. Therefore, mindful hypnotherapy is defined as “an intervention that intentionally uses hypnosis (hypnotic induction and suggestions) to integrate mindfulness for personal and therapeutic benefit” (Elkins & Olendzki, 2019).
Mindful hypnotherapy is an integrative psychotherapeutic intervention that uses a wide range of clinical hypnosis techniques to facilitate experiencing and achieving mindfulness goals for the treatment of health concerns and conditions. In their book Mindful Hypnotherapy: The Basics for Clinical Practice, Gary Elkins and Nicholas Olendzki (2019) outline a manualized mindful hypnotherapy intervention delivered across eight weekly, one-hour sessions. Hypnotic suggestion topics include improving present-moment awareness, nonjudgmental awareness of thoughts, emotions, and physical sensations, self-efficacy in performing self-hypnosis, self-compassion, and awareness of personal values.
In a pilot study investigating the feasibility of mindful hypnotherapy for reducing stress and increasing mindfulness, Olendzki et al. (2020) found that participant satisfaction and retention were acceptable at eight-week follow-up. Exploratory analyses showed that participants in the mindful hypnotherapy group reported lower perceived stress on the Perceived Stress Scale at follow-up than those in the waitlist control group. Since then, mindful hypnotherapy has been adapted to address anxiety, depression, chronic pain, and other health outcomes. A meta-analysis by Padilla et al. (2026) found that, compared with wait-list and active controls, mindful hypnotherapy had large effects on reducing psychological distress and on increasing mindfulness and reducing stress. These findings support the therapeutic potential of mindful hypnotherapy in the treatment of mental health concerns and potential application to a wider range of clinical problems, such as depression, trauma recovery, anxiety, posttraumatic stress, and pain.
References
Elkins, G., Barabasz, A., Council, J. & Speigel, D. (2015). Advancing research and practice: The revised APA Division 30 definition of hypnosis. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 63(1), 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1080/00207144.2014.961870
Elkins, G., & Olendzki, N. (2019). Mindful hypnotherapy: The basics for clinical practice Springer Publishing.
Grant, J. A. (2012). Towards a more meaningful comparison of meditation and hypnosis. Journal of Mind-Body Regulation, 2, 71-74.
Kabit-Zinn, J. (1994). Wherever you go, there you are: Mindfulness meditation in everyday life. Hyperion.
Olendzki, N., Elkins, G. R., Slonena, E., Hung, J., & Rhodes, J. R. (2020). Mindful hypnotherapy to reduce stress and increase mindfulness: A randomized controlled pilot study. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 68(2), 151–166. https://doi.org/10.1080/00207144.2020.1722028
Padilla, V. J., Muñiz, V., Scheffrahn, K., & Elkins, G. (2026). Effect of mindful hypnotherapy on psychological distress: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Behavioral Sciences, 16(1), Article 107. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs16010107
Yapko, M. D. (2011). Mindfulness and hypnosis: The power of suggestion to transform experience. W. W. Norton.