Use of neurofeedback and mindfulness to enhance response to hypnosis treatment in individuals with multiple sclerosis

The purpose of this pilot study was to determine if neurofeedback (NF) or mindfulness meditation (MM) training might enhance the efficacy of hypnosis (HYP) for decreasing chronic pain and fatigue in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). Based on the previous findings that (1) response to hypnosis treatment may be facilitated by more slow wave (especially theta) brain oscillation activity, and (2) NF and MM can increase slow wave activity, we hypothesized that study participants with MS and either pain or fatigue would who received NF or MM training prior to hypnosis treatment would report greater treatment‐related improvements than participants who received hypnosis alone. Thirty‐two individuals with MS were randomly assigned to one of three treatment conditions: (1) NF to increase theta oscillations (10 sessions) + HYP (5 sessions); (2) MM (10 sessions) + HYP or (3) HYP‐ONLY. The hypnosis treatment targeted reductions in pain and fatigue. Large between‐group effects were found for improvements in pain intensity (favoring NF + HYP) and small effects were found for improvements in fatigue (favoring both NF + HYP and MM + HYP). In exploratory analyses, large between‐group differences were also found for improvements in sleep quality (favoring NF‐HYP). The findings indicate that the beneficial effects of hypnosis may be enhanced by providing training in mindfulness or neurofeedback prior to the initiation of hypnosis treatment. Further research is needed to evaluate the reliability of these preliminary findings.