Hypnosis for Pelvic Pain and Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms

Chronic pelvic pain and lower urinary symptoms are under-addressed and at times debilitating symptoms that predominate presentations of common pain conditions such as chronic pelvic pain, endometriosis, interstitial cystitis, chronic prostatitis, and vulvodynia. These symptoms disproportionally affect individuals assigned female at birth (AFAB), and they often co-occur (Al-Shaiji et al., 2021). Genitourinary symptoms can significantly impact quality of life and psychological well-being and are often not well controlled by traditional medical therapies. Treatment and diagnostic testing often involve sensitive procedures that can be experienced as invasive and uncomfortable by patients. Hypnosis has been shown to be effective for addressing both acute and chronic pain, as well as procedural anxiety. While hypnosis has not been widely studied in the treatment of pelvic pain (Biurra et al., 2023), it shows promise particularly for improving quality of life and can reduce lower urinary tract symptoms associated with pain (McKernan et al., 2023).

This webinar will present a brief overview of the prevalence, impacts, and mechanisms of chronic pelvic pain and urinary symptoms. The speakers will then discuss applications of clinical hypnosis as an adjunctive treatment for chronic pelvic and urinary symptoms in an outpatient integrative medicine clinic and a urology subspecialty clinic. Providers will share recommendations regarding how to introduce and explain hypnosis for this application, and detailed examples of induction strategies, varied applications, and suggestions to target pain and symptom experiences for this undertreated population.

After attending this intermediate-level program, participants will be able to:

• Summarize the prevalence and impact of chronic pelvic and urinary pain.
• Identify research findings and limitations regarding the use of clinical hypnosis for chronic pelvic and urinary pain.
• Generate a bank of possible suggestions to target various aspects of chronic pelvic and urinary pain symptoms and treatment.

This program meets APA’s continuing education STANDARD 1.1: Program content focuses on application of psychological assessment and/or intervention methods that have overall consistent and credible empirical support in the contemporary peer reviewed scientific literature beyond those publications and other types of communications devoted primarily to the promotion of the approach.

This program meets APA’s continuing education GOAL 1: Program is relevant to psychological practice, education, and/or science.

General Admission: $65.00

SCEH Members: $55.00

Students: $15.00*

(Please email [email protected] for coupon code)

Refund Policy: 100% of tuition is refundable up to 48 hours before the program. Within 48 hours of the program, and at any point in Homestudy format, tuition is nonrefundable.

Lindsey McKernan, PhD, MPH, Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Vanderbilt University Medical Center

Lindsey McKernan, PhD, MPH is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Clinically, Dr. McKernan specializes in treating the intersection between co-occurring chronic health conditions and mental health. She has particular interests in working with trauma and chronic illness, and has additional expertise in clinical hypnosis. Dr. McKernan works as a clinician at the Osher Center for Integrative Health and Department of Urologic Surgery. Dr. McKernan is currently funded by the National Institute of Health to examine non-pharmacological treatments for specific pain populations. Recognizing that pain is a highly unique experience to the individual, the lab and its collaborators are working to administer psychosocial interventions for urologic populations, specifically interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome. The lab’s focus is to inform treatment and intervention delivery through applying patient-informed approaches to care, understanding unique patient-level factors that influence pain, expanding treatments to a wider audience, and using data science to inform intervention efforts.

Elizabeth G. Walsh, PhD, Assistant Professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Vanderbilt University Medical Center

Elizabeth Walsh, PhD is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Dr. Walsh provides clinical services at the Osher Center for Integrative Health, where she specializes in treating adults with complex chronic pain and chronic illness, and has a special interest in the use of clinical hypnosis. She also serves as the Director of Education at the Osher Center, overseeing psychology and medical education programs, including a robust training program in clinical hypnosis for chronic pain. Dr. Walsh collaborates with Dr. McKernan on research on psychosocial treatment for interstitial cystitis, and conducts research on patient perspectives among individuals with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS).

Al-Shaiji, T. F., Alshammaa, D. H., Al-Mansouri, M. M., & Al-Terki, A. E. (2021). Association of endometriosis with interstitial cystitis in chronic pelvic pain syndrome: Short narrative on prevalence, diagnostic limitations, and clinical implications. Qatar Medical Journal, 2021(3), 50.

Biurra, Y. C., Chesterman, S., Skvarc, D., Mikocka-Walus, A., & Evans, S. (2023). Hypnotherapy for chronic pelvic pain: A scoping systematic review and meta-analysis. Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, 52, 101771.

Brooks, T., Sharp, R., Evans, S., Scharfbillig, S., Baranoff, J., & Esterman, A. (2022). Potential Feasibility of an Online Hypnosis Intervention for Women with Persistent Pelvic Pain. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 70(2), 196-207.

McKernan, L. C., Connors, E. L., Ryden, A. M., Finn, M. T., Kim, A., Vandekar, S. N., … & Reynolds, W. S. (2023). Clinical hypnosis can reduce lower urinary tract symptoms in individuals with chronic pain. Neurourology and urodynamics, 42(1), 330-339.

Shahriyaripoor, R., Shahhosseini, Z., Pourasghar, M., Hoseinnezhad, Z., Shahriyaripoor, R., & Ganji, J. (2023). The Effect of Hypnotherapy on the Pain Intensity of Endometriosis Patients Treated with Dienogest: A Pilot Double-Blind Randomized Clinical Trial. Journal of Nursing & Midwifery Sciences, 10(4).

Soriano, A. J., Schnur, J. B., Harvie, H. S., Newman, D. K., Montgomery, G. H., & Arya, L. A. (2021). Pilot randomized controlled trial of a hypnosis intervention for women with bladder pain syndrome. Neurourology and Urodynamics, 40(8), 1945-1954.

Target Audience: Hypnosis practitioners, mental health professionals, healthcare professionals, researchers, teachers, and students.

Psychologists. This program, when attended in its entirety, is available for 1.5 continuing education credits. The Chicago School of Professional Psychology is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The Chicago School of Professional Psychology maintains responsibility for this program and its content. The Chicago School of Professional Psychology is committed to accessibility and non-discrimination in its continuing education activities. The Chicago School of Professional Psychology is also committed to conducting all activities in conformity with the American Psychological Association’s Ethical Principles for Psychologists. Participants are asked to be aware of the need for privacy and confidentiality throughout the program. If program content becomes stressful, participants are encouraged to process these feelings during discussion periods. 

Counselors/Clinical Counselors. This program, when attended in its entirety, is available for 1.5 hours of continuing education. The Chicago School of Professional Psychology is licensed by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) to provide continuing education programming for counselors and clinical counselors. License Number: 197.000159

Social Workers. This program, when attended in its entirety, is available for 1.5 hours of continuing education. The Chicago School of Professional Psychology is licensed by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) to provide continuing education programming for social workers. License Number: 159.001036

MFTs, LPCCs, and LCSWs. Course meets the qualifications for 1.5 hours of continuing education credit for MFTs, LPCCs, and/or LCSWs as required by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences. If you are licensed outside of California please check with your local licensing agency to to determine if they will accept these CEUs. The Chicago School of Professional Psychology is approved by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences (BBS) to offer continuing education programming for MFTs, LPCCs, LEPs, and/or LCSWs. The Chicago School of Professional Psychology is an accredited or approved postsecondary institution that meets the requirements set forth in Sections 4980.54(f)(1), 4989.34, 4996.22(d)(1), or 4999.76(d) of the Code.

Non-Psychologists. Most licensing boards accept Continuing Education Credits sponsored by the American Psychological Association but non-psychologists are recommended to consult with their specific state-licensing board to ensure that APA-sponsored CE is acceptable.

*Participants must attend 100% of the program in order to obtain a Certificate of Attendance.

If participants have special needs, we will attempt to accommodate them. Please address questions, concerns and any complaints to [email protected]. There is no commercial support for this program nor are there any relationships between the CE Sponsor, presenting organization, presenter, program content, research, grants, or other funding that could reasonably be construed as conflicts of interest.