Overcome Chemotherapy Appetite Loss

Chemotherapy patients often experience changes to their senses of taste and smell combined with nausea and pain. These side effects often result in a lack of appetite or an unwillingness to eat.

The Chemotherapy Appetite Loss Hypnosis Script from The Script Collection was put together to help clients better tolerate the appetite-suppressing side effects that can accompany chemotherapy.

The pre-talk assures the client that their issue is well understood. Common methods of dealing with appetite loss are listed, and the client is reassured that the side effects of chemotherapy are temporary.

The effects of hypnosis are directly discussed and the goal of the session clearly explained to pave the way for unconscious change. The client is assured the trancework will not pressure them to eat; rather, it will help them feel more relaxed around food and tune out the side effects of chemotherapy so that they can nourish their body in a way that feels comfortable and natural.

The induction begins by using flowing language to reassure the client they don't need to consciously try to relax. The client is led through a progressive relaxation, starting with the facial muscles and moving to the feet. Embedded commands instruct the client to feel the deep heaviness of the relaxation.

Now, the client is asked to imagine themselves looking out over a magnificent vista. They are encouraged to notice the sensations it brings: feeling the wind, breathing the fresh air. With the imagination activated, the client is guided to get a sense of an enjoyable sound, such as a cat purring or a piece of music, to help them relax further.

Next, the sense of touch is activated as the client is led to feel pleasurable tactile sensations, recall an enjoyable sensation from their past, and get a sensation of flying until they reach a summit. From the peak, the client notices how far away their pressures are. Embedded commands instruct them to relax completely.

From the peak, the client regards themselves from afar. This new perspective helps them see how they can benefit from managing their life more calmly and taking things one step at a time.

The power of the unconscious mind is illustrated through a parable of a family that moved close to an airport. While the plane noise initially bothered them, over time they found they automatically tuned out the distractions. An embedded command reassures the client that they, too, can "dial down what's not relevant" in their life.

Now, a story about a hypnotist Milton Erickson is delivered. In the story, Erickson tells a patient with chronic pain how he experienced sensory overload when he returned to his family farm after being away at medical school. While the sounds and smells overwhelmed him at first, as he relaxed into the experience his unconscious mind eventually tuned them out.

Erickson helped that patient adjust their unconscious mind in the same way to tune out their pain. When the patient was calmer, they were more in command of themselves, and able to "dial down intrusive sensations." It is suggested that the more relaxed the client can be, the more they will be able to actively "enter the control room of [their] brain" to dial down any unhelpful sensations.

The client's focus is now trained back onto themselves. They are asked to picture on a cinema screen a future version of themselves who has completed chemotherapy and regained their appetite. After sitting with this image for a while, the client is guided to merge with this future self. An embedded command instructs them to feel the "wellbeing and vitality" of their appetite being back to normal.

From this future perspective, the client is guided to notice that their appetite loss feels like a distant memory. They are led to recall how they called upon their inner strength to get through their chemotherapy, overcome their challenges, and "stay sufficiently nourished." Further, they are asked to experience how it feels to have their appetite back. Everything inside them has normalized, and comfort and wellbeing are "permeating through body and mind."

From this future vantage point, the client feels a sense of their past self going through chemotherapy. They feel a "calming, peaceful light" imbuing that period of their life with relaxation and calmness, allowing them to feel fully in command of themselves. Embedded commands reinforce the understanding that they can feel an inner strength, tune out what's not relevant, and feel better in themselves again.

Add the Chemotherapy Appetite Loss Hypnosis Script to your script library today.

Chemotherapy Appetite Loss is also available as an MP3 download.