I more than likedessert.
Icravedessertand not just the beautifully plated cakes and tarts that come out of restaurant kitchens.
This is more than just liking dessert.
Getty Images / Design by Channing Smith
It is, Ive learned, a sugar addiction.
In fact,studies have shownthat the pleasure induced from intense sweetness cansurpass cocaine reward.
And like with other addictions,quitting sugarisnt as simple as just stopping.
That certainly was the case for me.
But Im lactose intolerant, andovereating sugarcontinually triggers SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth) flares.
Kicking this sugar addiction wasnt about weight for meI needed to stop essentially poisoning myself on a daily basis.
After my last round of antibiotics to treat SIBO, I realized I had to try something new.
Both of my parents are neuropsychologists, so I have a hard time letting go of needing hard-and-fast science.
I had some pressing questions: Is this basically inception?
Am I going to wake up after being hypnotized and suddenly find sugar revolting?
Those repulsion techniques generally dont workyou concentrate even more on what you dont want with that approach.
How does hypnosis for a sugar addiction work?
This intense focus is achieved two ways.
The first is dissociation, the act of putting potential distractions outside of conscious awareness.
Putting the mind in this mental state makes it more open to therapeutic change.
Through Dr. Spiegels research, imaging has shown what happens to different areas of the brain while under hypnosis.
The final component is key.
In this state, the mind feels freer to experiment with altered perception and behavior.
It also shuts off outside conscious awareness, including painful feelings and thoughts that could be distracting.
Our hypnotizability is a very stable trait in adulthoodas consistent as IQ, said Dr. Spiegel.
About 20% of adults are very hypnotizable, 60% moderately, and another 20% not hypnotizable.
I think theres an infinite source of power that lies within us, Gaynor told me.
You actually have to want to change your behavior for the effects of hypnotherapy to take hold.
Gaynors method typically includes three one-hour sessions, done five to seven days apart.
During the first session, Gaynor said its about confronting the person to start thinking about their addiction differently.
We talked about seeing sugar as something thats life or deaththat eating sugar is literally killing me.
Its this framework that lets people take power over their addiction.
In the first session Gaynor presented me with a lot of different scenarios.
(Stay with me here.)
Gaynor asked, Would you ever get back together with that person?
Even though you once had so much fun, will you ever be able to see them the same?
The answer, obviously, is no.
Gaynor said this is normal.
When youre in hypnosis, you might always hear the suggestions, otherwise it wouldnt work, he explained.
During the hypnosis, Gaynor had me do a series of countdowns with my eyes closed.
In this instance, I needed to trade sugar in for better health.
In the week between my first session and my second, I didnt really feel like anything had happened.
During the second session, Gaynor essentially broke down the how to mechanics of quitting.
The idea is transformation, he said.
Most people are living in a place where they push the consequences of their addiction out of their mind.
Im trying to get people to experience beating an addiction as transformative.
Just like in the first session, we spent most of the time talking about metaphors and scenarios.
We talked about seeing my addiction as a literal addict living in the back of my head.
What do addicts live on?
Hope, said Gaynor.
Hope that youre going to give in.
This sets it up as a debate, which you will always lose.
This session was all about recognizing how to shut down that debate, full stop.
Gaynor also gave me a mantra to use during these moments: Its not an option.
Its not an option.
I dont do that anymore.
Again, during that week until my final session, I didnt feel any significant shifts.
So…I guess it was working?
Truthfully, at this stage I found it hard to track my progress.
The final session is all about acceptance.
Its about letting go and moving on, like after a breakup, said Gaynor.
So basically, youre not suppressing it, youre acknowledging.
We mostly focused on celebrating progress rather than beating yourself up for slipping occasionally into old patterns.
After this third session, I really made a point to stop eating sugar.
Slowly, something shifted.
Was it working because itsworkingor because Iwantit to work?
According to Dr. Spiegel, its a little bit of both.
So it seems that a change has come upon you, but you are in control of it.
you’re able to change your perspective and therefore your behavior.
But for the most part, I do feel like the addiction has been broken.
