A new study shows that listening to hypnotic audio recordings at home can significantly reduce the frequency and severity of menopausal hot flushes. Postmenopausal women using the six-week program reported a 53 percent improvement after six weeks, compared to 41 percent in a control group. The findings highlight a convenient, low-cost alternative to clinic-based treatments.
Up to 80 percent of women experience menopausal hot flushes, which are sudden feelings of overheating causing excess sweating, discomfort, anxiety, and sleep disturbances due to a dramatic drop in oestrogen levels. While options like dietary changes, hormone replacement therapy, and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) exist, they are often inconvenient or ineffective for some.
Gary Elkins at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, notes, “Many people believe there’s a mind-body connection, and that through mental processes, we can influence our bodies and our physiology. This demonstration of hypnotherapy shows just how strong and powerful that mind-body connection is.” Clinic-based hypnosis has previously outperformed CBT in alleviating symptoms, but accessibility remains a challenge.
To address this, Elkins and colleagues developed a six-week home program involving daily 20-minute vocal recordings designed to induce hypnotic relaxation and evoke images of coolness. The study involved 250 postmenopausal women, average age 56, each experiencing at least four hot flushes daily. Participants were divided into two groups: one using the hypnosis recordings and the other listening to sham white noise for 20 minutes daily.
After six weeks, the hypnosis group reported hot flush scores—a measure of frequency and severity—53 percent lower than baseline, compared to a 41 percent reduction in the sham group, likely due to placebo effects. At 12 weeks, post-intervention, improvements persisted, with the hypnosis group showing 61 percent better scores and the sham group 44 percent. Women may have continued using the recordings or applying learned techniques independently, Elkins suggests.
The results position at-home hypnosis as a convenient, low-cost, or even free intervention for menopausal hot flushes. Its mechanism remains unclear, but it may involve brain rewiring to better manage physiological responses, similar to its benefits for pain and anxiety relief. The study was published in JAMA Network Open (DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.42537).