Anna Knakkergaard, MD
Anna Knakkergaard is a Danish medical doctor and clinical hypnotherapist working primarily with children, adolescents, and families.
She is the founder and CEO of Min Magi and Underfund, where she develops evidence-based digital treatment programs and delivers structured training courses in clinical hypnotherapy. Her work combines clinical practice, digital health innovation, and large-scale implementation across primary care, municipal services, and pediatric settings.
She is the developer of the digital programs Min Magiske Mave (My Magical Tummy) and Ro i Maven (Calm Belly), designed for children and adolescents. Her clinical background includes work in pediatrics, child and adolescent psychiatry, and municipal child health services.
Anna Knakkergaard holds a medical degree from Aarhus University (2011) and a Diploma in Clinical Hypnosis from the Danish Society of Clinical Hypnosis (2014–2015). She has presented at national and international conferences, including the European and International Hypnosis Congresses.
Min Magi – Digitalt forløb til børn og unge med ondt i maven | Min magiske mave
Digital Hypnotherapy for Functional Abdominal Pain in Children and Adolescents:
From Real-World Use to Large-Scale Implementation and Validation
Abstract
Anna Knakkergaard, MD
Min Magi / Underfund, Denmark
Background:
Recent international guidelines and systematic reviews emphasise that, in paediatric functional abdominal pain (FAP) and related disorders of gut–brain interaction, the primary challenge is no longer the identification of effective treatment modalities, but rather their accessibility and implementation in real-world settings. Gut-directed hypnotherapy is among the treatments with the strongest evidence base, yet access remains limited. To address this gap, we developed Min Magiske Mave (My Magical Tummy), a fully digital, self-guided program combining gut-directed hypnotherapy, psychoeducation, and practical tools for children and their families. The program has been in routine use for two years.
Methods:
The child program consists of weekly video-based psychoeducation, guided hypnosis audios, and interactive tools supporting everyday coping and self-regulation. Over the past two years, more than 1,000 children have participated in the program through municipal implementation and private access. Real-world outcome data demonstrate clinically relevant improvements in pain-related impact, daily functioning, and wellbeing.
Based on these results, an adolescent version (Ro i Maven / Calm Belly) has recently been developed. Together, the child and adolescent programs constitute a unified digital solution.
Building on real-world use and accumulated data, a large-scale implementation and validation project has been initiated in collaboration with five major Danish municipalities. The aim of the project is to document changes in pain-related impact, functional level, and wellbeing among approximately 1,000 children and adolescents receiving the combined digital intervention.
Outcomes:
The validation project will assess changes in pain-related impact, functional level (including everyday activities and school participation), and overall wellbeing.
Future Research:
In parallel, an independent PhD project commencing in 2026 will further examine clinical outcomes and implementation of the intervention in pediatric care.
Conclusion:
After two years of real-world use involving more than 1,000 children, digital gut-directed hypnotherapy shows promising results. Ongoing large-scale implementation and validation of the combined child and adolescent solution aim to strengthen the evidence base for scalable, low-threshold treatment of functional abdominal pain in children and adolescents.