No Fear!
Did you know that 1 in 5 of us will develop an irrational fear at some point in our life?
When I speak to people who have fears or phobias (and especially those with unusual ones!) they often assume they are either a) weird or b) the only ones affected in this way.
In reality this couldn't be further from the truth!
Your essential phobia facts:
Anybody can develop a fear
If you can imagine it, you can develop a fear of it
It can happen at any point in time, at any age
It can make your life miserable if it's allowed to persist
You may be surprised to learn that we're born with just two fears - the fear of falling and the fear of loud noises. Everything else is something we've learnt to do - either by watching another person's reactions (for example, a parent who is scared of spiders) or by having an experience that triggers a 'one trial learning' (perhaps a spider falls on us unexpectedly).
Our mind takes a snapshot of that experience and then begins to pattern-match, scanning the environment for anything that looks, sounds or feels similar. This results in us developing a pattern of behaviour that is designed to keep us 'safe'. We may know we are behaving irrationally, but we can't help it - it's as if there's a part of us controlling this behaviour.
Our response becomes automatic, and may result in us feeling anxious, sweaty, sick or dizzy. Our pulse may race, our breathing quickens and suddenly we are on high alert. You may already be aware of this as your 'fight, flight or freeze' response. When you think about it, it's an incredibly effective protective mechanism - but it's not always needed or welcome!
The good news is that hypnotherapy can be really effective in helping you overcome irrational fears.
The 'Rewind' technique is one example of how I help people. By allowing you to experience yourself having an imaginary encounter with the thing that triggers your fear, through the safe and dissociated perspective of a movie screen in your mind, you will be able to change the characteristics of that movie. For instance, you can stop, start and rewind the movie, changing the images, sounds and feelings connected to your fear and re-programming the emotions connected to it. This means that the pattern-match which was causing your fear will no longer happen - and the panic you were experiencing will disappear.
For many people, it's the anticipatory anxiety which is the worst thing, so I also provide tools and techniques that will help you anchor a feeling of calm which can be triggered whenever you need it. So - let's imagine you have a fear of flying. If I could teach you how to access a calm and relaxed state before you even get anywhere near an aeroplane, that would be great, right?
If you are experiencing an irrational fear it's not something you have to put up with or live with.
Ask me for a FREE Discovery call, where you can ask any questions and have a friendly chat about how your fear is affecting your life. It will be the first step you take on the path to a calmer, worry-free future.
