Hypnotherapy for Phobias in Berkshire

Hypnotherapy for phobias in Berkshire - The Hypnosis Clinic

Every one of us is fearful of something or somebody or some situation e.g. an insect or the teacher or some social gathering; our reactions range from slight trembling to sweating and increased heartbeats etc.

For a confidential discussion call Amreeta Chapman on 0118 926 9978 / 0786 129 3634 or visit her website at www.innerpotential.info

Some of the common phobias that my clients come to me with are:

Fear of presentations : this is a common problem with people in meetings, businesses or even teachers and lawyers. The person can be a professional who knows his/her subject very well but as soon as the unconscious mind, which is the part of the brain that controls our instinctive reactions triggers the perception of people staring into our face, or the perception that we are going to make a fool of ourselves, the brain seems to blank out; often clients will say they start stammering, stuttering or mixing their words or talking very fast or else having difficulty finding the ideas and sentences. The panic of failing sets in and they just want to run away from the situation.

Fear of flying : Days before the thought of the plane crashing or thoughts of something catastrophic happening or else just the thought of having no control start eating some people up. They cannot hear or even see a plane in the air because it just sets the panic in their body. The thought of actually being in the plane is scary for some, some people even have panic attacks just imagining flying while other people have a fear of the airport, still other the fear of going away from home.

Fear of blushing : with this fear, some people are always self-conscious and hot in their face, with the results that it can set off the blushing even more!! Often the blushing ahs been commented on and thereby the people who develop a fear of blushing are constantly thinking “am I blushing” and thereby they often would prefer fading away in the background, rather than being in the forefront, e.g. in a meeting or a pub.

Fear of heights/depth : Some people do not go on holidays on mountains or do not swim because they are sacred of the deep sea. SO as soon as their mind perceives they are going up in height or deep in depth, e.g. an elevator, lift, aeroplane, swimming, skiing, diving etc….they will panic and sets off the alarm button which may then cause symptoms of sleeplessness out of over thinking about the coming trip or the interview on the fifth floor!!

Fear of driving : Strangely enough I have had several clients with a strong phobia of being on the road, driving away from home or driving on the motorway. Their mind ahs been set into panic and terrible fear that only made them feel less in control and set off minor accidents; after which they just stopped driving.

Fear of animals and objects : I have had different animal phobias here: rats, frogs, dogs, spiders, darkened rooms, dust and even trees!!!

To have a phobia you must have those reactions with ten times more intensity to the point where you actively avoid the phobic stimulus. You may feel as if you are having a heart attack and no reasoning can reassure you except running away from the situation and trying constantly to avoid it. With a social phobia the person will actively avoid being in social places and will even refuse to do any shopping or go on the bus! In the case of developing a phobia for an object e.g. flying, or heights , the person will stop important functions e.g.…a seminar, business meeting etc or else if forced in the situation will feel as if he is suffocating, having difficulty breathing and may even feel as if he/she is going to pass out.

Paradoxically enough phobias are a very common presence in our society given the little we talk and discuss about it openly. They may start in childhood or due to a trauma. It is an excessive fear that the person cognitively knows is irrational and yet cannot control the emotional reactions and the loss of control over his reasoning capacity except having the urge for flight.

Over a certain period the situation becomes a vicious circle: the more we avoid the phobic object(spiders) situation(social gatherings) the more we fear them and the more the fear grows the more inhibited we become to face them and the more we are convinced that the situation has more control over us than we have over it.

Over time so much of our energy is spent planning about how to stay away from the phobic situation that the person can become less functional, feels tired and drained and does not have much time for healthy activities. The phobia also has its toll on our self-esteem as we know that we are not being "reasonable" and we feel ashamed in front of our circle of family and friends. We may often judged as being weak or cowardly but we do know that phobias are valid feelings when we realise that around ten percent of the population is undergoing the same problem we may feel more confident in seeking solutions to our problem.

HYPNOTHERAPY CAN HELP IN PHOBIAS

Hypnotherapy works with the unconscious mind as we've already seen before. Phobias seem to be controlled by our feelings more than from our logical brain so what better alternative than hypnotherapy can there be where the conscious mind is made to "sleep" so that the unconscious mind can be accessed. Two areas of the unconscious mind can be accessed here: the part that knows how the phobia came about and retain the memories about it all; and the part of the unconscious where you have stored potentials and skills that you do not even know you possess but that you have used unconsciously.

Hypnotherapy will:

+ Help you neutralise and desensitise you to the phobic object/situation.

+ Give you the control over your mind and emotions so that you can look on the phobic object/situation as any other normal person would.

+ Help you learn to be more relaxed and raise your self-esteem and self-confidence that you have the tools within you to take care of yourself.

Below are two testimonials from one of my innumerable clients with phobias:

After having Multiple Sclerosis for a number of years, then moving down to the South of England to live, because I didn't know how to drive I felt trapped in the house, my husband worked long hours and my daughter was at school all day, life was very lonely for me and I thought I must learn to drive, I managed the learning to drive easily and passed my driving test, then came the problem driving on my own, I was reluctant to do it and would avoid having to do it,.

I read on the internet that Hypnosis would be helpful and relaxing, so I thought I would try, as I had to pay that much money learning to drive. I had three sessions with Amreeta and it was the best thing I had ever done, I would like to thank Amreeta and would recommend it to anyone, it helps you to relax and face your problem with confidence. (Lady in her late fifties, Windsor)

“After a good promotion at work, I was under a lot of pressure to present and negotiate with some strong characters. This was very difficult as I lacked the confidence to perform. I called Amreeta to talk about hypnotherapy and decided to give it a go. In the few sessions that I had, Amreeta taught me relaxation techniques and self-hypnosis and within in a short period of time I was gaining the confidence to control and negotiate properly in my meetings. This has made a significant difference to my performance at work and I am continuing to develop my new skills. This has been a very positive experience and I would recommend anyone to contact Amreeta to try hypnotherapy (lady in late twenties, Wokingham)