Can hypnotherapy help me get rid of my fears?
It is estimated that more than 90% of all adults have at least one intense fear. For some it is as extreme as crowds and for others it is a seemingly silly fear like a cat or a bird. Although it may sound silly to the person who is afraid, it can be debilitating. Regardless of why the person has established the fear, they commonly react in the same way to their feared situation. In most cases, the reason for the fear is buried deep within the brain and can be traced back to an earlier experience or association in life.
Past Times – Causing Present Fears
In the life of each person there is a situation or circumstance that has made them feel a certain way or associate two things. Just as a young child learns to associate the golden arches at McDonald’s with a happy meal, others associate scary things in their everyday lives. Most of the time, the individual can recall a traumatic experience, association, or behavior that led to fear. It is easier to understand if the person has any recollection of the situation, but in some cases the person may not remember anything at all. In fact, many people who suffer from fears really have no idea where their fear came from. And this is where hypnotherapy can help them, not only to discover the root of the fear, but also to eliminate it completely.
Hypnotherapy to discover the root
During the hypnotherapy session, the trained hypnotherapist guides the client through their stored memories to discover the root of their fear. It can go back decades in the past or be as simple as a scratch on the surface. Since memory, consciousness, and the senses are heightened during the practice of hypnosis, the individual can easily access memories that may have been repressed. It is not uncommon when a person experiences a traumatic or negative experience to repress or “hide” that experience. With a lot of concentration or guidance from the hypnotherapist, this memory can be accessed and replaced. When memory is challenged, it can be put into proper perspective and therefore calm or alleviate fear.
With the help of the hypnotherapist, the individual can learn to cope with this negative event and relax. One of the problems with fears is that the person automatically tenses up, blood pressure rises, and fear-stress behavior becomes a vicious cycle. At this point, the “fear” response is not due to the “item or event,” it is simply a habit triggered by a particular thought, saying, sight, or smell. Hypnotherapy helps the individual to regain control of their thoughts, senses and control them to reduce this cycle.
What about irrational fears?
No fear is a small fear. They all trigger the same panic, stress, and automatic reaction, however small. The fear of a clown may sound insignificant or nominal to one person, but to another it is phenomenal. It is important to understand that hypnotherapy is not a practice to evaluate or classify fears or disorders. It is a discovery of the true memories, thoughts or behaviors behind that fear, so it works regardless of the level of fear.