Fears and Phobias

Fears and phobias

What are fears and phobias?

Distinguishing between a fear and a phobia breaks down into how acute the fear is and more acute fears can be considered a phobia.

Many people live with a fear which they have little or no opportunity to encounter making the fear harmless.  As an example, someone with a fear of snakes living in a location where they never come into contact with them can avoid their fear impacting on their daily life.

There are fears or phobias which are unavoidable and this can cause distress and have an impact on a person’s daily life and this is when hypnotherapy can be a valuable tool.

Here is an example:

A person with an acute fear of needles is advised by their doctor to have a blood test. This can have several outcomes:

• Their phobia may cause them to be so fearful that they do not go for the blood test which has potential to affect their health.

or

• They go for the test but in addition to being very afraid experience physical reactions such as crying, extreme sweating, fainting or vomiting.

Whichever outcome a person with such a phobia experiences, it is clear that their irrational fear is interfering with and impacting their life and they need help to overcome this

Another example may be a person who develops a fear of open spaces, or agoraphobia, who may experience physical symptoms upon leaving their home which may worsen the further they are from this environment. There are countless reasons why this fear can impact on a person’s daily life, such as the ability to hold down a job.

How do fears and phobias form?

Fear is an innate instinct and humans have had it since the beginning of time.  It can be a useful instinct to keep us safe from things that can cause us harm.  However, our fears or phobias can be irrational and do not necessarily serve to protect us.

There are various types of phobias such as simple, complex and social.  Identifying details such as this is an important step in finding out how hypnotherapy can work for you.

How fears and phobias develop can differ between individuals and this is why it is so vital that you discuss your individual circumstances thoroughly with your therapist.

Here are a few examples of how fears and phobias can form:

• Fear can be a learned from growing up seeing a caregiver’s reaction to the stimulus
• It could be the result of a series of experiences which have cumulated in this phobia
• It could be the result of one event which has caused subsequent fear

Some individuals find discussing their fear or phobia an emotional experience whilst others are more matter of fact but it is essential to discuss your issue in detail with your therapist in order for hypnotherapy to be a success for you.  Remember that you will be in a non-judgmental and safe environment.

What can you expect from hypnotherapy for a fear or phobia?

As always, an initial phone call is the first step in ascertaining if hypnotherapy is the most appropriate way forward for you, followed by an initial consultation, which is free of charge. This gives us a chance to meet face to face and have a good informal chat about your issue, during which we can discuss aspects such as:

How long have you held this fear or phobia?
Specifics of the issue itself, e.g. physical symptoms experienced
What circumstances or places make your fear worse?
Do you know the specific reasons which caused the fear in the first place?

The way to proceed and the number of sessions required is different for each individual and usually it is necessary for a minimum of 3 sessions since different aspects of the phobia would be examined in each session.

You can contact us in a number of ways to discuss your fear of phobia in confidence:

Phone: 01792 346123
Email: info@sarahnealehypnotherapy.co.uk
Contact us form: http://sarahnealehypnotherapy.co.uk/contact/