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Phobias • Lack of Confidence • Low Self Esteem
Irritable Bowel Syndrome • Non-clinical Depression
Anxiety and Panic Attacks
Very few people have never felt anxious and up to 30% of people will suffer at least one panic attack during their lifetime. Anxiety: We feel anxious when we believe we can't cope and this belief can have its roots in many sources and be triggered by all sorts of life events. While we may all feel a little anxious in certain situations, eg before speaking in public or when about to have a job interview, severe anxiety serves no purpose in dealing with our everyday problems. It is like a faulty alarm system which goes off in response to an everyday situation or thing which we 'perceive' as a catastrophic threat to our physical or psychological wellbeing, even when there is no real danger - and, as with all learned responses, the more this happens the more it will happen.
Anxiety can cause a range of unpleasant physical symptoms, such as sweating, nausea, increased heart rate and hyperventilation (rapid shallow chest breathing). Hyperventilation depletes carbon dioxide in the bloodstream and decreases the uptake of oxygen by the nervous system. This may lead to feelings of dizziness and faintness.
Panic: Panic attacks are common amongst people with existing anxiety-related problems, and particularly those with a high incidence of stress in their lives, such as family/marital problems, death/illness, or new responsibilities.
Panic attacks are usually triggered by the bodily sensations which accompany severe anxiety. These sensations can be so extreme that sufferers fear they may be about to pass out or even die which in turn increases the sense of panic.
The important thing to remember is that learned responses can be unlearned. We can change the way we think about those situations or things which are triggering our anxiety and so eliminate our distressing symptoms.
Hypnotherapy and cognitive behavioural techniques offer straightforward, commonsense tools for developing calm self-assurance and confidence in our ability to cope with those situations or events which have been triggering our fears. There is a wealth of clinical evidence for the effectiveness of CBH in treating severe anxiety.
Stress
Stress is what we feel when we are under pressure and it is one of the most common problems of our age. While a little bit of pressure can help you to perform better at something, too much pressure or prolonged pressure can lead to stress which can result in physical, mental and emotional problems. When we’re stressed we can’t think clearly, our judgement is impaired, we become irritable, even fearful. Our physical symptoms may include increased heart rate, sweating, and poor digestion, to name but a few. Whatever circumstances are causing us to feel stressed, through cognitive behavioural hypnotherapy (CBH) we can quickly learn to take control of our response and so manage our stress levels. This combination of hypnosis and cognitive-behavioural skills training can transform your life by building your confidence and by teaching you how to relax on cue and develop constructive ways of thinking about your problems. These skills are very straightforward and easily acquired through practice which is why the therapy is so effective. This powerful and commonsense approach means that clients usually experience real beneficial change in just a few sessions.
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), is a form of anxiety which commonly starts in late adolescence or early adulthood, but can begin at any time. OCD sufferers seek to alleviate their anxiety by a series of ritual practice or thought processes which become compulsive. These compulsions can be extremely distressing, embarrassing and time consuming for the sufferer, and for family and friends. The treatments widely recognised as the most effective for OCD involve relaxation, and discussion and challenging of the accuracy of the thoughts and beliefs of the sufferer - all key elements of cognitive-behavioural hypnotherapy (CBH). CBH teaches OCD sufferers to relax deeply and to be able to switch on relaxation as easily as they normally switch on feelings of anxiety. It also helps sufferers to examine their thoughts and ideas and is used to demonstrate that the rituals can be ignored without harm occurring. The sufferer soon gains confidence that it is not in fact harmful to avoid compulsive behaviours. By practising NOT responding to compulsion in the presence of the therapist, the client gradually becomes sufficiently confident to re-establish a normal routine in daily life. Rather than being rewarded by a temporary lowering of anxiety when ritual or repetitive behaviour is performed, CBH permanently removes the anxiety which underlies OCD.
Phobias
Phobias are irrational and unfounded fears which can cause panic and/or avoidance of the feared thing. They can have a crippling effect on our freedom to enjoy life to the full. There are two types of phobia - simple (or specific)and complex phobias. Simple phobias relate to a single situation or object(eg spiders or enclosed spaces)and are quite common. Complex phobias are less common and involve a number of anxieties - for example agoraphobia may involve fear of crowds and public places, fear of various means of transport, and fear of being unable to get safely back home. Both simple and complex phobias can be treated successfully using a combination of hypnosis and cognitive-behavioural techniques (CBH) and clients usually make very rapid progress. CBH will teach you to overcome your fears by confronting them in hypnosis while in a very relaxed, calm state of mind. Once you have mastered your fears in your imagination, you will be encouraged gradually to encounter the feared object or situation in reality whilst practising the relaxation techniques you have been taught in hypnosis.
Low Self-esteem and Lack of Confidence
Low self-esteem is the root of so much unhappiness. For most us, it probably begins early in life when, for a variety of reasons, we learn the habit of thinking negatively about ourselves and our abilities. The kind of negative 'self-talk' this results in has harmful effects on the way we feel and the way we behave and affects every aspect of our lives, preventing us from developing our full potential socially and at work. It can be the cause of so many damaging choices which impact on the whole of our lives - just one example being that of entering and staying in abusive relationships. We can save ourselves so much misery if we recognise and overcome this crippling problem by developing a strong and healthy sense of self-worth.
While low self-esteem is all pervading, lack of confidence may relate to a specific issue such as speaking in public or applying for a better job. Again, its root lies in the kind of negative self-talk we engage in which reinforces our belief that we can't succeed.
Both low self-esteem and lack of confidence can be overcome using hypnosis and cognitive behavioural techniques (CBH): you develop the skills to stop negative thoughts in their tracks and replace them with helpful, realistic thinking; to become more assertive; and to relax on cue; in hypnosis, you are given positive suggestions which strengthen your self-esteem and confidence, as well as rehearsing confronting and mastering problem situations. All these skills are easily acquired with practice which is why clients usually experience beneficial change in just a few sessions. Remember, the way we think affects the way we behave and the way we feel, and CBH will dramatically change the way you think for your own good.
Depression
Hypnosis is not recommended for those who have been diagnosed with severe 'clinical' depression (depression which has its root in physiological causes such as bi-polar disorder) but, together with cognitive behavioural techniques, it has been shown to be very effective for ‘reactive' depression. This is the type of depression which can follow a loss or a disappointment such as the break-up of a relationship, the loss of a job, or the failure to achieve some long-cherished goal. Very often depression will naturally lift after we have had time to absorb our loss and it won’t destroy our ability to live our lives normally. However, it can be the case that this type of depression is long lasting and our mood is so low it affects our work and our social life to an unacceptable degree. Our symptoms may include overwhelming sadness, apathy, poor concentration, difficulty making decisions, irritability, fatigue, guilt, and sleep problems. We lose belief in ourselves and any hope for the future.
CBH deals with any underlying anxiety, builds self-esteem and confidence, and lifts our mood. We learn to stop 'toxic' negative thinking in its tracks and replace it with positive, helpful ways of looking at ourselves and our lives. Clients usually begin to show significant beneficial change in just a few sessions.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome
IBS is a 'syndrome' meaning a group of symptoms. The most common symptoms of IBS are abdominal pain or discomfort, often reported as cramping, bloating, gas, diarrhea, and/or constipation. (If you have these symptoms it is essential to consult your GP to ensure that you are not suffering from any other medical condition before seeking complementary therapy for IBS.) IBS affects the colon, or large bowel, which is part of the digestive tract that stores stool. IBS is not a disease. It's a functional disorder meaning that the bowel doesn't work correctly. While doctors are not sure what causes IBS, it does not damage the colon or other parts of the digestive system and so does not lead to other health problems. CBT and Hypnotherapy are now recognised as the most effective interventions for dealing with IBS. NICE recommended hypnotherapy for the treatment of chronic cases of IBS in 2008 as tests have shown that it improves symptoms in 70% of cases. Leading researchers such as Professor Peter Whorwell, Professor of Medicine & Gastroenterology at the University Hospital of South Manchester, writes: "During hypnotherapy, sufferers learn how to influence and gain control of their gut function, and then seem able to change the way the brain modulates their gut activity. We have found it to help all the symptoms, whereas some of the drugs available reduce only a few".
