Fear Nothing!

Howard Hughes, famous American aviator and industrialist, was also a famous agoraphobic – that is, he had a fear of open or public places . But so too are Johnny Depp, Kim Basinger, Woody Allen, Barbra Streisand, and many, many more.  Even Sigmund Freud was agoraphobic!  And did you know that Agoraphobia is a subset of panic disorder?

Who among us has been afraid at one time (okay, many times) in our life?  Of course, we all have.  But when a healthy fear becomes a phobia, or even an irrational fear, then it can affect our lives in an unhealthy way.   Indeed, it can stifle our lives, keep us from achieving our goals, ruin relationships, keep us from having fun, and make us hate ourselves.

Agoraphobia, like almost every phobia, is a psychologically manufactured condition.  Our subconscious minds, the part of our brains that handle our protection, instigate fear in response to what it perceives as a threat or potential threat.  The threat may or may not even exist, but fear can be present based upon the potential that it could exist at some time in the future.  In order to be ready to handle that possibility, our subconscious mind, especially in cases of phobias, heightens our awareness to an extreme degree.  To the person with the phobia, the fear seems rational.  To almost everyone else, it seems odd.

Hypnotherapy is one of the best ways to rid ourselves of phobias.  When the original event upon which the fear is based, called by hypnotherapists the “Initial Sensitizing Event” (ISE), is uncovered in hypnosis, it can be “reframed.” That means the event is put in a context that is explainable and rational to the subconscious mind while the subconscious is directly accessible.   The subconscious mind becomes accessible in hypnosis, and it is why so many of our psychologically-originated conditions, syndromes, symptoms, and even diseases can be dramatically affected by hypnosis.  The subconscious was affected when the thoughts producing the fear originated, and only affecting the subconscious to reverse those thoughts (through reframing) will truly rid the sufferer of the condition, syndrome, symptom or disease.

Medication only masks the symptoms of the fear or phobia – numbs the pain or stress.  Typical psychotherapy can take years and cost tens of thousands of dollars, and may never uncover the ISE.  Even if it does, the psychotherapist may tell you “here is the source of your phobia,” but have no way to correct it.  That happens many times!

If you suffer or someone you know suffers from an irrational fear or phobia, consider the benefits of hypnotherapy.   Whether it is agoraphobia, fear of snakes, spiders animals, fear of water or crossing bridges, fear of public speaking, fear of flying, you name it, hypnotherapy can help!  It has proven extremely effective for decades.  To find out more, please contact me for a free consultation in Skipnotherapy Hypnotherapy and Hypnosis Services in Salem, Oregon at www.skipnotherapy .com.  It could be the life-improving change you were looking for!