Fear of driving can get in the way quite a bit. The freedom that a car gives you can be very clouded by your fear of driving. Sometimes you even lose it altogether, namely when you have to stop driving because of the fear. Often those affected are ashamed or afraid of being ridiculed. For example, according to the motto "What the 16-year-old American can do, I should have been able to do for a long time.
But driving anxiety can affect anyone, even those who were previously the most casual drivers. Also, driving anxiety is not an indication of mental weakness, on the contrary, as I will show later. Unfortunately, even driving schools use the official expression "scaredy-cat", which does not help self-confidence either. Despite this, or because of this, hypnosis is very often successful.
If you are interested in how hypnotherapy can help with your anxiety, then you should read on.
I can say in advance: Hypnosis is a very good way to treat driving anxiety.
Fear of driving is a specific fear, but it can have many manifestations. The so-called amaxophobia ranges from a queasy feeling to total panic when you are behind the wheel yourself. Somewhat less frequently, the fear applies to the car in general, i.e. even if one is a passenger.
In addition, the fear of driving can also only manifest itself in certain situations, such as for city dwellers from Zurich only on the highway or, conversely, only in places with many pedestrians. Construction sites, highway entrances, tailgaters or observers can also be triggers for the fear.
Fear of driving can also be related to other fears, such as claustrophobia or fear of tunnels. Especially in Switzerland, there is also fear of driving in combination with fear of heights, for example on narrow mountain roads.
All in all, driving anxiety is a very multifaceted fear in which many things can come together. That is why it makes sense to include all aspects involved in the treatment.
There are many theories and experiences about how driving anxiety arises. Sometimes it can be due to a bad experience, sometimes you do not know why it arose.
What is clear from the hypnotic point of view is that for some reason the unconscious has declared this situation to be a danger.
The most different expressions probably conclude from the fact that man has not been driving a car for a long time. That a bear is dangerous when we meet it in the forest and therefore we should rather be afraid is crystal clear for our inner being. How we should handle an iron carriage weighing tons, which we can accelerate to 200 km/h and we steer with arm and foot movements, there is no unconscious patent remedy for that. So this fear can take so many forms.
Certain character traits can naturally favor the development.
In my experience, many people with driving anxiety have a good imagination. Even if they sometimes don't consciously realize it. Because to be able to imagine what could happen, you need a good imagination.
Also, people with driving anxiety often have a tendency to control things. As I said at the beginning, people with driving anxiety often have a strong head. However, this can lead to anxiety in an instinct-driven activity like driving.
It can become even worse if one wants to control the processes of the conscious mind with the conscious mind and then becomes completely blocked. For example, if one feels the glances of other road users, so to speak, then this can quickly trigger sweaty hands or the like.
The unconscious then wants to protect from the danger from now on. Whether this is the danger of a misfortune or of being overwhelmed or of being stared at does not play such a big role.
As with other dangers, the unconscious does this with feelings. It can be anything from great respect to panic fear. And the more often this is repeated, the worse the fear can become.
The panic attacks while driving don't feel like that, but paradoxically they are actually an attempt of the unconscious to protect against danger. So if we want to get rid of the fear of driving, we have to create a feeling of safety in the unconscious again. Hypnosis is very suitable for this purpose.
Whatever has triggered the danger recognition in the car, with hypnosis we can overwrite it again. Depending on the composition and manifestation of the driving fear, the treatment is composed by the hypnotherapist. The individual aspects of driving anxiety should be taken into account. Someone who has heart palpitations before construction sites should be treated differently in certain areas than someone who has panic attacks on the highway.
At the same time, there are also certain aspects that are similar in many sufferers of driving anxiety.
Fears can arise not only from what has happened, but also from what might happen. Many people with driving anxiety often have internal images or imaginings of possible accidents or mishaps. This often switches the unconscious mind into danger recognition mode before anything has even happened.
When this is the case we use hypnosis to make the inner images positive, to use one's imagination for something positive.
Time is relative. We have known that for a long time. However, when you sit in the car and let yourself get stressed, everything seems much faster, which can lead to even more stress and blockages. That is why we often change the sense of time in hypnotherapy. So that you feel you have all the time in the world to do the right thing behind the wheel.
In order to stay cool in all situations on the road, we sometimes need a thick skin. To let this grow is possible with hypnotherapy against fear while driving. So that we can maintain our own pace even in the most honking tailgater.
Especially if you are afraid of accidents or distrust your own driving ability, there is often a certain insecurity towards your own unconscious parts at play. It is clear that many aspects of driving are based on a certain inner autopilot. This also does many things unconsciously.
Building trust in our own autopilot can be very helpful. Hypnosis allows us to make contact and negotiate who is in the driver's seat.
If you trust the unconscious habits and processes, the negative feelings while driving usually disappear as if by themselves.
In orthodox driving anxiety management, confrontation training is often recommended. This means that one should confront the situation that triggers the fear. The problem with this is that many people are so blocked by their fears that it is not even possible to overcome the fear in a safe setting.
Here, too, hypnosis provides a remedy. Because with hypnosis we can create inner images that are very realistic for the unconscious. Thus, sitting in the hypnosis chair, we can confront ourselves with all that scares us.
For those who have already tried many other things, or who want to tackle the problem directly at the root, hypnotherapy is highly recommended. With the unique possibilities of hypnosis it is possible to drive again without fear. When the unconscious is on board you can sit behind the wheel again in peace.
Fear of heights ranges from a queasy feeling to full panic. Hypnotherapy is a good treatment method to get rid of fear of heights. I have summarized here the most important aspects of treating vertigo with hypnosis.
With the name fear of heights one would think that it is a fear of heights. Most of the time this is true, but sometimes a few meters are enough to trigger the fear. So most people who suffer from this fear have a so-called fear height. So a height where the feeling of safety changes to fear. This fear should not be confused with the vertigo that most people have.
The fear of heights also has an influence from fear of losing control. Often the fear of heights is also called fear of falling. This is because there is often a component of fear of losing control over oneself and falling.
That is why there are certain people who only suffer from this acrophobia when they are outdoors.
So the height alone does not cause fear, but first of all only a queasy feeling. Mostly the fantasy and the ideas of what could happen turn this feeling into a real fear.
Since mental images are significantly involved, hypnosis is also an effective treatment method.
So that we can explain how hypnosis therapy works with fear of heights, we must first also know how it develops.
Out of the blue, the unconscious hardly declares anything dangerous. This may have been a clear experience or a creeping process.
Often a dizziness occurs for the first time. The so-called psychogenic dizziness can sometimes even lead to almost fainting. Through such an experience the height is then often classified as a source of danger.
For the treatment with hypnosis it is not necessary to know exactly how the fear of heights developed, because we usually treat for all possibilities. However, I have clients who ask themselves again and again how their problem arose.
If the fear of heights is based on a bad experience with heights, then this is not surprising. Since fear of heights or vertigo affects all people who are at certain heights, this type of development is widespread.
Mostly the unconscious declares the height to be dangerous after this queasy feeling has developed. If this is recognized as a danger, the unconscious protects the affected persons by keeping them away from such situations. The height becomes the trigger of the fear reaction.
The danger of falling increases with age, so that the level of anxiety in older people becomes lower. Sometimes even a fear of falling during normal standing and walking.
The unconscious creates our reality from all the information it receives. If this includes inner negative ideas, these are included. Therefore it sometimes happens that even without negative experiences a fear of heights arises.
That means it arises because you imagine what could happen. The idea of losing control and crashing thus triggers and can also increase fear.
The worse the mental horror stories are, the greater the fear and panic.
Hypnotherapy has many advantages in the treatment of fear of flying. The therapy includes different methods to reduce the inner discomfort and to transform the exaggerated fear into a healthy caution.
The positive changes of hypnosis are not only reduced to fear. Because states such as self-confidence can be useful anywhere in life.
The treatment is similar to the treatment of fear of flying with hypnosis.
The most important aspects are these:
Anyone who feels confident in dealing with a situation also feels safe. The safety when you are at lofty heights is also largely due to your self-confidence.
By means of hypnosis we strengthen the connection with the inner parts that are responsible for the automatisms like walking. In the hypnotic trance we learn that the legs will continue to walk even if they are not actively controlled.
With hypnotic self-confidence you have a secure stand and walk even at heights.
Since fantasy is by definition not real, you can also use it to imagine something positive.
In the hypnotic trance we can directly influence the unconscious events. In this way we can transform the negative thoughts about the heights into positive ones.
If, for example, when hiking on the mountains, a fear of heights appears, we can change our focus to the beautiful nature. In this way ideas that cause fears are repressed.
Those who suffer from vertigo may find this difficult to imagine, but hypnosis makes it possible to change your thoughts.
Since the fear of heights is considered an anxiety disorder, we know that it is somewhat disturbed. The natural functioning would cause a queasy feeling at dangerous heights, but not full panic. This means that if we want to overcome the fear, we should reset the function of the unconscious back to its natural function.
The hypnotherapy makes it possible to do this reset in the trance. This also reduces the fear of fear.
In this way, security and above all calm can be restored in otherwise frightening situations.
In classical psychology, confrontation therapy is considered one of the most promising treatment methods for altitude phobia.
The difficulty in this case is to put the persons concerned in these situations. Since the fear is designed, among other things, to keep us away from dangerous situations, this becomes a difficult task.
Hypnosis has the advantage that the entire confrontation can happen in the hypnotic trance. In this way, clients can simultaneously sit in a chair in the hypnosis practice in Zurich and face the frightening heights. If it should become too much, the trance can be interrupted at any time and the trance can be ended.
In this way it is much easier to control the confrontation with fear in order to effectively get rid of it.
The hypnosis therapy gives us many ins to treat vertigo. With the direct effect in the unconscious, the triggers can be lifted and the fear reduced or even completely defeated.
Anyone who wants to keep a cool head even at lofty heights, hypnosis is highly recommended.
Hypnosis for performance anxiety and stage fright
Hypnosis can help with stage fright to stay calm or maybe even enjoy the limelight.
The fear of public speaking or stage fright is familiar to most people.
There is hardly anyone who was not nervous about standing in front of people before a big moment. No matter if it is a lecture, presentation, oral exams or musical or other performances, the tension has its place.
Even with training and practice it is difficult to get rid of this queasy feeling completely. However, hypnosis helps to use the adrenaline for optimal performance. The goal is to create a joyful excitement out of the fear of performing by means of hypnosis therapy.
For this we need to know how the unconscious reacts to appearances.
The fear of appearances is not necessarily logical, rational or meaningful, so we look for the causes best in the unconscious. This has evolved over the millennia to protect us from danger, whether it exists only in our imagination or not.
Every risk causes at least nervousness and standing in front of people is basically a risk. It is therefore not surprising that the unconscious reacts with a certain caution.
So stage fright has a useful component. With the right amount of adrenaline, we can make our system perform at its best.
However, when the reaction turns into full anxiety and the reaction blocks the performance, one can speak of an anxiety disorder. Reactions like trembling, sweating, blushing or stuttering can indicate this. Also often described is an anxiety blockade where all preparation seems to be blown away. Many would like to sink into the ground. The stress blocks the fluent speaking.
This also makes sense from an unconscious point of view, because the person has hidden from most dangers or has run away. But scared stiff and with all the blood in the legs, it is not possible to make an optimal presentation.
So with hypnosis we have to make adjustments in our unconscious so that the stress only makes us awake and concentrated instead of fearful and paralyzed.
The methods of hypnosis and hypnotherapy can make the important difference in stage fright. I base my hypnosis therapy against performance anxiety in Zurich on proven and successful methods to reduce the fear. The insights gained from the nature of the unconscious help us to release the blockages.
Many people with fears at performances see the audience as a kind of a threat or an enemy. If you think that the audience is threatening, then it makes sense for the unconscious to trigger a fear reaction. Especially when you feel small and helpless in the spotlight.
So the aim of the therapy with hypnosis for stage fright is to change the view of the audience. Particularly since often the listeners are also acquaintances or colleagues. To stand in front of your own herd is in itself a much smaller stress factor.
Whoever is on stage is literally has the say. Therefore it is also important to maintain the inner strength with this insight, even if we may have had bad experiences in the past.
Almost all successful performers tell about a kind of trance or flow state when they have their performances. In this state everything flows out of them in an optimal way and they can also interact with the audience.
This condition is not innate, but even the most shy person can learn to activate this within themselves. In hypnosis we practice the change into the performance trance and link it to the triggers that otherwise activated the fear of performing. Thus hypnosis works against fear against the normal processes and prevents the fear of speech or similar to become active at all.
All those who have an appearance should be aware that you should never take everything with you on stage. Whether a play or not, everyone in the centre of attention plays a role. This role should preferably have nothing that could disturb the performance. That's why we design our best performance-self with hypnosis. Neither the memory of the failed lecture from the third grade nor the quarrel with the colleague, nor any other fears and worries have any place on stage. That's why we leave out everything that has nothing to do with retrieving resources in the optimal performance state.
With a strengthened ego and a problem-free head, the fantasy can have a positive effect. The imagination of horror scenarios can give way to visualizations of positive results with hypnosis.
The main thing about successful lectures, performances, presentations and performances is sharing with the audience. Having fun with the audience is also an important part of a superior performance. That's why I also attach importance to invite the creativity of the unconscious to bring life into the performance. If you lose the thread or something goes wrong, it is always easier to bear it with a smile on your lips.
Hypnosis is very well suited for the treatment of performance anxiety and stage fright. With the direct effect in the unconscious, hypnosis therapy can start where logical thinking stops. For this reason, hypnosis therapy for stage fright has great chances of success
The fear of flying is a specific phobia that affects up to 16% of the population.
Since the fear of flying often develops over a certain period of time, it should be treated early. The earlier one uses hypnosis against fear of flying, the faster the results can come. When treating the fear of flying or even aviaphobia with hypnosis, the course is set in the unconscious mind so that it no longer perceives flying as a threat.
In this way, the uncomfortable feelings before take-off can be eliminated and the tension when boarding the aircraft can be relieved. Physical symptoms such as nausea or shortness of breath can also be treated with hypnosis therapy for fear of flying. With hypnosis you can overcome your fear of flying.
The great advantage of hypnosis in the treatment of fear of flying is the direct response of the unconscious. Most people with fear of flying are presented with facts about how safe flying is. And still nothing changes in the fear.
The fear reaction is controlled by the unconscious and this does not have the logical rational thinking of the conscious mind. Therefore all numbers and facts are useless.
With hypnosis, however, we can translate these considerations into the language of the unconscious and thus often make the difference that allows for an improvement or even a resolution of the fears.
For most people the fear of flying arises in the same way as other fears. Namely when the unconscious has recognized a situation as threatening and wants to keep us away from it. Various influences can trigger the discomfort or even panic before flying.
Not everyone who is afraid of flying has also experienced something traumatic in relation to flying. If we know exactly where it started, it makes finding the cause easy.
However, the trigger is often not quite clear.
Flying in an airplane is not really tangible for our unconscious. That's why imagination can often run away with you. I experience with many clients that at least at the beginning the imagination can have a big influence. Often it is not what happens that triggers the action, but what you imagine. Even if you have experienced strong turbulences yourself, often nothing worse has happened.
Nevertheless, our unconscious can perceive even the smallest experience as an indication of danger, which can become more and more elevated.
The performances can also be supported by external influences such as information or films about crashes and air accidents. These then give the unconscious enough material to think up the most daring horror stories.
Sometimes the fear of flying can also be inherited. If the parents were already afraid of flying, the panic when flying can be copied from the children. The queasy feeling is directly transmitted, so to speak.
Often the fear of flying has also to do with the fact that one has trouble giving up control. Especially people who like to have everything under control in everyday life often have problems with flying. Stress can often arise if you have no influence on what is happening. This is called the passenger syndrome in the technical language. The pilot is also an unknown person except for a short announcement at the beginning. Of course he has an interest in arriving safely, but sometimes this is not a sufficient reason for trusting the pilot.
Sometimes a fear does not come alone. The interior of an aircraft can also trigger fears that are not specific to the aircraft. For example, claustrophobia and fear of heights often occur in people who have a fear of flying. These can then influence each other and can be treated as a whole.
Many people take medication to treat their fear of flying. However, sedatives in tablet or pill form are usually not a sensible solution, especially if you have to fly for work.
Hypnosis makes it possible to treat the fear of flying in a natural way. Thereby the unconscious is stimulated to make adjustments.
I personally believe that the unconscious can't do everything it does. For this reason I think that most people already have the solution to their problems within themselves. In hypnosis against fear of flying this is no different.
In hypnosis against fear of flying we directly address the causes of the fear of flying in the unconscious. With the use of different methods of hypnosis therapy we can make flying into something that may still not be fun, but in any case no longer causes any major problems.
The own condition or the inner atmosphere can have a great influence on anxiety. In hypnosis therapy, we train the unconscious mind in the state that enables the person affected to positively influence the fear.
If we learn to influence our own condition, the symptoms of anxiety can also be reduced. In this way one is no longer helplessly at the mercy of fear, but enters the respective situations with a strengthened inner state.
In an airplane, you can neither get off nor influence anything. Therefore the development of a certain basic trust is something that is very important in the treatment of fear of flying.
These aspects are something that make hypnosis so effective against fear of flying. Because with hypnosis we go directly to the source in the unconscious. If we instruct it to develop a relaxed atmosphere, this can decisively relieve the fear of flying.
No matter whether traumatic experiences or roused fear, a first step can be forgetting. By working with the unconscious, the influence of past experiences on the present state can be weakened. In this way the fear of fear is reduced.
This can also be used to solve the negative conditioning towards the aircraft. So that one does not already panic when just seeing the plane, it must become a neutral place again. With hypnosis we can get rid of this old stoff.
Many psychologists claim that the best way to overcome phobias and fears is confrontation. This may be true, but you can't just get off a plane when it gets too much.
Hypnosis now gives us possibilities to get into the plane in the trance while we stay on the ground in the hypnosis chair. This way we can handle it in a safe and secure way.
Our imagination has an amazing power. But all the fantasy we use for negative ideas can also be used for positive ones. So by means of hypnosis we can use the imagination to develop positive thoughts with flying.
What might seem unimaginable for someone suffering from aviaphobia, can be imagined in a positive way. Symptoms such as faster breathing are not a danger in themselves, but can in certain cases become a direct anticipation.
The great advantage of hypnosis in the treatment of fear of flying is the direct response of the unconscious. Most people with aviophobia are presented with facts about how safe flying is. And yet nothing changes in the fear.
The fear reaction is controlled by the unconscious and this does not have the logical rational thinking of the conscious mind. Therefore all numbers and facts are useless.
With hypnosis, however, we can translate these considerations into the language of the unconscious and thus often make the difference that allows for an improvement or even a resolution of the fears.
Hypnosis is a promising method to treat anxiety in general and the fear of flying in particular. By directly involving the unconscious in the trance, hypnotherapy makes progress possible that other methods do not allow.
Hypnosis helps with fear of flying. With hypnosis fear and also panic can be reduced or even completely dissolved. For this purpose, the hypnosis therapy of aviaphobia in the unconsciousness treats the causes of fear. In this way, flying may not become something fun but does not cause any more problems.