ANXIETY
Generalised Anxiety Disorder is the most commonly diagnosed category of Anxiety and relates to an individual who has a consistent concern about things around them. They are prone to excessively worry and over-think situations, events and social interactions. Individuals with GAD generally live in a state of fear that bad things are going to happen. Their days are spent over thinking, over analysing, returning to the same conclusions, fretting, worrying and unable to relax with even the most straightforward of situations. This results in poor sleep patterns, diminished social skills, physical effects on their health and the inability to live their lives to their full potential.
Whether it is starting a new job, public speaking, meeting new people or a significant event in our lives, we can all relate to that sense of fear and nervous disposition of the ever-looming event. However, the problem occurs when this worry and concern or ANXIETY becomes disproportionate to the actual event itself. This not only impacts on them but those around them, which can exacerbate the problem even more.
CBT and Hypnosis is a highly effective and calming treatment of Anxiety. Whether it is Social Anxiety, Specific Phobias or even Assertiveness, the main focus is on re-programming how you rationalise your thoughts and significantly re-condition your responses to these anxiety inducing situations. Remember that anxiety is only the thought that something bad will happen!
PHOBIAS
Phobias can have a significant impact on people’s lives, stopping them from enioying experiences with friends, family and work and also how they go about their daily life. Phobias can affect peoples actions, their routines and even where and when they may travel to. Phobias can be triggered by people, places, events, animals or even inanimate objects and is a process that you have learned or ‘conditioned’ yourself to. They can cause individuals to sweat, breathe heavily, increase heart rate and in a large percentage of cases run away screaming. It’s no joke!
A Phobia is merely a conditioned response to a stimuli which you have perceived to have a disproportionate threat. Simply put, you have taught yourself to be scared of something that isn’t really a threat. Hypnotherapy and CBT techniques can re-address this conditioning through a process called ‘Systematic Desensitisation’ focusing on your physiological responses and the thought processes behind them.
The results of this therapy can change an individuals life and it doesn’t matter how long you have had this phobia for. Phobia treatment can be highly effective, even after only a few sessions.
SELF-IMPROVEMENT (including Sport/Fitness Performance)
There are many areas we may wish to improve within ourselves. Hypnotherapy has an extremely successful approach in supporting positive change and building confidence within our abilities. The brain does not differentiated between real and imagined events. Clinical studies have shown Hypnotherapy can have a significant impact on Sport and Fitness performance by using mental imagery and mental rehearsal. So whether you have an up and coming competition or would like to refine and hone your athletic skills, Hypnotherapy can play a key role in this success.
We all have times where we feel ‘low’ or ‘deflated’. Maybe our self-esteem has taken a hit at work and we feel the all too common ‘imposter syndrome’. You lack confidence in your skills and abilities, even though deep down, you know you are good at what you do. Maybe a relationship has caused you to lose confidence or maybe you just compare yourself to other people.
Hypnotherapy is extremely successful in instilling deep rooted positive suggestions into the very core that is you! You will feel more calm, relaxed and confident or whatever message you decide fits with your needs and personality.
CHALLENGING UNHELPFUL THOUGHTS AND BELIEFS
How we think affects our emotions and then behaviour. Once we understand and can recognise our thought processes, we can then look to change them to more positive and productive ones. Do you catastrophise, generalise, mind read, focalise or think in black and white? . Does a thought instantaneously result in an emotion and then an action. Do you look back and regret how you responded, convincing yourself that next time you will be more level headed, calm and understanding? Do you get angry, jealous or upset easily?
CBT techniques can be used to educate you on how you think and how to manage your emotions and actions in a rational and healthy manner.
ASSERTIVENESS TRAINING
The ability to ‘Assert’ yourself in a work or personal environment is a key element to successful and healthy relationships, for anyone looking to improve their confidence, leadership skills and interactions with other people. Maybe you struggle to say ‘no’ to your work colleagues or even your family and friends, which results in additional workload or engaging in situations/events that you actually don’t want to but can’t say ‘no’.
In inability to Assert yourself and confidently express your thoughts and opinions can have an extremely negative and even ‘toxic’ affect on your relationships with people. Lack of assertiveness can result in resentment, anger and blame, as you don’t possess the skills to say what you really think, instead you internalise your thoughts and opinions and are consumed with guilt or the fear that your responses may result in a negative ‘backlash’ towards you.
This is NOT the case and Assertiveness training can provide you with he skills and knowledge to be able to healthily express your own thoughts and opinions in a way that allows you to take control of your surroundings without the fear of guilt or blame, whilst confidently communicating your true intentions.
RELAXATION, BREATHING AND MINDFULNESS
Most people don’t know how to relax, they see doing nothing as ‘relaxation’…this is not the case. Both the physical body and mind need relaxation in order to function correctly and repair and restore the body and mind to a healthy state of homeostasis. The autonomic nervous system of the body and the default mode of the brain, VITALLY REQUIRE relaxation to function correctly.
Breathing and other CBT/Hypnotic techniques can prove a powerful tool in our busy schedules by allowing us to integrate short, simple and effective exercises throughout our daily lives in order to combat stress, anxiety and fatigue.
The market of Mindfulness is one that industry has made incredibly confusing and has unethically ‘cashed in’ on. The truth is that the process and function of Mindfulness is integral to a healthy mind. It takes time, consistency and an understanding of its function for it to be fully beneficial to us. Once it is, it is incredibly powerful. It’s not about apps and yoga (although some do serve a purpose), think about it as sit ups for your brain, done everyday to train and strengthen it.
Have you ever had a thought that automatically turns into a negative emotion and clouds your judgement? Mindfulness works to create space between your thought and your emotional reaction and inevitably your response. This is where the ‘magic happens’ in your life. If you are more measured, level-headed and perceptive of the world and social interactions around you, you can take charge of them. This will inevitable result in less stress, anxiety and negative mindsets.
