Anxiety can be quite a broad diagnosis with one individuals symptoms being quite different to another's. If you suffer from anxiety you may have noticed some or all of the following symptoms:
A churning feeling in your stomach Feeling light-headed or dizzy Pins and needles Feeling restless or unable to sit still Headaches, backache or other aches and pains Faster breathing A fast, thumping or irregular heartbeat Sweating or hot flushes
Shaky vision Sleep problems
Racing thoughts
Uncontrollable worries/ intrusive thoughts Grinding or clenching your teeth, especially at night Nausea (feeling sick) Needing the toilet more or less often Changes in your sex drive Having panic attacks
Anxiety can be debilitating and it can be difficult to seek help from others. The good new is that hypnosis is amazing at curing anxiety, in fact that is what made me get into hypnosis in the first place, I personally used hypnotherapy to cure mine and it worked very effectively and surprisingly quickly.
There are many forms of Anxiety, here are just a few:
Social anxiety – this means you experience extreme fear or anxiety triggered by social situations (such as parties, workplaces, or everyday situations where you have to talk to another person). It is also known as social phobia.
Panic disorder – this means having regular or frequent panic attacks without a clear cause or trigger. Experiencing panic disorder can mean that you feel constantly afraid of having another panic attack, to the point that this fear itself can trigger your panic attacks.
Phobias – a phobia is an extreme fear or anxiety triggered by a particular situation (such as going outside) or a particular object (such as spiders).
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or Complex Post-traumatic stress disorder (C-PTSD) – this is a diagnosis you may be given if you develop anxiety problems after going through something you found traumatic. PTSD can involve experiencing flashbacks or nightmares which can feel like you’re re-living all the fear and anxiety you experienced at the time of the traumatic events.
Why do we get Anxiety?
What often happens with anxiety is that we get a circle of behaviour that gets out of control. Firstly, we fixate on the thing that makes us anxious which in turn makes us more anxious, and that continued concentration can turn a small worry into a massive wave of anxiety; your mind becomes a stressful place, where the anxious thoughts seem to dominate all the other, more tolerable thoughts. This causes your subconscious mind to perceive threat and then your body goes into 'fight or flight' mode, your muscles tense, blood pressure increases, heart rate goes up, digestion slows down, your senses heighten, it’s as if the body is preparing for a really physical challenge.
This tsunami of physical tension and mental torment crush confidence, reality and perspective, often to the extent that it can lean to a full-blown panic attack, where the person effectively shuts down.
What causes anxiety?
There’s no one cause of anxiety, but it’s generally thought that life experiences like some kinds of traumatic events may cause anxiety in people who are already prone to it. There may also be a genetic pre-disposition to being anxious.
According to The Mayo Clinic, these factors may increase your risk of developing an anxiety disorder:
Trauma. Children who endured abuse or trauma or witnessed traumatic events are at higher risk of developing an anxiety disorder at some point in life. Adults who experience a traumatic event also can develop anxiety disorders.
Stress due to an illness. Having a health condition or serious illness can cause significant worry about issues such as your treatment and your future.
Stress buildup. A big event or a buildup of smaller stressful life situations may trigger excessive anxiety — for example, a death in the family, work stress or ongoing worry about finances.
Personality. People with certain personality types are more prone to anxiety disorders than others are.
Other mental health disorders. People with other mental health disorders, such as depression, often also have an anxiety disorder.
Having blood relatives with an anxiety disorder. Anxiety disorders can run in families.
Drugs or alcohol. Drug or alcohol use or misuse or withdrawal can cause or worsen anxiety.
How do we take back control?
Here are some great ways to help beat anxiety from the NHS.
• Try talking about your feelings to a friend, family member, health professional or counsellor. • Use calming breathing exercises • Exercise – activities such as running, walking, swimming and yoga can help you relax • Find out how to get to sleep if you’re struggling to sleep • Eat a healthy diet with regular meals to keep your energy levels stable • Consider peer support, where people use their experiences to help each other. Find out more about peer support on the Mind website • Listen to free mental wellbeing audio guides • Search and download relaxation and mindfulness apps
There are also some very important things NOT to do!
• do not try to do everything at once – set small targets that you can easily achieve • do not focus on the things you cannot change – focus your time and energy into helping yourself feel better • do not avoid situations that make you anxious – try slowly building up time spent in worrying situations to gradually reduce anxiety • try not to tell yourself that you’re alone; most people experience anxiety or fear at some point in their life • try not to use alcohol, cigarettes, gambling or drugs to relieve anxiety as these can all contribute to poor mental health
How does Hypnotherapy help Anxiety?
Hypnotherapy works from 2 different angles, firstly to look and see what has actually caused the anxiety in the past, and then to give you the tools you need to be able to gain control over anxiety by increasing your feelings of calmness, physical relaxation and control.
Calmness is the antidote to anxiety. When your mind is calm and your body is relaxed, you see things in their true perspective, and with their correct levels of meaning. Because your outlook is more rational, thinking more optimistic, it prevents the negative thoughts from getting a hold and taking you somewhere you don’t want to go.
When your mind is calm, your body relaxes. No longer perceiving threat, your muscles relax, your heart rate and blood pressure are at normal levels and you feel at ease with yourself.
This also gives you more confidence and confidence naturally leads to feeling and being more competent. You can see things more clearly with the correct level of meaning with true importance. And because your mind is calm, your body is relaxed, you feel confident, you see things in their perspective. The quality of your natural sleep also becomes progressively better and better, so that you wake up in the morning feeling and being calm, relaxed, in charge, in control, happy and at ease.
In the hypnotherapy sessions, you are taught to relax to a very deep level and you also take away a recording to continue to listen to in your own time.
Remember, your exterior world is a reflection of who you are on the inside. To change your outer world, you have to change your inner world. That’s where hypnosis really comes in.