There’s a lot of misconception around the topic of hypnosis. You can likely thank film and television for that, which has been portraying the act of hypnosis as a kind of magical voodoo on screen for years.
The reality is that hypnosis can be a great tool to help us access our inner subconscious. There’s a reason people have visited hypnotherapists or employed hypnosis in therapy for decades and decades. It really works.
Hypnosis can even be used to help get over certain phobias, like a fear of driving. If you are paralyzed by anxiety every time you get behind the wheel, it can be hard to get things done in life.
How can hypnosis help? Read on and we’ll walk you through everything you need to know.
Fear of Driving
It can be hard to believe, but anxiety and fear around driving is an all-around common feeling that many people share. Some people have this fear before they start driving, and others develop it as a result of an accident or incident that occurs sometime in their driving careers.
No matter the cause, a fear of getting behind the wheel of an automobile can cause big problems in a person’s life. Unless you live in a city where the public transit is 100% reliable, you need to get into a car to be able to do even the most basic life functions, like go to work or pick up groceries.
Fear of getting behind the wheel is understandable, of course: there are accidents on roadways all of the time, and the speed and dexterity required to drive are naturally anxiety-inducing. However, there is a way to help calm your nerves and get comfortable on the road.
That way is via the process of hypnosis.
Hypnosis and Phobia
Our fears are usually not entirely rational. While it may be justifiable to get anxiety when driving, plenty of people do it every day. So what is holding you back?
Most phobias develop in our subconscious over time. They are a learned response: at some point or multiple points in your life history, your brain connected the idea of driving with a lack of control, danger, or anxiety.
It might be something that happened to you, or it could be an idea you picked up from another person in your life. The issue is now you can’t unlink the two ideas.
Luckily, the existence of phobias as an element of the subconscious makes them uniquely vulnerable to the process of hypnotherapy. With proper hypnotic induction and repetition, you can help your brain to unlink these concepts and to prevent the knee-jerk fear response from occurring in the future.
How The Process Works
So how does hypnosis attack the phobias we carry around in our heads? The process isn’t all too complicated.
First, your hypnotherapist will put you into a relaxed state. This can take anywhere from a few minutes to half an hour, guiding you down into a trance. Your therapist will talk you through this calmly and you will remain in complete control the entire time.
Just as you might in a normal therapy session, your hypnotherapist will then talk with you in this state and try to get to the root of where this phobia is coming from. In a trance, you’ll be more open to talking about your fears and the events that surrounded them. If your phobia is the result of one particular event, you can talk through it with your hypnotherapist.
While in this calm and relaxed state, your hypnotherapist will help you attack your phobia from multiple angles. You will confront the fear you have and see it more clearly, in this suggestible state, for what it is.
Seeing your phobia in a new way– from a calm and in-control perspective– can help you to diminish it in your mind’s eye. Soon, you won’t feel as if your fears have all that much credence.
It Won’t Be Immediate
Many people still carry around the idea that hypnosis is a kind of magic. While it does work wonders, it isn’t magic, and any sort of hypnotherapy will take time. It isn’t a snap-your-fingers and it’s gone endeavor.
The number of sessions a person will need to get over their phobia will vary from person to person and fear to fear. Some people might be able to see results after a strong initial session, whereas others might need several before they feel truly ready to confront what scares them.
When it comes to getting over a fear of driving, the process might take different amounts of time depending on the individual and how severe their phobia is. Many hypnotherapists will also teach their clients these techniques so they can help to continue their progress on their own time.
Reinforcement is always a good idea when it comes to matters of the mind, and one might want to continue hypnotherapy work to ensure proper results even as the years go by.
Fighting Driving Anxiety with Hypnosis
Many people suffer from a fear of driving and don’t know what to do about it. Luckily, the process of hypnosis and hypnotherapy can be a huge help to those suffering from this kind of crippling anxiety. With a little help from a hypnotherapist, you can be well on your way to a healthy relationship with the open road.
Are you looking for a hypnotherapist to help you overcome your driving anxiety? Contact me today to learn more.
