I have had 5 new clients recently, all with issues around anxiety. I sympathise because the symptoms of anxiety can be all consuming, they include nausea, headaches, weight loss, chronic fatigue, memory loss, tension headaches, muscle tension, sweating, shaking and weakness, to name but a few.
No wonder sufferers can think they have a serious medical or mental illness and seek relief urgently.
So what actually IS anxiety?
Anxiety is defined as a state of apprehension, uncertainty, and fear resulting from anticipation of a realistic or imagined threatening event or situation.
I explain to all my clients that anxiety triggers the stress response controlled by the (not very) Sympathetic Nervous system, this activates the Flight / Fight / Freeze reaction which is a survival tool.
If we are genuinely in danger this is very useful as cortisol and adrenalin are released to heighten our awareness and ability to respond in a manner that will keep us safe.
The physical response goes back to our deep human history when times were significantly more dangerous.
Our blood pressure rises causing blood vessels to constrict which is handy if we get injured, our muscles tense so they are more resilient to damage when fighting, our neurons go into overdrive, they are sensitive anyway but the heightened stimulation causes more electrochemical activity resulting in brain zaps, tingling, numbness…..
The stress response clearly puts our body under stress and and many of the symptoms of anxiety are in fact a result of the stress our body is under, so Anxiety Disorder Syndrome, simply put, is as a result of stress.
When stress responses occur infrequently, the body has sufficient time to recover from the stress response changes and they won’t impact the body in a significant manner. But, when stress responses occur too frequently, the body doesn't have adequate time to recover, which can cause it to remain in a state of semi stress readiness known as “stress-response hyper-stimulation”, which chronically stresses the body.
Imagine sitting in your car with your foot flat down on the accelerator the whole time, keeping the engine at this high level of rev’s isn’t going to do it any good. Similarly the hyper stimulation of the stress response causes the associated systems, organs and glands to be over used & chronically stressed which can result in the high blood pressure, chronic muscle tension and pain, numbness, tingling, trembling and shaking we have already mentioned.
Fortunately, hyperstimulation and it’s adverse effects can be eliminated! Knowing this information and how to overcome hyperstimulation should be an important part of every anxiety disorder sufferer’s tool kit.
Anxiety produces similar symptoms for men and women, while women may feel anxious more often, typically linked to their monthly cycle, during pregnancy, childbirth, postpartum recovery and menopause.
Women are different neurologically to men and and are more emotionally centred, this along with the hormone fluctuations can make their anxiety symptoms seem more numerous and daunting.
The behavioural differences between men and women also play a part, women are usually more emotionally expressive and share their experiences more than men which can be therapeutic.
Also when under stress women tend to reach out for help more than men, who may find it stressful in itself to share how they are feeling.
So now you understand more about what Anxiety is - how can Hypnotherapy help?
Clinical hypnotherapy is the use of hypnosis for the treatment and alleviation of a variety of physical and psychological symptoms. Hypnosis allows the subject to experience often quite deep levels of relaxation and so helps to reduce levels of stress and anxiety.
In trance you are under the control of the Para Sympathetic Nervous System which is responsible for the “rest and digest” activities of the body whilst it is relaxed (the opposite of the “Flight / Fight / Freeze” response). Through hypnosis you can learn to achieve this deeply relaxed state both with the therapist and on your own.
Two important elements of this therapy are the ability to clearly imagine something that makes you feel anxious and then to attain a deeply relaxed state.
Hypnosis helps to achieve both of these more easily and quickly than many other forms of treatment.
Please note though that clinical hypnotherapy may not be an appropriate support in more complex cases and if you suspect the anxiety may be trauma based, then Counselling or Cognitive Behavioural Therapy may be a better option.
A course of clinical hypnotherapy will be around 2-3 sessions. As everyone is different you may require more sessions, in which case your therapist will discuss this with you to determine the best way forward.
Each session will usually last around 60-90 minutes and will typically be held on a weekly basis.
Whether or not you decide to try Hypnosis to resolve your anxiety, or another therapy, you can find relief from your symptoms and begin to lead a Stress and Anxiety free life, so if this issue affects you or a loved one, please look into getting help, there is no need to suffer.
Contact Sally Davies D.Hyp, PDCHyp, MBSCH for more information:
Tel: 07515 991599
sally@mycalmlife.co.uk
Reference; The Anxiety Centre
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