Phobias are just like a fight going on in our heads with the rational mind versus the imagination where the latter is winning.  We may be fully aware of this tug of war going on and even that our phobia doesn’t make sense but we believe that it is beyond our control.

The good news is, it isn’t beyond our control but the bad news is it may take some convincing before help is sought.

Even though phobias are so disruptive to our lives and take away our freedom to live a normal life, we would do anything to avoid confronting them.  We would rather adapt our behaviour to work around it i.e. wake hours earlier and take B roads to a destination instead of waking at a sensible time and taking the dreaded motorway.

Fortunately for a problem which is rooted in the mind, the fear that has been programmed into us to the point of exaggeration can be re-programmed, by way of hypnotherapy.

But first we must understand what is going on inside the phobic mind.

Recently we had te pleaseure of working with a client who has a severe anxiety when swimming in open water whcih was causing panic attacks. The client was stuck at this stage and could not get over it.

During our session we establish that the client was making huge pictures of them swiming whilst feeling panic and swimming in a gigantic lake which was making it very scary.

Fortunately this client was extremele repsonsive to our techniques and had resolved the problem from the very first session and we were both ever so happy.

Even more the client emailed us a couple of weeks later them swimming in open water and with a huge smile.

Just after her mum passed away Bryony began suffering panic attacks.  Although she had experienced an episode in the past, these new attacks began to occur more regularly and were more severe.

Eventually they became an ‘everyday state of mind’ and Bryony realised she had no control over her life so needed to take action.

Consulting her GP her only options were medication or counselling.  Not wishing to take pills, Bryony attended counselling but came to conclusion talking while someone passively listened was not the answer, especially when she had friends she could share with.

After some research Bryony decided hypnotherapy could offer a more dynamic solution.

“I am a pragmatic person so I wanted something straight-forward which I would be actively involved in to get the feelings of panic under control.

“When I first met Georgios he was very direct with me and it took me a while to be less guarded and more honest about how I felt when usually I would say I felt fine even though I wasn’t.

“He is quite a unique character and told me outright that I was responsible for making myself feel so anxious.  While this seemed quite harsh, he had read me well because I soon understood I also had the power to stop myself from feeling so bad.”

It took three sessions to work through the issues and pick up some self-help techniques to enable Bryony to stop her anxious feelings from getting hold of her and disrupting her life.  The effect on her life was transformative.

“It is such a relief to be free of the fear.  While I am not cured of panic attacks I am now able to manage them better.  This is because I haven’t changed my nature, just the way I think about things.

“The first test of my new state of mind was when I went flying off on holiday.  Usually this can be an ordeal for me but I didn’t even register any of the typical fears.  I was more able to focus on the good things such as the fact I was going on holiday, rather than the bad things which could happen, but in reality, were unlikely.

“I even confronted a panic attack by deliberately bringing on the feeling.  At that stage, because I knew what it would feel like and that it would pass, it really wasn’t that bad. I was so pleased that I had genuinely got my life back.

“I would advise anyone who wants to take positive action and get on top of anxiety that hypnotherapy is for you.”

Sleeping pills are effective in getting you off to sleep but as we know, it isn’t always the quantity of sleep that is important, but the quality.  The state of relaxation you can achieve during hypnosis enables a more natural sleep pattern to establish itself and for the body to experience the deep restorative phase of sleep which is vital to a good night’s sleep.  Because pills simply ‘knock you out’ and may produce other side effects, hypnotherapy can be the best long-term solution for sleep problems.

Many health professionals remain sceptical about the benefits of hypnotherapy but new studies have revealed the science behind it is perfectly sound, particularly when it is used in conjunction with conventional therapies and treatments.

The Huffington Post reported earlier this year that hypnosis can play an important role in protecting and promoting health especially with conditions where medication has its limitations.

Of course at Birmingham Hypnotherapy Clinic we already knew that and have been successfully treating clients with a range of conditions which have not been completely resolved by medication.  We hope that by highlighting the following health issues, others will increasingly explore hypnotherapy as a serious option to improving their well-being.

Birmingham Hypnotherapy Clinic has been approached to spread the word to find participants for a new TV show with survival expert Bear Grylls about facing your fears.  It’s a chance to go into the wild and undertake physical challenges designed to boost confidence and overcome whatever might be holding you back mentally.

We feel this approach of going to back to basics to understand human behaviour to be a very interesting concept.  In some ways we are still like our ancient ancestors in our responses to the world around us.   Most of the things we fear are based on instinct to ensure our survival.  For example a fear of falling or flinching at loud noises is completely natural as this warns us of impending danger.  But many other ‘modern’ fears we have learned, which in a stressful situation, can transform into a phobia and take over the rational mind.  If we can strip away what we have learned and put our minds back in control, many of these superfluous fears can be resolved.

The details for how to get involved in the show are set out below, but if in the meantime you want to tackle your phobias in the real world, get in touch with us today.  We have helped a number of people with debilitating phobias by helping them understand how their mind works and giving them techniques and tools to change the way they think.

Georgios Theodorou, 0121 241 8227.

Television production company betty (London, England) are currently making a brand new series for Discovery International with world-famous adventurer Bear Grylls. They are carrying out a worldwide search for people who want to overcome a personal challenge or obstacle in this exciting, once in a lifetime opportunity.

The sensitive series sees Bear travel to a wild and remote location with a travel companion, who has a personal challenge they wish to overcome. These companions are not survivalists themselves, but rather real people who have stories to share and the urge to overcome their individual hurdles, to regain confidence within themselves.

They are looking for people who have been struggling with a fear or phobia (whether this is a fear of heights, insects, darkness or claustrophobia etc.), or someone who is generally unhappy with their lifestyle and in desperate need of a change – be it weight issues, anxiety, obsessive behaviours or unusual eating habits – they would love to hear from people who are willing to face their fears and issues head on to make a change. Each episode will aim to achieve the impossible and hopefully change someone’s life for the better through determination and courage.

The team are working with a full support network on location and a medical professional and psychologist will also be on hand throughout filming. Duty of care to contributors is of utmost importance.

If you are held back by a fear, phobia or personal challenge and want to find out more about this exciting opportunity, please call or email:

bear@betty.co.uk | 02072900204