Hypnosis Derby
If your’e looking for a quality and reliable therapy service choose hypnosis Derby . We are located 2 minutes from the A38, so no navigating through busy town centres, and struggling to find a parking space. Our location is very private yet just 1.6 miles from the bypass. We offer evening and weekend appointments to suit you, plus of course a FREE consultation.
Many people have questions about what hypnosis actually is. You can find out more about Hypnosis here.
Hypnosis Derby are happy to help so if you cant find the answers you are looking for get in touch-which is why we offer a free consultation of around 30 minutes so you can find out more and also so we can find out more about you. There is absolutely nothing to fear and possibly everything to gain when you try hypnotherapy. Do not believe what you might see in the media. Hypnosis is a safe, and natural form of treatment. There are no side effects and it could be just what you need to help get over your issues. We pride ourselves on providing a trusted therapy service, you can be sure that you will only see a therapist who has undergone adequate training which in turn enables membership of the leading regulatory bodies. The department of health recommends that when looking for a hypnotherapist, you should choose one who is registered with these regulated bodies- the CNHC ( we are ). With Hypnosis Derby being a member of this organisation, this means that you dont have to check out any credentials, they have already been checked and verified. Therefore you can rest assured that you are in the hands of a caring therapist who will do as much as he possibly can to help you with whatever issues you bring to therapy. We provide Hypnosis and hypnotherapy for Derbyshire, Nottingham and across the East Midlands. Hypnosis Derby have been providing clinical therapy since 2000.
Our Qualifications
As Hypnosis Derby are members of both the NCH and CNHC then you can have the peace of mind knowing that your therapist is who he says he is. Some Hypnosis practices dont seem to care enough about the clients wants and needs. This may be due to the fact that they are not as well trained as they could be. Hypnosis Derby trained for up to 1850 hours in total, many other therapists only train for around 450 hours. As we trained in hypno-psychotherapy as opposed to just a hypnotherapist there is much greater scope for the client to benefit from this. The NCHP is probably the worlds oldest established school of hypnosis and psychotherapy and is widely respected for its dedication to producing well trained hpyno-psychotherapists. As Hypnosis Derby often work with children and young adults we also are CRB checked. Of course, the more feathers in the cap the more easily a problem can be rectified therein saving you the client excess costs which is just what we aim to do.
Hypnosis Derby Commitment To You
At Hypnosis Derby we want you to be happy with your progress. Our motto is if the client is happy then we are happy. We strive to get you the results you want so that you can know your problem is gone, and gone for good. Therapy is often a very personal thing, and you can have as much trust in the confidentialty here as with your local GP. We could easily get struck off for sharing ANY information about you, and of course we would never do this as it is completely unethical. The practice is also located in a very exclusive and private location so no one needs to know you have even been here. We NEVER share even your details not even your email address.
Find Hypnosis Derby
For full directions to Hypnosis Derby you can come from all major roads. For the M1 -come off at junction 28 and follow the signs for A38 Derby. Follow this road until you reach the 3rd exit marked ‘Alfreton/Chesterfield’ (-not the exit marked Alfreton trading estate). Take that exit and turn left, follow the same road for 1.6 miles. You will pass a garage, a church- through the lights and down the hill. After approximately 1.6 miles look out for some blue signs on your left hand side that say ‘Fizzio-Fit’. Turn left up the private drive following the Fizzio-Fit signs up to the wellness centre at the top. Come inside and ring the buzzer for Hypnosis Derby (Room 3).
To find Hypnosis Derby from the A38 Northbound, (taking the Alfreton/Chesterfield) turn right and exactly the same as above, 1.6 miles down that road until you see the Fizzio-Fit signs, turn left up the private drive there. You could come through Ripley Town Centre, if so follow the one way system to the market place. With the market place ahead of you turn right and keep right. Follow that road for a few hundred yards and then keep left, and veer left (by Lidl) and follow that road for just over 1 mile until you see the Fizzio-Fit signs on your right hand side. If you have any trouble find Hypnosis Derby just ring and ask! We aim to help you in any way we can, so if you wonder if we can help get in touch.
What is Hypnosis?
Well, its probably nothing like you think! Most people that come to see me have got completely the wrong idea from the media. They and you too might think its like being in a zombie like state, no control, completely unaware of anything, their mind is open to control from the therapist, you might get stuck etc etc. Let me assure you that what we call ‘trance states’ and ‘hypnosis’ are something you me and everyone experience EVERY DAY. For instance, a daydream, being bored and your mind wandering, driving for a distance before you realise your going the wrong way, these are what we refer to as trance states. We all experience them, they are so natural you slip in and out of them everyday. If you were in complete control over your mind and body you wouldnt have any problems- correct? But were not, we’ve all had that experience of being torn what to do about a situation.
Using hypnosis we utilise these everyday states of mind to amazing effect. You can even learn to turn pain off (see blog post of same name). Your brain is so amazingly complex, that we are so far from understanding its power to the extent that if you can learn to pain off, what else are we capable of? We have the resources to do far more than we do. Hypnotherapy helps find these resources to harness this power for emotional problems as well as physical issues. You dont have to suffer with whatever is eating you, see if hypnotherapy can help. There is NO mind control, no going to sleep, no being unaware- in many ways you are probably MORE aware than usual! You are in control at all times, a good therapist is there to help you see ways around things that you cannot see unaided. You are able to move about and talk if you want, it really is as far removed from what people think.
The Brain
A single piece of your brain the size of 1 grain of sand can have 1 billion connections going to and fro at any one time. The average brain weighs around 3lb. You do the maths??!! Our brains are constantly taking in information from all the senses, especially visual input. All the while it is like a vast supercomputer, constantly analysing data and comparing it with previous inputs. It has to be the case that 99.9% of this input is not shown to the conscious mind as it is deemed unncessary. Studies show that we can only consciously think of between 5 and 9 things at any one time, any more and we get that feeling in our heads that its all going too fast and we cant think straight.
The 99.9% doesnt just get ignored, our brains are easily capable enough of computing all this information albeit not at a conscious level. This is why sometimes you feel X or Y and you dont know why. Your brain knows, but doesnt share this information with you and this is why we get problems. We dont know why our brains seem to withhold important information but isnt it true that you dont know why you like- blue eyes, red cars etc- your just drawn to them- right? There is definitely some kind of ‘wall’ as to why we are unaware of so much.
Psychosomatic
I see every day psychosomatic illnesses that are a result of some kind of emotional/psychological issue that manifests itself in a physical or psychological problem. Even scientific studies are also now correlating emotions with problems at a cellular level. I believe in10 or 20 years time we will have an even better window into how we are amking ourselves ill, and therefore how we can make ourselves better. Your GP may have told you that you have made yourself ill with worry, but if you can make yourself ill you CAN make yourself better!!
If your still unsure, get in touch with us and see how we can help. A FREE consultation is on hand for you to find out more.
We love to hear your comments…
Ripley Hypnotherapy now members of the CNHC
Hypnosis Derby practice now meets national standards for quality and care. Now member of the CNHC- a Department of health body
Press Release:
Ripley Hypnotherapy now meet new national standards, as laid out by the Department of Health.
A Derbyshire based hypnotherapist has become one of the first in the country to achieve a new national standard of excellence for his therapy. Garry Webster has been registered by the Complementary & Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC), the UK regulator for complementary healthcare. This places Garry well ahead of many other therapists who are now aware that the so called ‘training’ they received will not stand up to scrutiny when the government finally makes hypnotherapists as accountable as doctors and dentists for instance.
Safety And Security
The membership provides a benchmark for standards and safety for the public.Practitioners registered with the CNHC meet national occupational standards and abide by a rigorous code of conduct, performance and ethics. They have been trained to an approved standard, for a minimum amount of time, must be insured and registered with a leading body before application.
Garry said: “Achieving registration is not only great news for me and my clients, but a vital step for hypnotherapy. The membership is another vote of confidence in me and my practice, so my clients know they are in good hands.” Hypnotherapy is one of 11 disciplines now recognised by the CNHC. Members of the public can search the CNHC register to find practitioners in their local area. More than 40,000 searches were carried out last year.
Referral’s
By providing a verification of standards, the CNHC allows GPs, hospitals, private healthcare providers and insurance companies to refer patients to hypnotherapy practitioners or to make hypnotherapy more readily available in health centres, clinics, doctors’ surgeries and hospitals.
You can be sure that as a client of Ripley Hypnotherapy, you will be treated ethically, safely and that your welfare is paramount. You should always check a therapists qualifications, as until regulation actually comes into force anyone can call themselves a therapist which is “wholly unacceptable” said Garry.
Let us know your thoughts…
Random Thoughts
Whenever people talk about their problems in a therapy situation, what most of them don’t realise is that they usually know whats wrong with them. Not everyone and not all the time of course, but the idea’s/feeling’s/thought’s that go through our head daily are more than likely showing us what to do. However, with the constant bombardment of these thought’s how is anyone supposed to work out where the needle in the haystack actually is ? We literally process thousands of thoughts every day and it must be true that our brains are intelligent enough not to need to show us ‘random crap’.
It may seem like that, but for instance the idea that keeps popping in your head about taking up that art class you ve always wanted to do is some part of you telling you to try something new, which in turn can fill a gap somewhere in your life and if a gap is filled then we are less likely to find solace elsewhere- i.e in the biscuit cupboard!
The difficult part is of course working out just what is an everyday conscious thought and what are the little golden nuggets of advice that are markers on the path to happiness. This takes a bit of practice, to distinguish our sub-conscious thoughts from the often nagging conscious mind can take a bit of attuning to. Erickson said we all had it in us to solve our own problems and he was right. Hypnosis is a way to sift through the 99% irrelevant stuff and find the 1% that makes all the difference.
Many types of therapy can help a lient to see more clearly what they need to be doing. And most of the time they knew all along. There were not usually that many blinding flashes of light with an idea that had never surfaced before- more often than not the answers are staring us in the face. We cant see the wood for the tree’s or even we dont want to!
Hypnosis Can Ease a Cancer Patient’s Depression
By: Bennett Mathers
It is easy to understand why depression is part of cancer pathology, but few people realize the far-reaching impact of both cancer and depression and how they are related. About 25 percent of cancer patients develop serious depression, as compared to only 7 percent of the general population, who are at the same level of depression. Even among those not counted in this number, those who do not experience symptomatic clinical depression, all are saddened and feel grief. Thus while only 25 percent of cancer patients experience full blown depression, all are at risk. A prior history of depression may also significantly increase the risk factor.
Depression and Outcome
The evidence linking cancer, depression and death are somewhat overwhelming. It was discovered in 26 different studies, involving a total of nearly 10,000 patients, that patients who experienced symptoms of depression, suffered a 25% higher mortality rate. For patients diagnosed with either major or minor depression, the mortality risk increased to 39% higher than the overall average. Depression is therefore proven to be a deadly complication of cancer.
Interestingly, there was no clear link between actual cancer progression and depression. Depression does not appear to speed the cancer’s growth or increase its aggressiveness or severity; it simply results in a higher mortality rate. It doesn’t seem to make the cancer any stronger; it just makes the patient weaker.
Long Term Treatment
Treatment for cancer has improved significantly, resulting in remissions, successful excision of tumors and increased life expectancy of terminal cancer patients. For example mesothelioma was once a swift and certain death sentence. Mesothelioma life expectancy was once 14 to 24 months, but today with a combination of surgery, chemotherapy and radiation, patients have survived for up to 14 years after diagnosis. While this is good news, it certainly places a lot of importance on the emotional and physical endurance of the patient. Chemotherapy and radiation take their toll on energy levels, stress levels, and cause physical and emotional pain. It is increasingly difficult to maintain a positive attitude for these extended periods of time.
The Aftermath
Often patients do not develop depression until after the worst is over. Cancer related depression is not limited to the onset and can take hold even after the danger has passed. Depression can be related to the various scars, amputations and impairments that cancer can leave in its wake. It can also be related to a feeling of venerability, and fears of recurrence, as well as a sort of loss of innocence, in that they no longer feel invincible. It is not uncommon for cancer patients to plunge into depression immediately after being pronounced healthy, as relief allows them to relax and really feel the impact of what has happened to them.
Hypnosis can Help
Hypnosis can have a positive effect on depression. Unlike anti-depressant drugs, hypnotherapy has the ability to deal with the underlying emotions, and beliefs that cause depression. They actually change attitude, rather than merely treat symptoms. Progress can be slow at first, but are much quicker than conventional psychological therapy. Hypnosis has the unique ability to change what people believe about any situation, even illogically. In that way Hypnosis can be used to instill faith and hope even when facing astronomical odds. Faith and hope are important both in fighting depression and in fighting cancer.
This does not constitute brainwashing, or lying to the patient. Instead it is simply giving the patient another perspective. The fact is that the patient already has a faulty view of what is happening. Human perception when confronted with risks becomes distorted by their habitual outlook on life. The fact is that when it comes to future events, no one knows, and statistics tell us nothing about individual outcome, but the attitude of the subject is a huge determining factor.
What if we can change that outlook, by placing the patient in a suggestible state, and then suggesting that there is a better way to look at the situation? What if we can not only alleviate symptoms of both cancer and depression, but also strengthen the patient by giving him the weapons he needs to fight both diseases. These weapons are of course hope and faith, in the face of overwhelming odds. We need only look at the course of human history to know that hope and faith are primary factors in any battle, whether on the battlefield, in the body or in the mind.
How to choose a hypnotherapist
When looking for a hypnotherapist, you should always check out the purported credentials of anyone who claims to be this or that. A reputable hypnotherapist Derby should be able to supply you with all the necessary details you need to find out if their credentials are what they say they are. The main governing bodies in the UK are the NCH and the CNHC. The CNHC are are a government sponsored body, the governement always say that “when choosing a hypnotherapist Derby, one should always choose a therapist listed on the CNHC website”. This means that all the therapists listed are appropriately trained, adequately insured and are therefore abiding by a strict code of ethics which is laid down to protect the public.
Qualified ?
However, though not necessary; one should always check the validity of these memberships personally. This will enable a greater choice for a potential client. It is every clients right to be able to inspect the supporting documents such as: membership certificates, CRB check (criminal reference bureau) etc. Especially when travelling to a hypnotherapists own house these checks should be made even more thoroughly. All of our certificates are the organisations hypnotherapist Derby belong to are available for inspection at any time- just email a request
Hypnosis Helps More Celebrities
Hypnosis For Depression
Jack Dee has recently stated that he uses hypnosis around once a month to help him cope with the pressures of life. Jack refers to it as “brain massge” and helps him to deal with the stress and anxiety of not just being a celebrity but also a human being! Jack initially was offered medication but found it wasnt right for him. As Jack probably discovered, there are so many medications that if they work for you with no side effects then you are one of the lucky ones. All synthesised drugs have their own glut of side effects which in many instances can make the initial problem worse.
Who Next ?
It is always best to try and resolve things in a more natural manner, it is no good in the long term view to just expect to take medication for the rest of your life. Tablets only mask the symptoms they dont actually cure the problem. How many other celebrities are out there who do similar things but wont admit to it. There is no shame in admitting you have a problem, the more that celebrities can stand up and say they too suffer the more the rest of the population can see that they are not alone. One word from a celebrity can help 10′s of thousands of others who are too ashamed (wrongly so) to say they too neeed help.
You’re not Alone
Many therapists see cleints who think that its just them that suffers with ‘X’ when the reality is that we ALL do at some time of our life. We all need a bt of help sometimes, life can be very stressful these days and its easy to succumb to the pressures of modern living. If you feel your life could be better, get in touch for a free chat and see how powerful hypnosis really can be.
Your Not Crazy!
Am I Cracking Up? If you’ve ever asked yourself that, probably not. ALL of us feel like that sometimes. Life can be hard, you can think like its all getting too much and even think enough is enough. The good news is that its completely normal to feel like that sometimes, we can have a
Am I Cracking Up?
If you’ve ever asked yourself that, probably not. ALL of us feel like that sometimes. Life can be hard, you can think like its all getting too much and even think enough is enough. The good news is that its completely normal to feel like that sometimes, we can have a lot of not good things happen and it can seem like the worlds against us. Heavy words like depression are thrown about far too lightly, and yes we can be seen to be in a ‘depressive state’ but it doesnt mean were on the road to ruin.
Think/Feel
As humans, and as clever as we can be we still carry with us traits that are based purely on survival and not on logical reasoning. If your really stressed, anxious too much or even really down in the dumps do you feel like you cant think straight sometimes? Of course you do, because when we really feel an emotion, such as the above, or a panic attack or even when weve just had a major shock like for instance finding out your partner is cheating on you were not designed to think. These situations induce the fear response and this is why we cant think. Were not designed to think when faced with ‘danger’, were just designed to run away or fight it (the fear response is adrenaline being pumped into your system- this happens in any of the above, its only the brains interpretation that mkes any of these feel different!).
That state of shock and horror is why we cant think what to do, were feeling not thinking. The worst thing is of course that its often in these circumstances that we need to really think and assess a situation before we act -often aggressively. So the next time your really stressed etc and you can think straight, you can take some comfort in the knowledge that your mind is still your own but sometimes mind and body dont work in harmony, even working against each other so it seems.
Perceptions
Whatever is happening in our lives, the overriding thing is that its our perceptions of things that count. Its how we see an event to ourselves, in ‘our world’ that leads to how we feel. Probably one of the worlds greatest authorities on stress Dr Hans Selye states that stress is ” a non specific response to a given stimulus”. What he means is that stress is as good or bad as we perceive it. Of course if your pet has just been run over then its not nice but we choose how to repsond to it. You have got to also remember that what we see everyday is not what is necessarily real. People with bulimia see an overweight person in the mirror looking back at them, it doesnt mean one is there.
Our lives are based on a process of what we have collectively learned in all our years. How we saw our peers respond to situations, how we learn to feel about ourselves and everything else adds in to the mix to give rise to how we see anything and everything every single day. In any situation our brains use all this data to give us an experience of how it sees a situation.
Of course this doesnt always have to be correct, its a product of the computer if you like, sometimes it gives us the wrong information as its nprobably not been given the data input correctly. If you can just start to think that sometimes you may be wrong about what your thinking then you can stop and assess a situation more objectively. We tend to focus on black and white when really there are more grey areas in life.
At the end of the day, we’re all learning and we’re all a product of our environment so its no wonder we cat how we dont want to sometimes. Its also important ot remember that what we think leads to how we feel, and this feeds back to how we think- i.e we feel anxious so we panic about that, then our minds misinterpret this and make us panic even more!!
Help!
Fortunately our brains are capable of learning many new things relatively easily so you can learn to install new behavious in place of old ones. Hypnosis can help you identify these old behaviours and quickly install new choices for you to accomplish whatever you want out of life. Get in touch or leave a comment, we love to hear from you.
Who Said That .. ?
Ever have a conversation with yourself? or even an argument? Sounds silly but we all do it. So, who are we speaking to? Err well us of course. It doesnt mean were crazy, but it does show that somewhere inside is another part of us. This other part of us controls far more than most people realise, and its this little voice that can guide us to success- whether its personal or other areas of your life. A lot of the time we tend to ignore this voice and just go about our daily business, we get that little voice and dont really pay it enough attention- well if you start to be able to distinguish that little voice that can help with almost anything from the more nagging voice that is more often than not our conscious minds then you can start to get somewhere.
That can be tricky to start with, for most of our lives we have only thought there was ‘one voice’, and of course that is true in some ways, but though the difference is subtle there is a massive benefit when you can separate the two. For instance if you are in a given situation and you want to- stand up to the person who always puts you down, or speak to that person that makes your heart flutter; a part of you eggs you on and tries to get you to do said act. Often times though, we hear that encouragement but dont act on it.
What a waste we are sometimes! Our best friend is whispering in our ear (remember this part of you knows what makes you happy and has the capability to do so) but we ignore it. In hypnotherapy we can help you learn to distinguish the more useful voice from the other one. You DO have the strength to do whatever your heart desires and you can harness it. Why want something and not try and get it? Go for it- you can find it on you with
Let us know your experiences/comments
Phantoms In The Brain
The Mirror Never Lies… Right? A world reknowned neuroscientist has shown that there seems to be an inexplicable ‘us’ inside which is aware of so much more than we are consciously. As a neuroscientist even he admits science cant answer all these unexplained mysteries, and of course being a scientist he is focused on what […]
The Mirror Never Lies… Right?
A world reknowned neuroscientist has shown that there seems to be an inexplicable ‘us’ inside which is aware of so much more than we are consciously. As a neuroscientist even he admits science cant answer all these unexplained mysteries, and of course being a scientist he is focused on what research can and cannot prove. The amazing things mentioned below seem to me to be the ‘person within’ that controls far more of what we do than we realise.
Phantoms Inside Us
Vilayanur Ramachandran is widely respected as one of the worlds greatest pioneer’s in the field of neuroscience. He has paved the way for people with phantom limbs to get relief form the incessant pain caused by said phantom limb. In his book Phantoms of the Brain, Ramachandran describes these and many more fascinating case studies.
Diane
Diane had suffered from carbon monoxide poisoning and after awakening from a come her family quickly realised everything was not as it was previously. Diane could now see colours and textures but nothing else, not her face or the faces of those who loved her. She was tested and diagnosed to be completely blind, due to the carbon monoxide poisoning. Her doctor, held up a pencil for one of her tests and although she of course didnt know what it was he asked here to grab it and feel it- to see if she could tell then by its feel.
To the doctors amazement Diane grabbed the pencil stright from his hand, no clutching in mid air as you would expect from a blind person. This led to the doctor devising other tests such as to see if she could turn a letter sideways or vertically to fit in a given slot. Diane successfully managed to do this. This shows that on some level she can see to some extent even though consciously she see’s literally nothing! Other tests also showed that Diane was able to reach out and grab a piece of wood, and analysed video evidence shows her hand was opening to the correct size for the piece of wood just as a person with normal sight would.
H M
Probably the most studied individual in psychology was known only as H M. He suffered with severe epilepsy as a child and it came to thato ne day as an adult, a meverick surgeon decided to do brain surgery in the hope of eliminating the epilepsy. He operated ans sucked out the hippocampus with a straw!! The hippocampus is at the back of the brain around the top of the neck area. At the time no one knew its importance but since that operation, H M was never able to form new memories. Literally he could meet a doctor, then the doctor would go out of the office and it was as if they had never met!
So the importance of the hippocampus was discovered, albeit to the detriment of H M. Poor H M was subject ot more psychological testing than anyone else ever. One test involved him drawing a mirror image of a star, and other shapes, of course drawing objects in a mirror takes a bit of practice, everything is the worng way around and upside down so it takes focus and memory to do it well.
Now remember that H M was completely unable to form any new memories at all. The past before the operation was there but anything after was not. H M showed that he learned how to do the mirror drawing test well. In fact it showed that on some level some part of his brain had learned just like anyone else how to remember how to draw a mirror image. Science had proved that on some level, he could still form new memories even though his life was enormously affected by not consciously being able to remember any new friends name etc.
Body Image
See my other post on how our sight is formed -only 10% of what we see comes from the eyes !! Whilst a lot of society may think that people with these types of problems such as BDD etc have nothing wrong with them, well science is proving that false. Does it not seem inconceivable that on some level a person can see but as far as her daily life goes she is completely blind. Several times in he book Ramachandran refers to the ‘zombie’ inside us that on some level is aware of so much more than we are consciously.
But if we know that our brains are responsible for ‘making up’ most of our lives, then maybe it doesnt seem so far fetched that when we look in the mirror its is not a true reflection always. Having had an upbringing where we learn to be unhappy with our appearance to such an extreme can it seems cause one to behave like they weigh far more than they actually do. But also damage or defects to certain brain area’s can cause these anomilies.
The deeper meaning of this is I suppose that sometimes ” I think, therefore I am” couldnt be more true. The old adage about beauty being skin deep is certainly true, many top models it seems suffer from a deep ingrained sense of insecurty about their looks yet people see them as being the most beautiful creations on the planet.
Conclusion
Of course there are bound to be explanations on a neurological level for these phenomena, but the point is that even to our complete detriment we can suffer with this or that, but on some level some part of us knows something different. It seems that this ‘inside us’ is aware of far more than we are consciously, and it cant/wont share this helpful information even though we may be in distress due to it.
Hypnotherapists see this kind of thing every day. Milton Erickson said, we have the resources and sttributes we need to solve our problems -how far sighted was he when he said that all those years ago? He wasnt aware of all this information then. Whatever your problem, hypnosis can help wade through all the insignificant things going off in our head ,and get to the crux of the matter .Its all within us, and that is the best and the worst part about our problems.
Proof How Phobias Can Be Beaten
Phobia’s The following excerpt taken from New Scientist Magazine shows how easily phobias can be overcome. Basically, the experiment shows that when the conscious part of our brains does not interfere, we can much more easily learn to overcome a given fear. The subjects were shown repeated exposure to a spider, albeit too fast for […]
Phobia’s
The following excerpt taken from New Scientist Magazine shows how easily phobias can be overcome. Basically, the experiment shows that when the conscious part of our brains does not interfere, we can much more easily learn to overcome a given fear. The subjects were shown repeated exposure to a spider, albeit too fast for the conscious mind to realise (and instigate the fear response) and those subjects who had a spider phobia and were shown the subliminal images were much better at approaching the spider tank after the experiment. Inadvertently this experiment has confirmed what hypnotherapists have been doing for a long time.
This is typical of one technique used by hypnotherapists to help overcome any given phobia. In hypnosis, we effectively switch off the interference from our conscious minds and work with a part of our brains that CAN beat the fear. When there is no interference the fear is extinguished much more quickly than in the normal state. Phobias are learned in an instant but can last a lifetime if not treated properly.If you have a phobia, dont leave it any longer, get over it far quicker than you thought was possible. Get in touch for a FREE consultation.
Joel Weinberger at Adelphi University in Garden City, New York, found that exposing people to subliminal spider images helped them to overcome their fear.
The usual treatment for phobias is maximum exposure to what you fear. To make things easier, Weinberger’s team asked 23 volunteers who were afraid of spiders to stare at an “x” on a screen as 20 images of spiders or outdoor scenes flashed onto the screen. The images appeared too briefly to be perceived.
Following treatment, volunteers shown spider images were able to lift the lid off of a spider tank, while those who saw landscapes could only touch the tank (Consciousness and Cognition, DOI: 10.1016/j.concog.2011.01.003).
The team suggest that repeated exposure to frightening stimuli without conscious perception creates non-threatening associations with spiders that override ingrained fear responses within the amygdala, a brain area involved in emotional memory.
“It is impressive that such an effect can occur rapidly without the participants’ awareness,” says David Rakison at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.