... Stress and Anxiety

Over six million people in this country suffer from uncontrollable fear that causes them to be anxiety-ridden and to have what is known as a "stressful personality." This type of personality may be expressed in a variety of behavior patterns which may become so restrictive that they literally ruin a person's life.

Symptoms

Symptoms may include a gnawing fear that something terrible is about to happen, a sudden wave of panic with rapid heartbeat, shortness of breath, breaking out in a cold sweat, and a feeling of impending death.

These attacks can be triggered by large crowded places such as theaters, supermarkets, restaurants, or churches and are accompanied by an overwhelming need to get out. Other situations that may cause anxiety attacks are: being in small, enclosed places, such as elevators or cars, driving through tunnels or going over bridges, or boarding an airplane.

Anxiety attacks may occur when least expected or "out of the blue" and therefore may limit a person's ability to go anywhere or to live a happy and productive life. Some victims may eventually become unable to leave their own home.

"We were all designed to be normal, and, if it were not for inappropriate thoughts introduced into the subconscious mind, we all would be."

The Stressful Personality

The stressful person lives in a constant state of anxiety which may worsen when there is a duty to perform, a challenge to be met, a trip to be taken, or a responsibility to be accepted. Some tasks become so frightening that they are almost impossible to perform. Such situations are not seen as exciting challenges, but as fearful undertakings.

In time, the increasing sense of pressure can become emotionally and physically destructive. Some victims may have recurring headaches, periods of insomnia, and outbursts of anger for no reason. This may result in depression, fear of failure, fatigue, high blood pressure, indigestion, gastric ulcers, or colitis. All of these symptoms can be part of the stressful personality.

Treatment

Until recently it was believed that this type of personality, with its related problems, was inherited. For this reason, treatment was directed toward changing the symptoms or the behavior in a number of ways.

These treatments included heavy usage of drugs to ease the feeling of anxiety, lift depression, lower blood pressure, heal ulcers, and, in general, change the internal body chemistry. Other treatments stressed relaxation techniques, using medication or biofeedback. The concept of a health-oriented lifestyle, proper diet, exercise, and avoidance of smoking has been another form of treatment for these types of symptoms.

While these forms of therapy can be beneficial, there remains a threat of a recurrence of the problem under traumatic circumstances or when the treatment is discontinued. Consequently, stress and anxiety may continue to dominate the personality because all of these forms of therapy fail to do what is necessary-that is, to remove the cause.

Treating the Cause

We know that there is a cause for having a stressful personality and that this cause can be identified and removed.

Most aspects of the personality are created rather than inherited. They are created by the accumulation of thoughts and experiences, both positive and negative, in the subconscious mind, beginning after conception, and create our emotional reactions and behavioral responses throughout life.

Analysis

All feelings come from thoughts, either conscious or unconscious. If there were a tiger ready to attack you, you certainly would get nervous. If the "tiger" is a thought, buried in the subconscious, you would still be nervous but would not know why until that thought had been identified.

In experienced hands, this can be accomplished in a relatively short period of time. After that, there is no further need to live in dread of anxiety attacks. Negative thought patterns are replaced with positive suggestions which lead to a normal, emotionally balanced, mature individual.

We were all designed to be normal, and, if it were not for inappropriate thoughts introduced into the subconscious mind, we would be.

More than twenty years experience in communicating with the subconscious in the hypnotic state, has enabled us not only to bring these facts to light, but has given us the tools to identify, expose, and remove the inappropriate thought. This process is known as analysis.

Our knowledge and experience is centered in an important new specialty named, Medical Hypnoanalysis. Hypnosis opens the door to the subconscious; analysis helps you to understand the origin of the anxiety. Medical Hypnoanalysis deals with the problem in the model of General Medicine, that is, a diagnosis is made, a direct removal of the cause is performed, followed by a short period of rehabilitation.

All Fear is Learned

A few years ago a 55-year-old architect came to our office with a fourteen-year history of panic attacks, which had become progressively worse over the last three years. He had experienced anxiety in elevators and while driving on the expressway. He had palpitations, sweaty palms, tightness in his chest, and a feeling that he could die at any moment. His general uneasiness about flying had progressed to the point that, for the last year and a half, he was no longer able to even enter an airplane.

As a nine-year-old child in London, he spent many frightening nights in air raid shelters; but so did many others who did not develop the problems he did. Through the process of analysis, the real cause of his problem was diagnosed as an incident of which he had no conscious recollection. In a hypnotic age regression it was discovered that his older brother locked him in a cedar chest at the age of four. While in there, he became panicked by his inability to breathe and passed out. Six treatments after the cause was identified and treated, he was able to fly to the West Coast. His dependence on tranquilizers to relieve his anxiety was eliminated.

"All patients are taught self-hypnosis so that a relaxed state can be achieved at will"

Treatment Program

In our office, treatment for Stress and Anxiety problems is usually completed in 12-20 visits. Sessions are generally scheduled weekly and last approximately one hour. The first step is a consultation visit. A complete and confidential medical and psychological history is taken. At this time a determination is made as to whether the problem can be treated with medical hypnoanalysis and an estimation is made of the number of visits required to resolve the problem. The second visit consists of teaching hypnosis and determining how we can best work together. The next three or four sessions are diagnostic in nature, helping to pinpoint the origin of the stressful personality, remove the negative thoughts, and replace them with positive thought patterns. The remainder of the visits are used for rehabilitation and reinforcement which create a pattern of positive thinking. All patients are taught self-hypnosis so that a relaxed state can be achieved at will. All treatment is strictly confidential.