Conquer Fear Phobia

So what exactly is the fear phobia?

A phobia is an intense and persistent fear of certain situations, people, animals, activities, and things. Phobias are the most common form of anxiety disorders. In fact, nearly everyone has at least one type of phobia ranging from the fear of spiders to the fear of heights. The word phobia itself comes from the Greek word 'phobos' meaning "fear" or "morbid fear".

Fear is an emotional response to a 'perceived' threat. In other words, a threat that seems all too real but in reality is non-existent. This is what occurs when we have panic attacks. Our fight-and-flight mechanism is triggered, like it would be automatically during an actual emergency, when there is no emergency happening.

To conquer the fear phobia you must take action. Because action cures fear. Let me explain...

Fear can only defeat us if we succumb to it. For example, if you fear going to the supermarket because the last time you went there you suffered a panic attack the last thing you want to do is simply avoid going to that supermarket. When you do avoid situations like this you start imposing limitations on yourself. I made this mistake and soon found myself painted into a corner away from my fears, anxieties, and phobias. The more places and situations I avoided the more my world shrunk and the more withdrawn I became. This lead to my deep fear of panic attacks or 'Agoraphobia' which in my opinion is the King Of All Phobias. I was literally afraid of fear itself. Not a good place to be.

To conquer this fear phobia you must face your fears. You must go back and overcome each of these self-imposed limitations despite how difficult it may be for you.

If you cannot face your fears by yourself you may need some help. One of the best ways to to use Joe Barry's excellent program Panic Away which was created to help you cope with facing your fear phobia.

Hypnotherapy For Anxiety

So what the heck is Hypnotherapy anyway?

Simply put, hypnotherapy is therapy by hypnosis. It is often applied in order to modify one's behavior, emotional state, and attitudes, as well as a wide range of conditions including dysfunctional habits, anxiety, stress-related disorders, pain management, and even personal development.

Hypnotherapy has been used as a treatment for different types of physical and mental conditions for decades. Hypnotism was originally used to treat the condition known in the Victorian era as 'hysteria'. In the mid 20th century, a modernized version of it was introduced as a medical technique that has since been widely recognized and used effectively in various cultures around the world.

So does anxiety hypnotherapy really work?

Actually... yes it does. Hypnotherapy for anxiety works on the subconscious level which is at the root cause of anxiety and panic disorders. Reprogramming our thought patterns at this level has a significant impact on our thoughts and behaviors at the conscious level. Through repetitive mental conditioning using hypnotherapy can eliminate anxiety & panic symptoms fast.

Hypnotherapy for anxiety is not for everyone but can be a very effective treatment method that is worth a look. For more information on a anxiety hypnotherapy program that I personally recommend please CLICK HERE.

How To Stop Panic Attacks Instantly

I'm often asked how to stop panic attacks instantly -

while they're occurring.

For most people, including myself, conquering this was an

important milestone in turning my life around and getting

control again. I'll teach you what to do and how to do it so

you can begin to implement this strategy and learn how to

control your panic attacks too. It works.

When you start to feel an anxiety or panic attack begin (or

when you feel one coming on) this is the key moment to

take action so in that moment you can steer your mind in

a different direction and stop your panic attack from

progressing.

So how do you do it?

In the moment it starts simply interrupt your mind's focus

from the uncomfortable physical symptoms of panic to a

completely different task. For example, instead of focusing

on the state of worry and fear that the symptoms are

causing, interrupt that thought pattern and start to count

backwards (in your head) from 100 to 1 or recite the

alphabet backwards from Z-A.

Why backwards?

Because we can all count 1 to 100 or recite the alphabet

nearly subconsciously. But to do so backwards requires

more conscious mental effort which will keep your mind

pre-occupied and less able to keep you focused on the

progression and symptoms of a panic attack.

Don't be fooled by the simplicity of this exercise. This

distraction technique works very effectively. But it may

take some practice on your part to master it and learn

to rely on it. You can vary the mental exercises by doing

other things that occupy your brain such as performing

simple math equations in your head or naming as many

cities that you can think of. Anything that gives your brain

something better to do.

Along with mental exercises for you mind you can also do

physical tasks such as going for a brisk walk, or doing some

yardwork. Or try focusing on some relaxing music or by

calling a friend or reading something. Any task that will

distract your mind from your panic will be helpful.

This is also a good time to state your positive affirmations

to yourself. Remember those?

Examples:

"Panic cannot harm me. These symptoms are false and I'm

just fine"

"This is just a panic attack and will pass in a few moments"

"I'm strong and in control"

If its helpful to you, carry small notecards with you that

have these affirmations written down so you can refer to

them in a moments notice.

Overcoming panic attacks takes practice and patience but

the pay off is huge when you convince yourself that YOU

are in control.

Coping With Panic Attacks

I read a inspirational story today in the Seattlepi site about a program called Project Healing Waters which teaches returning combat veterans how to fly fish to relieve and overcome anxiety, panic attacks, and post-traumatic disorder many of them are suffering from. Fly fishing requires patience and concentration which forces the mind to slow down and focus on the task at hand.

This is same thing that you need to calm your own panic attacks & anxiety. And I don't mean by fly fishing necessarily, although that is very good one. You just have to find an activity you enjoy that requires the same kind of focused concentration. Perhaps even an activity you use to do before your anxiety and panic came around perhaps.

Activities such as painting, gardening, crafts, or even needlepoint are examples of excellent ways to regularly train your mind to slow down and maintain control which will reduce your overall anxiety and stress levels and help reduce the chances (and frequency) of encountering panic attacks.

This type of mental conditioning is an important element in your recovery. If you combine that with regular exercise it acts like a steam valve that slowly allows accumulated anxiety to disappear before it builds to the point of a full blown panic attack.

Look, we all fear and worry about panic attack symptoms that make this disorder so difficult to deal with. If you follow through and do these things a few times per week I know you'll begin to win your battle with panic and anxiety. Why not get started today!

Now that the July 4th Holiday weekend is behind us I'm chomping at the bit to get back into the swing of things around here. For those in the States I hope you had a wonderful holiday like I did, and if you live elsewhere in the world I hope all is well in your corner of the planet too. :)

What do you say we just dive right back into this annoying little pest we call anxiety, eh? I read an excellent article today by Jay Rifenbary from The Saratogian in the New York area. Jay believes that "we are rapidly becoming an anxiety-plagued society — a people overwhelmed with having to keep up with continuous advancements of technology and the deciphering of information associated with that technology." I couldn't agree more and in fact have written several articles in the past on this very topic.

While all of our amazing technological advances have made our lives incredibly convenient in many ways it has added new and more complex elements of stress and anxiety while we all try to keep up with a rapidly changing world. Jay suggests 5 simple things we can all do to regain control and reduce this new anxiety threat:

• Establish time to participate in something you are passionate about. A walk to relax, a hike to take, a book to be read, a painting to create or a thoughtful prayer are just some of the things that enable us to take a break from the world.

• Look for quiet time along the journey to reflect and re-focus on objectives at hand. There is solace in quiet and an opportunity to listen to the inside instead of being distracted by the outside.

• “Do not bite off more than you can chew,” as the saying goes. Realize we may think we are getting more done with more on our agenda, but the stress of the multitude of tasks will be overwhelming, and the quality of the tasks completed will suffer. Anxiety equals an overabundance of tasks plus a lack of quality.

• Make a date to pull out old photos, picture albums or home movies and smile, laugh and reflect on some of the good old times. When was the last time we sat down with the family and reminisced?

• Finally, reflect on the areas of your life that bring you the most joy and happiness, those little things that make you appreciate yourself and others. We cannot allow our ever-changing, rapidly evolving, technology-filled world to diminish the simple and treasured joys that make life a blessing.

Great advice that we should all listen to and implement into our lives. I hope you agree. Thanks again Jay. If you would like to read the entire article I have linked it here.

Update From Coping With Anxiety Blog

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. I have been guest writing some articles for a colleague of mine and I also have something big in the works that I'll reveal soon.

I hope all of your are well and I'm eager to get back to it!

Bill Burniece

Don't Allow All "The Sky Is Falling" Talk To Increase Your Anxiety

The media loves to scare us to death will all of the doom and gloom news that they constantly bombard us with. It almost seems as if they get some kind of twisted, weird, sadistic pleasure out of it.

The current global recession has given the media an almost endless supply of negativity to dish out to us every day. Each day we're told how bad things are and how much worse things are going to get. Almost every news report focuses only on the worst case scenario possibility.

The problem lies in the fact that too many of us get caught up in it all. As a result many of us actually become addicted to all of this negativity. I was that way once too. I seemed almost drawn towards bad news until I realized through the Law of Attraction that all this was doing was making my own life worse. Like attracts like. And this was bad. All bad.

For people who are susceptible to anxiety & depression this is a dangerous path to follow. There is absolutely nothing good that can come from all of this negativity you're ingesting day in and day out. I've seen so many people fall back into their old habits of doubt, fear, and worry that lead to increased stress, anxiety, and depression. If you are one of these people you must stop this destructive habit.

To drive my point home try a little experiment. Ignore all news for a week straight. And I mean ALL OF IT. Don't watch the news on TV, read the newspaper, listen to talk radio, or engage in discussions on anything negative for a week. If you follow through on this you won't believe how much better you'll feel.

For the most part news is absolute poison. Most of the news will have no affect on your day to day life anyway so there's no reason you should be immersed in it. Ultimately, you decide what to focus your attention on. Focusing on negativity and despair will only bring you more of it.