She sat in front of me shaking, her eyes filling up with tears. I had worked with people who have phobias before but never had I seen anyone react as deeply as she did when she recounted her fear to me. For over 60 years she had been crippled by an overwhelming fear of spiders. The terror she felt at just thought of them was palpable. She was terrified by the look of them, by the way they moved. She knew that her fear was irrational and yet she entered into a trance of terror at just the mere mention of them.
As with all my clients, I felt a deep sense of responsibility in helping this woman move forward. Although her fear touched me, what I saw far more clearly was her bravery and courage in coming to me with the desire to overcome this problem that she had lived with for a lifetime. After the first session she came back and reported that her anxiety had indeed decreased significantly enough her to realise that the fear she once held had turned into the beginnings of curiosity . There was no denying that change had already started to occur most powerfully.
By the third session she was able to look at a large picture of the spider. Drawing on that courage and determination that I had witnessed in the first meeting she pushed forward and through any residual fears and anxieties. As she left my clinic this humblest of ladies admitted that even she felt quite proud of herself. Quite rightly so. Because we both knew just how far she has come in such a short amount of time. Last week she sent me a picture taken by her partner of her holding a spider. Thats my hand with a spider. You may not be able to see very well but it’s the biggest I’ve held so far it was probably about 10 PP sized and FAST!
My sister and youngest son were witness to this this morning and both was simply amazed. I knew that here in the new house I would come face-to-face with spiders and now I don’t freak out as I used to. The model of Cognitive Hypnotherapy continues to amaze me in its versatility being able to help people overcome stress, anxiety, confidence issues and phobias to name but a few. My role as a Cognitive Hypnotherapist allows me to meet those clients at my clinic in Hove, who are determined to overcome whatever limits their enjoyment of life . On a daily basis I’m touched by the strength of human spirit, which was in abundance in this rather lovely lady.