Anxiety disorders are highly treatable. Anxiety is in many ways a learned response, and as such it can be  un-learned . The symptoms of anxiety may be very physical, but the causes are generally psychological.

Anxiety disorders range from generalised mild anxiety to acute panic attacks. Its manifestations will differ from person to person and its treatment will reflect this. It may be that all you need is just one session to overcome your anxiety. On the other hand it may take up to six sessions. Even then, you should expect to notice a difference in how you feel after one session.

Anxiety can really preclude your enjoyment of life, stopping you from doing what you want to do, whether it's simply going to the cinema, or driving a car, or standing up and making a speech at a wedding. If the anxiety doesn't actually stop you from doing such things, it will certainly stop you from enjoying what should have been a pleasurable experience.

Anxiety may, as well as stopping you from doing things, actually MAKE you do things....in a particular way. In Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, sufferers have persistent recurring thoughts that reflect exaggerated anxieties and fears. These obsessions then lead to the performance of rituals or routines such as washing hands or repeating phrases.

Anxiety may be triggered as a specific response to an object or situation, such as spiders, heights or flying. Where one can identify a specific trigger cue, and the anxiety experienced is inordinate and irrational, this anxiety is termed a phobia. Many people these days suffer from Social Phobia, characterised by extreme anxiety over being judged by others, or embarrassing oneself, or being ridiculed. This can in turn lead to an avoidance of social situations, and social interaction, and even lead to depression.

Anxiety may be experienced after a traumatic event such as a physical or sexual assault or the loss of a loved one. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder has three main symptoms -  reliving  of the traumatic event, avoidance behaviours and physiological affects such as disrupted sleep patterns.

Whatever the type of anxiety you have, the symptoms are extremely uncomfortable and distressing to the sufferer. They might include heart palpitations, faintness, blushing and profuse sweating. (This is not an exhaustive list.) These symptoms are not quite the same as those experienced in the throes of a panic attack, but they are similar, and very unpleasant.

Sometimes you will be aware of the triggers to your anxiety, sometimes anxiety will come over you for no apparent reason. Sometimes you will know what the triggers are but not why they cause anxiety. Sometimes the cause is unknown to you - it just happens.

Whatever your experience is, anxiety is treatable. Hypnosis itself is a state of relaxation, and allows relief from anxiety, as well as access to your subconscious. NLP provides an invaluable set of tools allowing the programming of language into your neurology. The combination of the two enables a swift and easy reprogramming of your instinctive and automatic thought patterns, expectations and behaviour. You can be reprogrammed to respond to the old anxiety cues with a feeling of calm control. And where you are presently unaware of those causes and cues, hypno-analysis can be employed to get the root cause, allowing relief from the symptoms.

The most important thing to remember is that everyone has the ability to think and to feel differently, and to be able to heal themselves with a little help from a competent therapist. Hypnotherapy and NLP are invaluable in the treatment of anxiety.

Roseanna has been in private practice since 1989, and has a great deal of experience in assisting people in coping with, and overcoming, anxiety.

You can contact her on 670303 for a confidential discussion of your problem. Alternatively you can e-mail Roseanna here.

Please note that even when calling during office hours you may still be connected to an answerphone as Roseanna may already be in consultation with a client. Please do leave a message and Roseanna will return your call as soon as possible.