Hypnotherapy For
Generalised Anxiety Disorder
Mental Health Professional And Clinic
Hypnotherapy Helping Ordinary People lead An Ordinary Life
Treating Generalised Anxiety Disorder In Singapore!
People often say that every now and then it's normal to feel anxious, even more so if your life is frequently stressful. But there are a couple of things wrong with that statement. First, the term "people" is too vague, for it to have any merit, those "people" need to be identified. For those suffering from a Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD) "people" of pretty much any description can be a major source of their anxiety, so we need to narrow it down to certain types of people, maybe parents, teachers, or siblings would be a good place to start. Second, the term "anxious" is equally vague and ambiguous, by whose standard is your anxiety measured? What is too much anxiety for one person, might be a walk in the park for another! However, there is a universally accepted standard that determines what is too much anxiety, it's your own standard, you are the one that decides what is too much. The term 'Generalised Anxiety,' is merely the descriptive label, something that gives your anxiety context. From a treatment perspective, finding the likely cause(s) is a good place to start.
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Generalised anxiety disorders often have their roots in our early developmental or childhood years, even if they don't show up until you're an adult. GAD also has some symptoms that are similar to panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and other types of anxiety, making it all the more confusing (which adds to the generalised feeling of it), but they are all different conditions, albeit sometimes only slightly different in terms of the physical feelings and provocative thoughts we experience.
Living with GAD can be a challenge in both the short term and the longer term. You see, life is a day-to-day series of moments of the present experience and it in these moments that anxiety affects us in the short-term moment of now! However, we all perceive that we have a future and because the hallmark of anxiety is avoidance, this creates the view that the future will be no better than the present. Consequently, this perpetuates our anxiety. To make it even more complex, GAD often occurs along with other anxiety or mood disorders and it is because of this fact, that it is such an insidious condition, nevertheless, it is treatable. While GAD improves with disciplines, such as psychotherapy, CBT or even medications, hypnotherapy is often more effective because it deals with the brain's involvement at subconscious levels. In addition to any type of therapy, lifestyle changes, coping skills and using relaxation techniques are essential parts of any help you receive.
Treating Generalised Anxiety Disorder with hypnotherapy is assessed on a person-by-person basis, simply because we are all different. However, the emotional and defensive systems in our brain that activate the fight or flight response are almost identical and not just for humans. That is why animal studies have given us so much insight into how anxiety develops. So, I start treatment with a view to lessening levels of anxiety that are not specifically related to the generalised anxiety situations. You may feel that you do not have any anxiety that is not related to these situations but let me assure you, you do!
In order to begin your journey toward a life without unnecessary anxiety, you can book a Free 1hr Consultation Right Here
Living with GAD can be a challenge in both the short term and the longer term. You see, life is a day-to-day series of moments of the present experience and it in these moments that anxiety affects us in the short-term moment of now! However, we all perceive that we have a future and because the hallmark of anxiety is avoidance, this creates the view that the future will be no better than the present. Consequently, this perpetuates our anxiety. To make it even more complex, GAD often occurs along with other anxiety or mood disorders and it is because of this fact, that it is such an insidious condition, nevertheless, it is treatable. While GAD improves with disciplines, such as psychotherapy, CBT or even medications, hypnotherapy is often more effective because it deals with the brain's involvement at subconscious levels. In addition to any type of therapy, lifestyle changes, coping skills and using relaxation techniques are essential parts of any help you receive.
Treating Generalised Anxiety Disorder with hypnotherapy is assessed on a person-by-person basis, simply because we are all different. However, the emotional and defensive systems in our brain that activate the fight or flight response are almost identical and not just for humans. That is why animal studies have given us so much insight into how anxiety develops. So, I start treatment with a view to lessening levels of anxiety that are not specifically related to the generalised anxiety situations. You may feel that you do not have any anxiety that is not related to these situations but let me assure you, you do!
In order to begin your journey toward a life without unnecessary anxiety, you can book a Free 1hr Consultation Right Here
Symptoms of Generalised Anxiety
The generalised desire to lead an avoidant life!
When considering the symptoms of GAD, it is important, s it is with any disorder, to focus on the bodily sensations, i.e. the feelings that you are experiencing. All too often when I ask a client "how do you feel," they tell me what they think or use words that are not fully descriptive of a feeling.
All anxiety disorders come with unpleasant feelings, feelings that make life suck. However, they are grouped into specific types, usually because of their symptomatic differences. The one commonality that they all share, is the activation of the body's defensive mechanisms, i.e. fight or flight.
GAD symptoms can vary and may include:
Physical symptoms
Generalised anxiety disorder can include:
- Blushing or hot flushes
- Fast heartbeat (palpitations)
- Trembling, shaky hands or pins and needles
- Perspiring beyond normal for the temperature
- Nausea or gastrointestinal issues or diarrhoea
- Shortness of breath or rapid breathing (hyperventilating)
- Feeling lightheaded or dizzy
- A feeling of being spacially detached or disconnected from reality
- Muscle cramps or tension
Emotional and sensory symptoms
Generalised anxiety disorder senses can include constant:
- Fear that you will be poorly or unfairly judged
- An overfocus on your sense of reality relative to any situation
- Fear of embarrassing or humiliating situations
- Intense feelings of being overwhelmed when planning activities
- Avoid situations where you lack control or are expected to take the lead
- Fear of physical symptoms that cause embarrassment, e.g. blushing, perspiring, hot flushes or stammering
- An overfocus on your performance following any normal tasks
- A habit of planning for the worse and increasing the odds it will happen
Causes
It is difficult to establish the exact cause, even if the cause seems obvious, it may not be enough in and of itself to be anything more than a contributing factor. Consequently, when hypnotherapists talk of finding the root cause, or the initial sensitising event (ISE), it is often misleading, maybe illusory. And strangely enough, it often doesn't always matter because the brain works more in relation to its perception than the reality. Nevertheless, the somewhat mythical status of the root cause or ISE, can be helpful because there is rarely one single event but rather, that plus a plethora of small but incremental factors involved. And just because you are now likely to be an adult, any discussion of the past, will be made through your most updated memories and current language base. Our stored language comes complete with many hundreds, if not thousands, of words, their meanings. Many of which you did not have or know when you were a child. As we grow, learn and become more educated and intellectual, our brain updates any memories we retrieve, consciously or not. So, when we are in sensory situations that have historical links to schemas or memory traces that relate to previous experiences which were either challenging or traumatic, we revert to the emotional responses of the pst. Hence why adults often act like children when stressed! Fortunately, Trans4mational Therapy knows how to address maladaptive memory distortion or corruption.
Some of the things that cause GAD are:
Brain function. There are many areas of the brain involved in the brain relating to what we call anxiety. However, anxiety is merely the term that describes the activation of the stress response for lnown, unknown, certain or uncertain reasons. So, in that sense, anxiety is better thought of as the anticipatory consequence of a problem, not the problem itself. What causes anxiety is consequential to our sensory perceptions (perceptual defence mechanisms) that activate memories that relate to a past or perceived future outcome that is or could be dangerous.
Hereditary factors. Anxiety disorders often run in families, often, but not always, from the mother side, maybe because the foetus experiences the mother's emotions during confinement. It’s not exactly clear how much emotional wiring is due to genetics and how much is due to learned or environmental, experience (epigenetics) that translates into behaviour.
Environmental factors. Anxiety disorders, including GAD, are almost always a learned behaviour, not learnt in the context of a classroom experience but rather through observation and experience. It usually starts in childhood (even if it later manifests in adulthood), often as a consequence of the environment we live in and the familial, cultural or societal dynamics of where we live. Things like overcrowded habitats, poverty, restricted social amenities or services, maybe even a lack of opportunity, matters of race, religion, ethnicity, social class etc. all play their part too. As does being ostracised or bullied. In fact, you could probably write a book on the potential causes Nevertheless, hypnotherapy is most often the solution
Brain function. There are many areas of the brain involved in the brain relating to what we call anxiety. However, anxiety is merely the term that describes the activation of the stress response for lnown, unknown, certain or uncertain reasons. So, in that sense, anxiety is better thought of as the anticipatory consequence of a problem, not the problem itself. What causes anxiety is consequential to our sensory perceptions (perceptual defence mechanisms) that activate memories that relate to a past or perceived future outcome that is or could be dangerous.
Hereditary factors. Anxiety disorders often run in families, often, but not always, from the mother side, maybe because the foetus experiences the mother's emotions during confinement. It’s not exactly clear how much emotional wiring is due to genetics and how much is due to learned or environmental, experience (epigenetics) that translates into behaviour.
Environmental factors. Anxiety disorders, including GAD, are almost always a learned behaviour, not learnt in the context of a classroom experience but rather through observation and experience. It usually starts in childhood (even if it later manifests in adulthood), often as a consequence of the environment we live in and the familial, cultural or societal dynamics of where we live. Things like overcrowded habitats, poverty, restricted social amenities or services, maybe even a lack of opportunity, matters of race, religion, ethnicity, social class etc. all play their part too. As does being ostracised or bullied. In fact, you could probably write a book on the potential causes Nevertheless, hypnotherapy is most often the solution