Category: Anxiety Therapy

Many people experience exam nerves or anxiety before taking a test or exam. But it’s not just when you’re younger whilst at school or college, adults can and do suffer enormously with these worries as well. Although a little bit of nervousness can help you to perform better, when it becomes excessive and interferes with things, it starts to be a real hindrance to your life and can bring on symptoms of anxiety.

So, you’ve been doing the homework, read all your notes repeatedly, and even done some exam practice sessions. What could possibly cause you to then end up full of exam nerves, and unable to demonstrate the simplest of tasks to your examiner? Well, it’s exam or test anxiety – an extreme reaction to taking tests or exams, be they practical or written. 

It’s the same as when you have to present to co-workers a work presentation. You’ve rehearsed and continually revised your subject but on the day it all goes wrong because of the anxiety literally ruining everything you’ve prepared for.

Exam nerves

A lot of professionals need to train in new processes / procedures and are examined with practical tests. Whilst these people have all the skills and capability to do really well, the anxiety surrounding them prevents them from demonstrating what they are able to do. Those exam nerves or test anxiety puts an end to their aspirations and can severely limit a persons career.

Excessive anxiety

We all experience some form of anxiousness around these situations, like butterflies in the stomach, but when things escalate to a point where you are suffering poor sleep or ill health it’s probably time to tackle it. That excessive level of anxiety can make it almost impossible to concentrate and answer the simplest of questions or complete tasks. Everything becomes inaccessible, as if your thinking brain simply goes ‘on holiday’. You know you know the answers, but that part of your brain that has them, simply goes blank.

This can seriously damage your ability to move forward in life, preventing you from gaining the promotion you seek, or up-skilling to another pay grade. Your self esteem drops, and a general feeling of hopelessness can overtake your emotions. It can be a never ending spiral of having done poorly before, and so automatically assuming it will be difficult or impossible again.

Overcome the anxiety

The good news is, there are effective methods of tackling and overcoming these issues that cause so much despondency amongst those who find it difficult to manage anxiety. 

My dynamic, quick and effective plan will get you back to your old self, or just be the person you want to be. Become able to take on tasks, be more confident in presenting to others and get through those tests to move forward in your job. No-one should feel they are incapable of improving their chances in life, and I will make sure you get the best techniques, delivered professionally and with the results you want. 

Want to know more, drop me a line at neil@coxhypnotherapy.com or why not just book a free consultation using my online booking portal right now? It’s non-committal, carried out in the comfort of your own home via Google Meet and will explain everything you need to decide whether this is for you. 

Worrying is a common human experience that can be difficult to manage. It can be triggered by many different things, from everyday stressors to more significant life events. Whatever the cause, worrying can be exhausting and overwhelming, affecting our ability to concentrate, sleep, and even our physical health.

Solution focused hypnotherapy is one approach that can help people overcome their worries. It focuses on the present and future rather than the past, helping clients identify their strengths and resources to achieve their goals. During a hypnotherapy session, the therapist will guide the client into a state of deep relaxation and suggest positive, empowering thoughts and images. This can help the client break free from negative thought patterns and see their problems in a new, more positive light.

One way solution focused hypnotherapy can help stop worrying is by teaching clients how to shift their focus away from negative thoughts and towards more positive ones. By encouraging clients to identify and focus on their strengths, solution focused hypnotherapy can help them build confidence and resilience. This can help them feel better equipped to handle the challenges they face and reduce the frequency and intensity of worrying.

In addition, solution focused hypnotherapy can also help clients develop practical strategies for dealing with worrying. By encouraging clients to set achievable goals and identify small, manageable steps towards achieving them, solution focused hypnotherapy can help them feel more in control of their lives. This can be particularly helpful for people who feel overwhelmed by their worries and don’t know where to start.

Ultimately, the goal of solution focused hypnotherapy is to help clients tap into their own inner resources and develop the confidence and resilience they need to overcome their worries. By learning how to focus on the positive, set achievable goals, and develop practical strategies for managing their worries, clients can learn how to live more fulfilling and satisfying lives.

4 wonderful ways to wipe away worrying

So how do you get yourself out of the being caught up in chronic worrying and use your imagination more productively? Here are four powerful tips.

1) Get distance on the worry

I’ll often talk about how we are capable of imagining absolutely anything, but whether we buy in to what we imagine is another matter altogether. Stephen King uses his imagination (as do many writers) to create terrifying scenarios, but he produces all these scary ideas without being scared witless by them himself. He can clearly separate himself from what he is imagining.

Simple as it sounds, this is often a completely new idea for many worriers. As I’m typing this, I can quite vividly imagine the ceiling caving in on top of me while not believing for one second that it’s going to happen (fingers crossed).

So rather than trying to get yourself not to think about it – possibly the most useless advice ever – just relax deeply while imagining what normally scares you.

In effect, you are asking yourself to worry without feeling worried. I have found this to be surprisingly easy and effective.

And when you can hypnotically see your worries in the distance -over there- while feeling ever so relaxed over here. I might even prescribe set doses of worrying while relaxed for the chronic worrier to take between sessions.

Emotion is the neon sign yelling  “Pay attention to this!” and when you diminish the emotion, the old worrying thoughts become much less compulsive.

2) Organise the worrying

There’s nothing like a timetable for bringing things under control.

Worry tends to be intrusive, to gate crash your head when you’re trying to enjoy yourself or concentrate on something. Prescribing worry time is a neat way of prescribing the symptom and organising this destructive use of the imagination as a prelude to getting rid of it once and for all.

(Of course, being able to worry sometimes is useful for all of us, so perhaps we won’t get rid of it completely – just keep it in its place.)

When you select a specific time of day to sit down and do nothing but worry for a specific period, you give yourself permission to defer worrying.

When they a troublesome thought occurs, say to yourself: “Okay,  there’s a worrying thought.  I’ll worry about that in my worry time, not now.”

Setting up a fixed period, no longer than 20 minutes for worrying soon shows you that worrying doesn’t have the hold over you that you thought. When you must do it for 20 minutes, it gets harder and harder to do – thus transforming itself from something that you can’t help doing to something that is a real nuisance to keep up.

3) Write down solution steps

Worrying that doesn’t lead anywhere is like a dog chasing its tail!

It’s been shown that writing about emotional issues lowers stress hormone levels, perhaps because writing requires us to use other (less emotional) parts of the brain. But to be really effective writing needs to be more than just venting.

So get yourself to begin using this practical writing technique:

List write down, exactly and clearly, just what you are fearful of, making as full a list as possible

Split mark each item on the list in such a way as to show if it is soluble, or insoluble. For example, worries about situations that cannot be immediately changed, or concerns over the unchangeable past.

Steps copy all the soluble items into a single column on one side of a page and note down beside each item in the next column some practical steps that can be taken towards fixing that problem.

Resolve copy all the insoluble items into a single column on one side of another page. Beside each item describe how you would need to feel differently about these issues in order to resolve these worries psychologically. For example, I need to accept that the plane takes off and makes a lot of noise as the engines gather speed and this will always be so.

4) Chuck your worries away effectively

Writing down bad memories, enclosing the paper in an envelope, sealing the envelope and then burning it has been found to influence the memory. In the sense that recollection of the emotional details of an event becomes weaker after this metaphorical act.

I once had a client who told me she was worried about certain things she felt she couldn’t talk to me about. I asked her whether she could write them down so we could dispose of them properly. She did so. I then asked her to take the sealed envelope and put it into her log burner and burn it.

We then talked about those things she did feel able to discuss with me. In a later session, she confided that since doing that ritual she somehow felt much less concerned about those secret worries.

Ultimately, worry should be a tool or a signal that lets us know when something might need addressing. We don’t want to lose this tool completely, but no tool should ever be allowed to enslave its owner.

Introduction

Stress is a part of life, but it can have a negative impact on our health if left unchecked. While we often hear about the effects of stress on our hearts and immune systems, we don’t always consider the impact it has on our brains. Chronic stress can cause physical changes in the brain, affecting key areas involved in memory formation and emotional processing. In this article, we will explore how chronic stress affects the brain and what you can do about it.

The Impact of Chronic Stress on the Brain

Chronic stress can have a significant impact on the brain, particularly on two important regions – the hippocampus and the amygdala. The hippocampus is responsible for forming new memories, while the amygdala regulates emotions and pleasure. When under stress, there is an enhanced activity in the amygdala, which can result in emotional symptoms. This makes it difficult for the brain to transmit factual information, relying instead on emotional experiences.

Additionally, chronic stress can cause the production of cortisol, a stress hormone. The more stressed you are, the more cortisol you produce, which can have toxic effects on the body. Constant cortisol production can lead to increased levels of anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and burnout.

Symptoms of Chronic Stress

There are several symptoms of chronic stress that you should look out for. These include irritability, susceptibility to colds and illness, lack of sleep, loss of interest, emotional instability, and weight issues. You may also notice a decline in your ability to concentrate, become forgetful, and have difficulty forming new memories.

How to Manage Chronic Stress

If you are experiencing chronic stress, there are several effective ways to manage it. One approach is Solution Focused therapy, which helps you develop more helpful patterns of behaviour in response to stressful situations. This therapy focuses on your strengths and helps you identify solutions to problems, rather than dwelling on the issues themselves. It encourages you to visualise a positive future and take steps to make it a reality.

Other ways to manage chronic stress include regular exercise, meditation, deep breathing exercises, getting enough sleep, and practicing mindfulness. You should also prioritise self-care activities, such as taking a relaxing bath or reading a book, to help reduce your stress levels.

Conclusion

Chronic stress can have a significant impact on the brain, affecting memory formation and emotional processing. It can also lead to increased levels of anxiety, depression, PTSD, and burnout. However, there are several effective ways to manage chronic stress, including Solution Focused hypnotherapy, regular exercise, meditation, deep breathing exercises, getting enough sleep, and practicing mindfulness. By prioritising self-care activities and seeking professional help when needed, you can understand & reduce the impact of chronic stress on your brain and live a healthier, happier life.