So…I have suffered from anxiety all my life. I didn’t realize that’s what it was until I got sober, but I have been plagued with phobias and panic off an on for as long as I can remember.
In my final drinking days it almost took me down. I was wound up so tight I couldn’t breathe. Any self medicating I was doing with alcohol had stopped working. But I was trapped in the compulsion of alcohol abuse. It was horrible.
Since I got sober I have made many efforts to deal with my chronic anxiety. I take medication. I meditate and practice yoga daily. I fully embrace the yogic path. I follow my gluten free diet as I am celiac. I try to balance stress, obligations and fun. I love my life. I am happy.
But still that heavy ball sat in my abdomen. Its grip was not quite as tight as before, but it was always there, waiting to grow during times of stress, but also if I didn’t eat enough, if I was flustered, if I was embarrassed.
So- I found a dr who uses hypnotherapy to deal with reducing the underlying cause of the anxiety. She take you back to when you first experience anxiety, and attempts to release the underlying beliefs held in the subconscious.
I wasn’t sure how much I believed in this, but I was willing to try.
Using a calm and comfortable relaxation we moved back through my life. Odd memeories of times I felt blamed and full of anxiety. All the way back to being a baby and being Scared to cry for fear of upsetting anyone….
And beyond. To two ancient lives, during which I was trying to help others, trying to change this, and failing.
This intense sense of failure felt like my anxiety. And with her guidance I was able to let it go…to leave it with the past where it belonged. To stop feeling like I had failed. That everything bad that happens is my fault.
It sounds odd. I know. It was unexpected. She did not suggest anything…it just came. And since that day I feel lighter. I feel freer. The ball in my chest is no longer black and sticky.
Whatever happened, it has brought me a sense of peace I have never known.
I go again on Thursday. It is a Two session therapy. I’m excited!
Ps- when I came to yoga it was like coming home. It was familiar. I know it all in my heart.
one of the lives I found was in India. Or I think it was. It all makes sense.
Stillness and peace
Anne
ainsobriety 
Wow!! How absolutely spectacular. I know two women, in Toronto, who are hypnotherapists. I’m going to share your post with them, they’d be thrilled to hear about your breakthrough.
It was hard to even explain. My husband thinks I’m crazy. But it was very profound.
I’m sure it was profound and good for you for being willing to try and for having an open mind. My attitude has always been, it doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks.
This is very interesting to me, Anne. I’ve always considered myself a heavy-duty empiricist/scientist type. Not woo woo. And then last fall my aunt showed me a book called Journey of Souls, which is about inquiries a therapist/hypnotist did into people’s lives between lives (which he stumbled upon accidentally). It completely blew my mind. Its descriptions and the worldview (cosmos-view) it expresses made everything make sense to me, even things I wasn’t aware of not making sense. I’m now a bit interested in hypotherapy myself but haven’t looked into it…..
And, that’s pretty damn awesome how it’s loosened your anxiety!! So many paths to freedom.
I’m an engineer. I like logic. I never ever expected this to happen like it did.
It was so vivid.
And more, so relieving.
i love this!
I have a friend who went to an energy healer, sounds like this….i’m getting the number.
I love, for me, how when I saw the “woo-woo” in your title I got all excited! So much change and willingness to change and grow since sobriety and yoga and meditation…i am so grateful, for you and for me!
Good for you for taking that brave step. It sounds amazing!
Wonderful! I’ve done something like this a couple of times-regression therapy-and found it both tremendously insightful and freeing! It actually explained why I am so connected to the Yucatan! Can’t wait to hear about the next session!
How very cool!
Lovely post. I suffer from anxiety too. And frustration which I know isn’t good! I have heard about regression therapy before. It sounds very interesting. My friend from AA had a spiritual experience involving a Hindu God who spoke to her (she wasn’t previously religious!) that began her sober journey. Wonder if I will ever get that!! Xxx
Fantastic Anne!! I’m so happy for you. I still get mild anxiety now and again, but no where near as bad as when I was drinking. I find your experience very interesting, can’t wait to hear about your next session!! Noddy x
If you can shed the anxiety, then anything is worth it ! I’m so pleased that this has helped you – thank you for sharing. Lily 🌷x
Interesting. Fascinating. I don’t believe in hypnotherapy but stories like yours force me to keep my mind open for possibilities.
I’m so wonderfully happy for your discovery of relief from your distress and from the burdens you have been carrying with you for so long. Whatever happened, and however it came to be, that you experienced a sense of relief and a deeper connection with your core self is a wonderful thing. I’m not really a believer in hypnotherapy, but I do know that a) I don’t know everything, and b) there are mysteries in this universe far beyond the ability of human minds to comprehend. I’ve been working with a cognitive behavioral therapist and a therapist who specializes in humanism, and through their guidance and my own reading and “homework,” I’ve been able to unravel some “core beliefs” that go all the way down to the very fiber of my being and originated in my earliest memories as a very young child. It sounds sort of similar to what you discovered during your session.
Wishing you healing and joy, my friend.
This sounds very cool! I have always been skeptical of ideas like this and feel like it would never work for me. I also embrace yoga and meditation. I wonder if this is another path I should explore.
This is a beautiful story and I’m glad you have found some peace from this. There are things unknown to us and you have taken a step into that world with an open mind.
Hi Anne!
I am so glad it helped you! I have never done professional hypnotherapy, but I would give it a try, too!
I suffered from horrible anxiety for years, and it made life SO hard.
xo
Wendy
I can only say do.
Even a little relief is worth the time!
Hi Anne,
I too have had hypnotherapy and feel as though it worked in some ways for me. I didn’t journey as you did (though I find that fascinating!) but dealt with some emotional blocks.
Great to hear your story, x
Claire
I need some more woo woo in my life (that looks silly typed out, but whatever). Great post, and you’ve got a lot of people thinking and feeling, which is even better.
Also, I heard you on the Bubble Hour. Great interview (it was neat to hear the voice of someone whose blog I’ve read for over a year). I hope things are better and that you get to go home soon.
Wow, that’s incredible! Greet that it has worked too. I have anxiety, in hindsight it’s always been there, but it never got bad to panic attack stage until 2014, after a series of events. I couldn’t breathe the whole year. Now it’s gone again but occasionally flares up. I really feel for anyone suffering anxiety it’s awful. Hope your session on Thursday goes well. PDTGx
Anything that helps with anxiety is a good thing. I have tried medication, reflexology, A sota bio tuner, numerous supplements all to no avail. The biggest help for me has been mindfulness. It isn’t a total cure but it makes it more balanced. I am happy for you 💖💖
Mindfullness has been a big part of my life too.
It is very powerful.
I admire your courage to follow the path that you are called to in healing. Things like hypnotherapy scare me I guess because it’s foreign to me…(one way I deal with my anxiety, really, is to analyze and categorize things in my mind and it’s hard to analyze things you don’t understand so I’ve always avoided the “woo woo” side of life). I am happy for you to have found peace. And I thank you for inspiring me, and others too I bet, to quietly look within and listen to our own hearts.
Jenn
Thank you for writing about this. I’m so happy it was a good experience and look forward to hearing more!
I think new experiences are the best way to figure out who we are and where we want to be. I have never tried it, but have thought about it. Your personal experience has me intrigued to give it a try. Thank you for sharing.
Wow, wow WOW!!!! Just reading this, and realizing it is THURSDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Good luck today and post soon, I can’t wait to read it!!!!!!!!!!
It was last Thursday! I still have to write about it, as it was also amazing, but I got caught up in this whole moderation thing.
Everywhere I looked it seemed people were planning to drink…
I will write part two tomorrow as I don’t work.
My entire being feels as though something has been released. My anxiety truly feels manageable. I am so happy I embrace willingness to try as a lifestyle.
Hypnotherapy CAN help you achieve peace and calmness!