Fear of the dentist, fear of dogs, fear of flying, all these things and many more can bring around feelings of stress. It is these common situations that we as hypnotherapist's will often encounter and can safely deal with as it is obviously likely that the person will be aware of the cause, or trigger, of the stress and we can tailor our course of treatment accordingly. This however is not always the case, where we are unable to pinpoint the cause of stress it can leave us feeling out of control because we are unsure what we are trying to control. There are different categories or levels of stress and as therapists it is important that we learn to notice these different types as some of the more severe stress problems require referral to GP’s or specialists in the particular field. These more severe problems tend to fall into one of the following
Anxiety can be apprehension or fear, which causes stress. Phobias and habits are generally held to protect us from stress and anxiety. Each condition, if left untreated can become a symptom of the others. Anxiety can lead to phobia: phobia can induce stress: stress can create habits designed to relieve anxiety and so on. Stress involves external and internal stressors.
Although we are all individual, stress, anxiety, phobias and habits are influenced by the environment and genetics. How we are raised and where we live will play a large part in how we deal with the above, especially when it might involve losing our sense of reason. Stress ‘Stress occurs when an individual perceives that the demands of an external situation are beyond their perceived ability to cope with’ (Lazurus). Stress is there in our everyday lives and people are regularly exposed to it. Certain types of stress can be good for you such as the stress caused by a romantic encounter or the anticipation of a reward (Hadley and Staudacher 1996).
This is what triggers hives or a stress rash. Relaxation is supposed to help with the hives. Once relaxed your immune system gets a chance to fight off whatever it causing the hives to occur. “Your body's natural reaction to stress, the "fight or flight" response, may be responsible for stress induced hives, a stress rash, or another stress related illness. When a person experiences stress for a prolonged period of time, their immune system may not be able to defend the body from illness and disease, and sometimes this weakness shows up as an imbalance in the form of hives or a rash.”(Easy Stress Management.
Discuss the relationship between stress, anxiety, habits and phobias and Describe How You Would Treat these Issues with Hypnotherapy First of all let’s look at what stress, anxiety, habits and phobias are. Stress and anxiety are often thrown together to mean the same thing, almost into one phrase. However there is a distinction between the two but it is quite important to be able to let the difference. Stress is a response to an external stimulant, resulting in feelings of frustration, anger and apprehensiveness. Stress is however a reaction to outside pressures.
We can also utilise these responses to help us perform at a higher level. Some people find it difficult to perform at their optimum level unless they are under a certain amount of pressure. This pressure although self induced creates stress and anxiety though hopefully only enough to achieve the required results. Anxiety and stress become a problem when they start to be detrimental to a person. That is to say when they impede a person’s progress and /or start to dictate the things we choose to do, or in some cases they can get to such an elevated level that they cause health issues.
Intrusive memories can include flashbacks, or reliving the traumatic event for minutes or even days at a time as well as upsetting dreams about the traumatic event. Symptoms of avoidance and emotional numbing involve trying to avoid thinking or talking about the traumatic event, feeling emotionally numb, avoiding activities you once enjoyed, hopelessness about the future, memory problems, trouble concentrating, and difficulty maintaining close relationships. Often, a person with PTSD will change their entire outlook on life after a traumatic event. The symptoms of their PTSD will cause them to reevaluate their life, and often cause them to make irrational decisions based on fear of such an event occurring
We all experience varying degrees of stress in our lives and stress can be good for us. In this assignment I will be looking more closely at stress and other conditions called anxiety, habits and phobias and look at how they relate to each other. I will also look at how these conditions can be helped or treated through hypnosis. Stress As mentioned previously, life is challenging, it is fast passed, circumstances can change rapidly, and easy access to information can increase expectations on our performance or leave us with so much information it can be easy to feel overwhelmed and confused and even leave us feeling unsure that we are making the right choices. The above and other similar circumstances may sound familiar to all of us and being exposed to these and other kinds of pressures can result in an individual feeling stressed.
There have been many previous research studies that have independently discovered individual differences also affect how people cope with stress. Two people encounter the same situation can react in opposite ways to a situation. Problem Statement Stress is uncomfortable to those who experience it, and so is it frequency of experiencing the many negative effects which come from elevated levels or prolonged exposure to stress. The factors that affect stress within a healthcare professional need to be addressed. Factors that affect stress can be addressed through training and counseling
The person may suffer with responses that are un appropriate in certain situations as well as the usual signs (rapid heartbeat, sweating and nervousness. Anxiety disorders include post-traumatic stress, obsessive compulsive disorder and phobias. Psychotic disorders - involve distorted awareness and thinking. People experience images and sounds that are not real. The ill people believe they are true despite being shown evidence.