Treating Carcinophobia With Hypnotism
Carcinophobia, the fear of cancer, is one of the top ten most common phobias, and it’s easy to imagine why. Nobody wants to suffer from cancer or see someone else develop it. Even though it is normal to want to avoid getting ill, people with carcinophobia experience an extremely high amount of fear that sometimes takes over their lives. Beating carcinophobia used to take a long time, but with more knowledge of the condition and improved treatments, this has changed. Proven hypnosis therapy techniques can help people reclaim their happiness and well-being.
It is not difficult to imagine what can lead to carcinophobia. This fear is associated with a fear of death, illness, and loss of control. Many people feel traumatized by a family member’s experience with cancer. People who have lost a friend to cancer, or face the threat of the disease, live in fear of the moment when they develop the disease.
The uncontrollable anxiety created by carcinophobia can lead people to make rash life decisions. Many people constantly go to hospitals to confirm they aren’t ill, while others avoid the doctor altogether, in fear of being diagnosed with a disease. Phobia sufferers will become depressed if they develop the tiniest symptoms of poor health, such as a muscle ache, and worry that it’s cancer. People might go to great lengths to avoid becoming sick.
People experiencing a fear of cancer often believe they have much to fear. Carcinophobia a chronic feeling that can strike both genders. A person might worry, “Who will care for the family if I die?” or agonize over other important matters. The phobia can be unbearable for sufferers and their families.
Many people can “control” their phobias by simply avoiding the cause of their worry. Arachnophobia sufferers can often get along by keeping clear of spiders, and claustrophobia sufferers are careful to avoid small, enclosed areas such as elevators. Carcinophobia, however, is different. The fear is triggered by an individual’s innermost ideas and fears. It can be crippling for someone to experience a fear they just can’t escape. This puts many people with the phobia in a chronic state of panic.
There are a number of phobia treatments in use today. Common ones involve talk therapy and anti-anxiety drugs. Traditional counseling can produce lasting results, but it often takes a long time, up to several months for some. Prescription drugs work to lessen an individual’s nervousness, but it fails to eliminate the root causes of a phobia. Hypnosis is another choice that produces permanent results in less time than other treatments. It is a leading treatment because it’s a safe, non-invasive, and effective type of treatment.
Hypnosis therapy combines anxiety-relief techniques with fear treatment to rapidly cure a phobia. A good program will start with relaxation therapy to help alleviate the emotional distress caused by fear. Once a person feels calm and at ease, hypnotherapy and Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) techniques will guide the unconscious mind into following a new, phobia-free thought process.
Traditional hypnosis utilizes direct, post-hypnotic commands to cure a fear. This method is very effective when a person is open to it. The problem is, these conventional techniques are often futile because many people tend to question direct suggestions and will resist direct suggestions.
A serious phobia such as the fear of cancer requires a more advanced form of treatment such as Ericksonian hypnotherapy. This form of hypnosis works best for people who tend to be logical, and who are suffering from recurring fear and anxiety. It utilizes indirect suggestions embedded in stories, conversations, and metaphors to help them fight their anxieties.
NLP technology doesn’t rely on suggestion at all, so it can work for everyone. In simple terms, NLP provides techniques to train the unconscious mind to use the same exact thought patterns that are creating a symptom or problem, to extinguish it.
Because both hypnosis and NLP work at the unconscious level of the mind, clients report feeling much more in control and secure using these therapies.
With Traditional Hypnosis, programs generally must be specific to each phobia. One benefit of a well designed Ericksonian hypnosis and NLP program is that they are suitable for use on any phobia, or even multiple phobias. This is a great advantage to some cancer phobia sufferers who also struggle with other panic disorders, such as general germophobia or hypochondria.
The fear of cancer is a significant fear, but it can be tackled by appropriate hypnotherapy techniques. NLP techniques have become a leading fear remedy because of their ability to treat the root of all anxiety disorders and not just the signs and symptoms. Sophisticated Ericksonian hypnosis therapy and NLP techniques can help even the most serious phobia sufferers defeat their anxieties once and for all.
Alan B. Densky, CH is a certified hypnotherapist and NLP Practitioner in practice since 1978. You can find him at his social phobia treatment website where he offers panic attacks hypnosis CDs. Visit his hypnosis article index, or download a free MP3.
- Alan Densky
