Question: How can you tell if you’re dealing with a straightforward fear of flying (or something else)?

The questioner continued: Once you’ve discovered that the actual fear is different than the client’s presenting problem, how would you treat it?

A response shared by other hypnotists and hypnotherapists working with fears and phobias was: First, consider exploration for the ‘real’ reason with a technique such as Parts Therapy, then use Cognitive Behavior Therapy techniques along with regression to resolve the issues. There is no such thing as a ‘straightforward fear of flying’, for every person has their own unique fear.

For example, Jerry Kein tells a story about a gentleman he worked with, who presented with a “fear of bridges.” After some regression work, it turned out the man had fallen off a roof when he was younger and then, later in life, had nearly fallen off of a water tower. So the man’s actual phobia was a fear of falling from high places, not a fear of bridges.

In any hypnosis or hypnotherapy session it is best to avoid thinking you are dealing with any standard problem that requires a standard technique. Better to approach each situation with a genuine interest in what may be unique about it, even if you’re familiar with a common label that would seem to fit that situation. Labels can be hypnotic blinders, preventing us from seeing what is fresh and new in the present moment.

Favoring the Phobia Cure

Even if you are going to use a standard technique to treat the fear, I suggest looking for a unique “hook” – in this case, the phobia cure.

Since I take a transpersonal approach, I often bypass regression technique in favor of investigating the context of a problem. I also inquire into any beliefs the client may have about the nature of consciousness. These beliefs are rarely challenged, but as one of my cases clearly demonstrates, it can mean the difference between an ineffective treatment and complete resolution of a crippling fear.

I had a client who presented with a fear of flying. he wasn’t really clicking with the phobia cure or regression (he had done both previously with another hypnotherapist).

I decided to question him about the exact nature of his fear. He wasn’t afraid of experiencing turbulence, a common cause of anxiety during airline flight. Instead, he said he was afraid of being trapped in a plane crash and experiencing horrible, inescapable pain. He believed that his consciousness was inextricably linked to his body.

I convinced him that when we are faced with unbearable pain or inevitable death we remember how to leave our bodies in order to avoid the unnecessary suffering. I shared anecdotal reports of people leaving their bodies — abuse victims & severely injured people in coma who had described watching their body from the ceiling.

My client readily accepted that the ability to have an out-of-body experience at will (to leave one’s body in the midst of a crisis, for example) was real and legitimate. Now that he believed he could leave his body rather than remain trapped in his worst-case scenario, he immediately lost his fear of flying.

May all beings be free of fear!