Uncommon Phobias & Hypnodesensitisation

61% of surveyed people in the UK admitted to having an uncommon phobia.

Some phobias are so common and prevalent worldwide that it is believed they have evolutionary origins. A fear of heights for example may have protected our ancestors from falling. A fear of spiders or snakes alternatively would reduce the likelihood of our

cave-dwelling relatives from being fatally poisoned. These fears may have been passed on genetically to our modern-day generations.

But other phobias are harder to explain. Irrational fears may develop from unpleasant experiences, learned behaviours from caregivers, or seemingly spontaneously. Below are some examples of less common phobias:

Lachanophobia: Fear of Vegetables

Podophobia: Fear of Feet

Globophobia: Fear of Balloons

Somniphobia: Fear of Falling Asleep

Xanthophobia: Fear of the Colour Yellow

Koumpounophobia: Fear of Buttons

Eisoptrophobia: Fear of Mirrors

Athazagoraphobia: Fear of Forgetting

Pogonophobia: Fear of Beards

Thankfully, the hypnotherapeutic approach to phobia treatment is not affected by phobia rarity. Hypnodesensitisation therapy gradually exposes patients to virtual

(hypnotic) experiences of their phobia object/situation, decreasing their fear response whilst enhancing feelings of confidence and control. Whether it’s flying on a plane, or holding a scary vegetable, Hypnodesensitisation can gently and safely liberate a patient from all fearful associations with their phobia.

Typically, a patient will first interact with very mild aspects of their phobia under hypnosis, such as seeing a phobic object from across a large room. Whilst delivering

suggestions of calm and control, the hypnotherapist will desensitise the patient to increasingly challenging phobia experiences, until the patient is perfectly content to face their "worst case scenario" in trance. These experiences teach the brain that it can cope with the phobia object/situation in the real world, and the phobia typically evaporates.

Remarkably, Hypnodesensitisation can even be used to treat Hypnophobia: The fear of being hypnotised!

If you have a phobia that is limiting your life, contact the practice here to discuss how Hypnodesensitisation can help you.