The Birth, Life, and Death of Anxieties, Phobias, and PTSD (1 August 2009)

Have you noticed that other people have some very strange fears? Your own fears, of course (and mine), are perfectly rational and logical. Or are they? Anxieties (a sense of nervousness about something), phobias (extreme or irrational fear of something), and Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (ongoing fear based on an experience) are a cluster of related behavioral responses. For many (perhaps most) people dogs (at least most of them) are friendly, companion animals. Dogs, even friendly ones, may, however produce anxiety in some people, resulting in uneasy feelings when dogs are present. Those with dog phobias, on the other hand, have such a strong fear of dogs that they may have a fear response when they hear the word, “dog,” or see a picture of a dog in a magazine. They might even be unable to watch a movie that had dogs in it. Those who have dog-induced PTSD will have had one or more previous encounters with dogs that convinced them that dogs are very, very dangerous.

Anxieties, phobias, and PTSDs are conditioned responses. In NLP terms, they are the result of an anchor having been set for the fear response. In some cases, the anchor is essentially cultural. The common fear of snakes and spiders, for example, is passed from generation to generation. Although some snakes and spiders are poisonous and can be dangerous, most are not, and most will avoid humans when possible (perhaps because they have phobias or PTSD of humans).

If you are not a snake and spider expert, it is normal to be cautious in the presence of snakes and spiders. If the snake or spider surprises you with its presence, it would be normal to experience at least a little anxiety. Caution and perhaps a little anxiety are useful when the stimulus actually poses some risk. It’s useful, for example, to be cautious with snakes, spiders, and heights and other things that might pose a risk. Caution—and a little anxiety—help ensure that you will keep yourself safe.

On the other hand, if you run screaming from the room before you know whether a snake is poisonous, you are probably phobic or perhaps even experiencing PTSD. The principal difference between a phobia and PTSD is that the phobias are typical formed quickly, whereas PTSD often results from prolonged exposure to a highly stressful environment. The main thing to note is that—whatever your response to snakes, spiders, bees, elevators, or loud noises—it is a learned response. You already know what can be learned, can be unlearned with something new being learned in its place.

Even in the case of PTSD caused by long-term exposure to severe stress, such as combat, what had been learned can be forgotten in a way that allows the feelings to change. The memory of the incident or incidents will, of course, remain, but the emotional response will be replaced by a calmer sense of understanding. One of the best things about learning a new response, is that it does not—absolutely not—require medication or hours and hours (or perhaps months or years) of psychotherapy.

It is a matter of learning something new, and you already know from everything you’ve learned so far, that learning can be both quick and easy. When you are presented with a new stimulus, your brain creates a neurological pattern—synapses fire in a particular order and, depending on the kind of stimulus, specific chemicals are produced. If it is a strong stimulus, your brain will remember and fire the same synapses and produce the same chemicals (perhaps even more of them) the next time you encounter the stimulus. Learning has occurred when you automatically engage that neurological pattern in the presence of the stimulus.

If you are among those who has an unwanted anxiety or phobia or feelings of PTSD, you’ll be glad to know that a variety of NLP techniques have been developed to help you eliminate your fears and learn new and appropriate responses quickly and easily—without prescription meds (or other drugs) and without months of therapy. It is just a matter of learning something in a new way.

For more about using NLP techniques to eliminate unwarranted anxieties, phobias, and PTSD, see Healing with Language: Your Key to Mind-Body Communication. See the SCS home page (www.scs-matters.com) for information about ordering.

joel@scs-matters.com
www.scs-matters.com