A Proven Cure For Aviophobia?

Psychologists believe Aviophobia or the fear of flying is curable. The rate of success can be high -- experts estimated that about 90 per cent of those who seek treatment, can actually wake up in the morning, take a flight and not feeling any fear at all.

The method they use is hypnotherapy. The problem is, you can't self- hypnotise. Somebody else must employ the process on you. An aviophobic reporter who had been to the hypnotherapist has written an article about it:

Sitting Out Of Fear

The fear of flying (aviophobia) is a bit irrational – you’re more likely to be killed by a donkey or a falling coconut – but it is thought to affect about 10 million UK residents to a degree.

With me, just a touch of turbulence reduces me to sobs and wide-eyed panic. And the six major air disasters this summer haven’t helped.

Dr Richard Bradley is a clinical hypnotherapist, who has been practising for 14 years. He runs clinics at Carlisle, Dumfries and Corbridge. Most of his patients are aged between their late-teens to early 20s, but he has successfully treated people as young as seven and as old as 87.

He estimates that more than 90 per cent of his patients are cured through hypnotherapy: “Some go away after a couple of sessions and never experience their problem again. Others leave with a far more positive mental attitude. However it affects you, it always helps.” [...]

Dr Bradley has treated the fear of flying hundreds of times and is confident he can help me. We begin with a preliminary chat which allows Dr Bradley to analyse me and to decide the best way to help me.

“There are two main methods of hypnosis,” said Dr Bradley. “I treat 20 per cent of my patients through classic hypnotism, where you simply tell the patient to stop doing what they are doing. For example, I would tell a smoker they are a non-smoker and when they wake up they will oblige.

“The remaining 80 per cent are treated using Erickson hypnotism, a more complex method in which I will tell a metaphorical story which is embedded with suggestions to help the patient. It’s a less obvious method which appeals to the subconscious mind".

Dr Bradley asks me to consider why I am afraid of flying. Is it a fear of small spaces or a fear of death? I tell him it is probably a bit of both. And the fact that I am a bit of a control freak. I certainly don’t like the lack of control when sitting in a plane. And probably not when I am under the control of a hypnotist, either. [...]

An hour later Dr Bradley tells me he will use the Erickson method with me. While I’m getting comfortable on the couch Dr Bradley dismisses a few of my stereotypical beliefs about hypnotism.

“Nothing strange is going to happen. I’m not going to knock you out and become a mad magician. There are a lot of misconceptions about hypnotism. Television and entertainment would have you believe that we are in control and you won’t remember anything, but hypnotherapy is actually more about encouraging you to take control.”

My next 35 minutes are spent under hypnosis. Dr Bradley’s soothing voice lulls me into a semi-sleep and he talks me through the process, telling me I’ll feel light and relaxed or heavy and numbed, but relaxed. I feel the latter. It is a case of lying on the couch, listening to his words and using my imagination.

It is a pleasant experience that instilled a calmness in me. But has it helped me tackle my fear? As yet, I can’t be sure. My next flight is at Christmas.

The calmness I felt during the session remains and I am taking a far more positive outlook when reading about the horrors of a plane crash. [Source: News & Star, UK. Oct 19, 2005]

The rest of the article, here!