Having respect for water is a healthy thing for humans. After all, we don’t have gills to extract oxygen from water. But an extreme fear of water can prevent you from learning to swim or from becoming a good swimmer even if you learn how to take a few strokes or swim on your back. Good swimmers can develop a fear of water later on in life. Unreasonable fear of water or aquaphobia can keep you from enjoyable activities such as boating, going on a cruise or even driving across a bridge. The good news is that you can overcome a fear of water with hypnosis.
Overcome the Fear of Water with Hypnosis
You can overcome a fear of water with hypnosis because hypnosis can approach the problem from two directions. First, it helps the person examine the fear and discover the cause of it. A bad experience with water, such as being trapped during a flood or simply falling into a swimming pool unexpectedly could trigger the fear. When you know why you are afraid, it is easier to face the fear. Second, hypnosis can help you learn to relax. Relaxation is key to being able to swim.
Swimming Could Save Your Life
A small college in the midwestern United States required its students to learn to swim because the college was near a famous recreational lake. The reason for the requirement was to improve student safety when participating in the many local recreation opportunities. They reasoned that a student who could swim would have a higher survival rate if he or she fell out of a boat than one who could not. But many people who are afraid of water are too afraid to even approach the pool, let alone get in it.
Relaxation and Trust are Key to Overcoming Fear
Learning to swim eventually means getting into the water. Driving across bridges means relaxing tense muscles and stilling your mind so that you can focus. For someone who is truly frightened, telling them things like, “It is going to be ok,” or “You are fine, just put that car in gear and go across the bridge,” are unlikely to help. Getting past the fear often begins in a quiet room where you can discover the cause of the fear, then, in complete safety, visualize yourself being able to engage in the activities that are so frightening to you. Once you are able to imagine yourself doing it, then you might be able to take the next baby step. That might be entering a wading pool, or it could be driving across a very short, solid bridge, or even just standing near a lake, river or ocean and being able to look at it calmly.
Help from Hypnosis
You can overcome your fear of water with hypnosis because it helps you to do some important things. It allows you to examine your fear from a safe place with a protective person. You and your therapist can seek the root cause of your fear. And you can learn how to relax and get past your fears. There are many activities that include water. By overcoming your fear, you can improve your quality of life.