When I talk about anxiety with my clients, which is usually at the point when the emotions and thoughts have become unhelpful and unneeded, it is very common to see that ongoing worries are linked to one primary root cause: control.

It is normal to want to have control over many aspects of our lives, it helps us to feel safe and secure. Problems can arise when we want to retain that sense of control over events that are outside the reaches of possibility, especially the future. How can we control what doesn't exist? The simple answer is that we can't. Yes, we can prepare when it is helpful and appropriate to do so, but when these preparations enter the realms of our imaginations, where we create unlimited potential scenarios in our mind, to try and effectively prepare for them, we are heading into a form of control that causes anxiety.

Take the example of a person who has their daily commute to work. It's a pretty mundane activity that has the potential to transform into a source of fear and anxiety. What about the traffic on the motorway? What if the the train is cancelled? What will I say to my boss if I turn up late to the office? Will my team think I am unreliable? Will I lose my job? Can you see how quickly this example has escalated from a normal part of everyday life into a catastrophe of epic proportions? Can you also see that these imagined options and scenarios were for the cause to bring control over the situation and to keep that sense of safety and security that we so instinctively need as humans.

I say this quite a lot, but it is also very important to understand that when we are day-dreaming of these future events in our minds, we are using our imaginations. Logically, we know it's not real, but our subconscious mind cannot differentiate between real and imagined threats. This is why this thought process can lead to feelings of anxiety, stress and fear, which we seemingly cannot turn off however much we consciously try.

So what's the solution for this? For me, it is about training to achieve a sense of ease in accepting these events as they unfold; releasing control over the imagined future; and being mindful to those protective thoughts as and when they arise. Sounds simple right? It certainly does, but the practice and repetition to train this new way of thinking can take time, especially if we are looking at a habit of a lifetime. That's where hypnotherapy comes in.

I use hypnosis to tap into the subconscious mind, unraveling the knots of anxiety and fear that may be deeply rooted. By accessing the subconscious, hypnotherapy looks to reframe those thought patterns, to help you in this journey to change your reaction to future events. It's so important to remember that it is how we react to the events that unfold in our lives that helps us to manage any unhelpful emotions, not the events themselves, especially when they are out of our control. Hypnosis helps to train my clients to change the patterns and habits to bring control over the emotions, not control over their lives.