Hypnosis for FEAR of WATER in Adults

Are you afraid of water?
To swim without having a foot?
Or more specifically to swim in the sea, or to put your head under water?

You’re not alone.
Therapeutic Hypnosis can be a very interesting tool to alleviate this fear that limits you.

Fear of Water or Aquaphobia:

Fear of water, or aquaphobia, affects more adults than we think.
In some countries, nearly half of adults say they fear drowning and dread deep water, even in a swimming pool!

For some people, it will be the feeling of having water in their nose or ears or putting their head under water that will trigger a near panic.
For others, who are also very good swimmers in the pool, it will be the fear of the sea and not seeing the bottom or imagining animals around them.

The Consequences of the Fear of Water

Aquaphobia is not just a “little fear”.
The most commonly cited effects of water fear are an increased heart rate, sweating and chills, but also a feeling of suffocation, nausea, dizziness, etc.
This fear can spoil the holidays, limit the practice of sports, prevent boat trips.
But also prevent learning how to swim and put the person at risk for the future.

Understanding the fear of water in adults

Fear of water can be linked to a traumatic event.
For example, if you have experienced an impressive fall into the water, a near drowning.
If that is the case, contact a psychologist who will be able to help you as best as possible and may, for example, use techniques such as CBT or EMDR.

But often, the fear of water is a “constructed” fear that becomes more and more important and disabling over time.
This is a well-known mechanism for the construction of many fears: our survival mechanisms amplify the threat to “protect” us, but the more we avoid water, the more it sends our brain confirmation that water is dangerous.

This maintains a vicious circle: fear → avoidance → relief → reinforcement of fear.
This can be initiated initially by a parent’s aversion to water, by family stories, and also by the impact of certain films. The movie “Jaws” is cited by many customers to explain their fear of swimming in the sea!

For some people, there is also the feeling of losing control of their body in the water, both by floating or, on the contrary, if they feel like they are sinking, when their head is underwater… They will then tense up even more, which accentuates their fear.

Sophie, 38 years old — from panic to serenity

“Just the sound of the water in the pool at friends’ houses triggered great stress, I was ashamed not to swim, I found excuses. And when my children played around, it turned into real panic…

In hypnosis, I worked mainly on relaxation and positive visualization, to be able to stay calm when my children were around a pool – especially since they know how to swim – and then to soak myself when I was on my feet, a great victory and finally pleasure!
I’m not really learning to swim yet, we’ll see…

Hypnosis for Fear of Water in Adults:

Hypnosis is a great tool to reduce the fear of water and better manage it.
The objective will not be for you to swim across the English Channel but to decide to learn to swim once and for all, to enjoy a swim in the summer or to dare to go for a boat ride…

In general, your hypnotherapist will combine different techniques:

• Deep relaxation techniques, creating a “safe place” and anchoring calm so that you can then use them on your own,
• Transformation of mental images related to water or difficult situations for you into something positive, such as a resource or a source of pleasure and not as a threat,
• Positive visualization techniques such as swimming, floating, or simply walking by a lake in complete serenity. Your brain thus “experiences” in advance a serene contact with the water, which accelerates desensitization.
•  Future projection and action plan: self-hypnosis exercises, graded real exposure, psycho-corporal support (breathing, cardiac coherence).

How many Hypnosis sessions for fear of water?
Between 2 and 4 sessions are often enough to significantly reduce symptoms.

Is the effect long-lasting?
Yes, as long as you maintain the anchors and the proximity to the water to avoid falling back into the vicious circle of avoidance.

The combination of Hypnosis with graduated exposure

Swimming pools or water sports centres often offer graduated exposure programmes for people who are afraid of water. But people with aquaphobia will find it difficult to sign up without some mental preparation to develop their motivation.

This is why hypnosis is ideal before and then in combination with these real-life exposure programs.
Preparing the person with the help of their imagination by installing a state of inner safety, developing positive images of water and boosting motivation will help them to enroll, and to follow the program to the end.

Do you want to free yourself from the fear of water?

Fear of water is not inevitable.
With a gentle, respectful and structured approach, therapeutic hypnosis can pave the way for you to a peaceful relationship with the liquid element.

Our team of hypnotherapists at Solutions Hypnosis, in Quebec, Ontario and by Video is here to support you.

Make an appointment now to create the life you want with hypnosis!

See you soon.

The Solutions Hypnosis team

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