Phobia: Amy

Amy S. (Public Speaking)
Austin, TX

I've had problems with shyness and fear of public speaking for the last thirty years. Whether it was a social or professional situation, I wasn't able to feel comfortable just being me. The issues were affecting my work because I regularly have to speak in public for my job. I have to be in a leadership role and take charge of projects. If I'm scared or anxious all the time, it makes things really hard. When I had to speak publicly, I would get really nervous about it and obsess over it for weeks. Every time I thought about it, I felt physically anxious and I always lost sleep. I knew there was a part of me that really wanted to do it, but a bigger part of me dreaded these experiences, so I was constantly fighting with myself. My heart rate would shoot up and I couldn't speak without my voice shaking; I was tied to the podium and couldn't move. My thoughts and physical reactions to these situations made me feel really out of control.

I tried reading self-help books, doing psychotherapy, yoga, meditation, talking to friends, basically anything that I could think of to take care of the problem. Some things helped, with cognitive behavioral therapy I reached a plateau, but moved away and left my therapist. When I tried to do things on my own I was limited subconsciously. When I read self-help books, it made sense to me, but it was still just a conversation with myself. My friends were biased and sometimes you just need an impartial outside source.

I heard about A New Day Hypnosis when I was doing a search on yahoo. I found out that I was a good candidate for hypnosis after going through the questionnaire, so I decided to schedule an appointment. I started noticing results right away. I was thinking about things in a different way and instead of obsessing, I told myself a more positive story. I feel more in control now and I'm not losing sleep over things anymore. I've had two or three big occasions presenting in front of other people and I didn't obsess over them. It was really cool being able to think about a future activity and feeling fine about it. I feel more relaxed and I can move around during a speech or presentation.

This process has been a lot easier than anything that I've tried before. It appeals to my logical side and somehow takes away the baggage. I don't have to fight with myself anymore. If I flub something during a speech, I'm okay with it. I feel more confident because I'm comfortable in my own skin. I find myself talking to people that I don't know and putting myself out there in a way that I never would have before.

The most important benefits that I've received are feeling more comfortable, more confidence, and just being okay with being me. I would recommend A New Day Hypnosis to anyone who wants to work on shyness and public speaking because it works. I'm confident that I'm free of my problem permanently and I've been telling all my friends about it. I feel leaps and bounds from where I was. It was hard to envision myself feeling comfortable giving a speech or being myself in a social situation, but because those things have happened for me now, I have a frame of reference for it. A few weeks ago, I had a meeting out of town and I was a different Amy, now I know what that feels like and it doesn't seem like a far stretch to do it again.

Phobia: Lauren

Lauren Snyder (Back Handspring)
Student
Bastrop, TX

I've had problems with fear of doing a back handspring for the last six months. I had a mental block and I felt like I just couldn't do it. I really needed to get this back handspring because I wanted to try out for cheerleading at school. If I did competitive cheerleading, I needed to get the back handspring out of the way. I wasn't sure if I would ever be able to do it and that made me feel stressed. I knew that if I couldn't overcome this it meant that I probably wouldn't make it onto the school team.

I told myself that I was going to do it right; I would start to run and decide that I wasn't going to do the back handspring, so I would end up falling on my back. I didn't know what was going on with me. I tried putting sticky notes around my house to remind me that I could do it, but it didn't work. My coach told me that I had to get over it and that made me frustrated. I couldn't get my brain to listen to me and I didn't have focus. I was afraid that I would never be good enough to make it in tumbling.

My mom read about A New Day Hypnosis on Citysearch. I had talked with her about going to a hypnotist and I just laughed at it. I thought I would be looking at a swinging watch and thought it would make me dizzy or something. I was so desperate to get over this that I was willing to try anything.

I noticed right away that I was feeling more confident. It's gotten a lot better and I've made a lot of progress. I feel more in control and I'm able to focus better. I'm not doing a sideways back handspring and that's a big relief for me. I feel more confident and a lot more positive about things. I'm like a motivational speaker in class because I tell everyone that they're going to do perfect back handsprings just like me.

The most important thing for me has been the ability to focus my mind. I would recommend A Ne Day Hypnosis to anyone who is a gymnast or cheerleader with this problem because it's really helped me a lot. I feel more confident, I've gotten rid of bad habits, and I sleep better at night. I'm fixing all my problems now and I'm excited because I tried out for cheerleading and made it onto the team! I know that I'll continue to be able to do the back handspring and make more progress to meet my goals.

Phobia: Charity

Charity Bentley (Heights)
Flower Shop Employee
Austin, TX

I've had problems with fear of heights for the last year. I was really afraid of falling and being in high places. I would drive different roads and not do certain things so that I didn't have to drive on overpasses and other elevated areas. I wouldn't go sight seeing if it had anything to do with heights. I couldn't even stand on the second level at a shopping mall. I felt out of control and it was embarrassing. I was self conscious because I couldn't do anything and I'd become very dependent on my fiancÈe to get around. I was freaking out about it a lot and it made my life more stressful and difficult.

Since I've moved to Austin I've noticed that there are a lot of bridges and I found myself taking longer to get places so that I wouldn't have to drive certain routes. I decided that I needed to take care of my problem before it got more out of control, so when I heard about A New Day Hypnosis on yahoo, I decided to make an appointment.

I started to notice that I had less anxiety getting on overpasses and didn't feel as nervous when I was driving with other people. I went on a trip to San Francisco and I'd been really scared because I knew that there were going to be a lot of high places, but it turned out that it wasn't as bad as I had imagined. We drove up some mountains and went over a couple of big bridges and I was able to handle it.

I do whatever I want now. I don't have to wait on my fiancèe or depend on him to take me different places, which gives me a stronger feeling of control. I feel more relaxed and more confident and really feel that I can do anything. I'm not held back anymore. I feel less anxiety and that has made the quality of my life a lot better.

I would recommend A New Day Hypnosis to anyone who has a fear of heights because it's all about your subconscious and the way that you think. I don't think a lot of people really understand what hypnosis is all about and how it works, but I'm confident that I've seen a lot of progress and that I'll continue to improve.

Phobia: TJ

TJ Diaz (Motorcycle Racing)
Entrepreneur
Austin, TX

I decided to use hypnosis to overcome my fear during motorcycle racing. I've always competed in motor cross, but I've had problems for the last few years. The fear had become so overwhelming that I wasn't having fun anymore and I wasn't motivated to get better. Biking had been my escape from corporate life and when I didn't have a vehicle to do it, things weren't working out for me. I was feeling more negative and less confident.

It had been my salvation on the weekends and I didn't have it anymore. I felt like I couldn't control some specific aspects of my life and that made me feel more stressed. I tried to meditate and do creative visualization to overcome my problem and they didn't really work for me. In my mind it worked out, but when I was in the moment I still choked.

I heard about A New Day Hypnosis on Citysearch. Laura had a lot of good reviews so I decided to call. I noticed a change after the first day; I immediately noticed that when I was performing sports I progressed much faster than I had in the last three years. It's been easy to have the confidence to commit to something and believe in it. I'm more focused now and I have a different way of looking at things, which makes me feel good.

I feel more committed and less fearful of making other changes in my life. I'm more in control because I'm accomplishing things incrementally and I'm moving forward. Making this change has allowed me to make decisions without over thinking them and taking more risks in my life.

The most important benefit that I've gotten has been relaxation, I've learned to quiet my mind and I'm noticing patterns in my life that I'm much more in tune with. I would recommend A New Day Hypnosis to anyone who has a limitation in their life. Everyone has some issue that they are trying to overcome and they may not know how to tap into the more cerebral aspect of how to accomplish things.

This process allows you to put on a different lens and look at things from the outside in. Hypnosis is one vehicle to allow you to get into that mindset so that you can actually move things further along the way. I'm confident about where I am and my progress. I've achieved a lot more than I thought that I would and I'm on another level now. I have a new foundation that I can stand on firmly and I plan on just going further and further from here.

Phobia: Shannon

Shannon (Public Speaking)
Actor/Writer
Austin, TX

My issues with confidence have been a lifelong challenge. I'm establishing myself as a working actor and wasn't able to pursue my goals. It felt humiliating and overwhelming and it had become painful to pursue challenges. I tried and tried, but it wasn't getting any better. I didn't feel like I had a handle on my emotions in these situations. That made me feel out of control and it was not fun.

I hadn't had any experience with hypnosis and I hadn't known anyone who had used it before, but I wanted to be proactive about overcoming this limitation. I was a little concerned about using hypnosis and wondered about the subconscious; worrying that something might happen while I was in an altered state.

I heard about A New Day Hypnosis on both Citysearch and yahoo.com. I decided to call because there was a lot of good information on the website and I had read a lot of positive feedback.

After my first session, I noticed results right away. It's been really great to be able to work on it and make progress. Now I have some skills to deal with my nervousness and I'm able to remind myself that I've felt confident before and that I can draw from that. I feel more in control now. I have a lot less fear when auditioning or meeting people in intimidating situations when I perceive the stakes to be high. I feel much more confident now and I just feel equipped to handle all sorts of different situations that might come up and have success with all of my goals.

The most important part of the process for me has been learning how to deal with these kinds of situations and being able to handle them. I'm confident that I'm free of my problem permanently because I've been in several situations that would have been a real problem in the past and I've been able to handle them with a calm demeanor and haven't lost control. I would recommend A New Day Hypnosis to anyone who wants to work on their confidence and overcome anxiety because I've found Laura to be intuitive and insightful and the process has been very helpful for me.

Phobia: Jackie

Jackie Mendez (Driving)
Inside Sales
Austin, TX

I've had problems with driving for the last twenty years. I was scared and didn't want to drive on the highway; I always had to have someone drive for me whenever I needed to go anyplace further away. I just avoided it and the fear got worse. Even talking about driving made me hyperventilate and feel like I couldn't control myself. I would find other ways to get places so that I didn't have to drive on the highway and everything took a lot longer. I wasn't able to go anywhere by myself. It was pretty bad because I couldn't run an errand or go when I wanted to. I had no independence and had to wait for other people to drive me. I had to ask coworkers to drive me places and I was embarrassed about it. One night, when my ride had had too many margaritas, I was forced to drive us home and had to go down the access road all the way from Georgetown and it took me three hours to get home.

I heard about A New Day Hypnosis on Citysearch. When I read that Laura had won the hypnotist of the year, I decided to call. I started noticing that I felt comfortable and less tense when someone else was driving and that I actually wanted to drive.

I feel more relaxed and in control now. When I think about driving, I'm not so scared. I drove last Friday and there was a lot of traffic, but I still felt comfortable. I was focused and relaxed and just ready to do it. If I started to feel nervous, I remembered what Laura and I talked about. I feel more confident now because I can do stuff whenever I want. The most important thing for me has been the relaxation about being able to drive on the highway. I would recommend A New Day hypnosis to anyone who wants to fix this problem and I'm confident that I will continue to make progress.

Phobia: Tara

Tara (Driving)
Grants Manager
Austin, TX

I've had problems with driving-related anxiety for the last twelve years. If I drove on the highway, I would have a panic attack about once a week. I avoided highways and took other routes. One out of every three times I got on the highway, I would panic. Austin is surrounded by highways and in order to get anywhere you have to hop on one. The anxiety was affecting my quality of life. I couldn't be spontaneous about going places with people in my car because I didn't want to jeopardize other people's lives with my driving because I was always fearful.

I once had an anxiety attack when I was driving with my husband on a foggy bridge over Lake Michigan in Wisconsin, it was horrible and we had to pull over. Up to that point, my husband hadn't realized how bad the problem was for me, when he saw how bad it could get, it shocked him and after that he was always fearful about me driving.

I would try the highway, but I would always have an escape route. I'd always know what exit was coming up so that if I had to pull over and get off at the exit I could do that. I would stay in the right lane if I needed to pull over on the shoulder. I never felt in control, the panic always had control of me; it had a grip on me no matter what I was doing. I was always anticipating the fear and the panic whether or not I was driving.

I've tried different things to stop my panic attacks: drinking water, having snacks, and preparing for my trip well in advance. I had supplies on hand. When I started to panic, I would pop a tic-tac or drink some water to help me breathe. It helped me get through it, but I would often have to pull over anyway until I could calm myself down.

I was looking online for hypnotherapy in Austin and I find out about A New Day Hypnosis on yahoo. I had been hypnotized before in a comedy setting, so I knew it would work. I really didn't want to go on medication and thought that this would be a good option for me. I noticed a change in my behavior after the first session. I wasn't planning my routes as much and I was much calmer and I didn't have a panic attack. My husband also commented that I wasn't carrying around water and tic tacs in the car.

I feel more in control now because I can drive anywhere. I've done overpasses and I've gone on the highway every day since I started this without any problems. I was always afraid to drive my husband's car because it was brand new and I didn't want to have a panic attack and wreck it, but now I'm able to drive it because I feel in control and his car is really fun for me to drive.

I feel more confident now because I don't balk at the fact that I might have people in my car when I'm driving on the highway. I can drive anywhere and I've proven to myself that I can change and I know now that I don't have to live with this anymore.

The most important benefit for me is that I don't have anxiety when I get into a vehicle. I overcame that fear and accomplished that goal in my life. I would recommend A New Day Hypnosis to anyone who has anxiety about driving because it works. As long as you believe in yourself and set your mind to it, you can change anything. I'm confident that I'm free of this problem permanently because after living with it for 12 years; I've gone a month without an incident and that tells it all for me because it really does work.

Phobia: Michael

Michael (Public Speaking)
New Business Developer
Austin, TX

I called A New Day Hypnosis because my career had started demanding more public speaking and presentations, responsibilities that had caused severe stress. Although I am a very outgoing and social person, when I was asked to speak in front of a group, whether for a meeting, or formal presentations, I would suffer both mentally and physically.

From the moment I found out I was to present I would put myself in an almost panic like state. I would not sleep, and had difficulty focusing. As I began to present, my heart would race and breathing became erratic. It would usually take me a few minutes to recover before my speech and actions became more normal.

I made a decision that I could not live my life with this fear anymore, let alone advance my career, and I went to see Laura. Quite simply she helped retrain my brain to look at these situations differently. I had, gradually over time, convinced myself that these were extremely stressful and uncomfortable situations. Without Laura's help I would never have been able to overcome this.

From my very first session I began sleeping through the night, something I had not been able to do in a very long time. Over time, by following the methods Laura had shown me, I no longer obsessed with upcoming presentations. I trained my brain to look at these situations from a much more positive point of view and what happened was amazing. I started to actually look forward to them as an opportunity to flourish and excel rather than to fail.

I would recommend hypnosis, and particularly A New Day Hypnosis, to anyone who allows phobias affect their everyday lives. There is no reason to let your fears limit the potential you have to succeed.

Phobia: Kristi

Kristi Curry (Public Speaking)
Self-Employed
Austin, TX

I've had problems with public speaking over the last ten years. I felt out of control. I was anxiety ridden and it stopped me from doing what I needed to do. I couldn't make eye contact with anybody and felt like there was something that separated me from the audience. I would start to freak out as much as a week before I had to do a speech. I was always avoiding and postponing speaking opportunities, it was hard. I just didn't really want to be doing it. I felt anxiety and it really didn't feel good to do it.

I started to do Toastmasters to overcome my stage fright and almost didn't make it in the door thinking that they might ask me to talk. The fear of public speaking didn't fit my persona because I'm seen by everyone as the rock that they can depend on. Career wise, the fear had become a stumbling block. My business depends that I have enthusiasm and express to other people what my business is about. I had to have the drive for doing what I do because that's what gets people interested. If I didn't have that, my business would not survive, so it was essential for me to overcome this problem.

I knew that I had to do something and I woke up one morning and thought to myself that hypnosis might work. I called A New Day Hypnosis and after my first session with Laura, I volunteered to speak at Toastmasters and won a ribbon for my talk. It was really strange for me to want to volunteer and be open to getting up in front of the group. During the speech, I felt more connected to the audience and noticed that I had more confidence. I felt like I was able to have a formulated idea about what I was going to say. This has been a great tool to keep me from getting spun up. The ability to relax has been a key piece because when I'm relaxed I can make progress. If I stay spun up I don't get anywhere and there's nothing to be confident about.

At this point, I will be speaking at a wine and cheese client appreciation night coming up. This is my first professional speech for my business and this is also the first time that I'm not saying to myself "how do I get out of it?" I know that my message needs to come across to people. I'm crafting that now and I'm actually excited to see how it goes. It doesn't bother me to think about getting up and talking and it's amazing to me that I'm not freaking out. Now I want to say these things and just think about the importance of the messages that I have to share.

I feel more confident and in control now. It has changed the overall cause and effect of everything that I'm about. I'm progressing in directions that I want to progress in and that's been huge because my livelihood depends on it. I would absolutely recommend A New Day Hypnosis and plan to give a speech about hypnosis at Toastmasters. I feel like I've achieved a real benefit from it. Hypnosis is this nebulous thing that nobody really understands it or knows what it is and I've had people tell me that it's scary to them because it's about someone controlling you. People have this image about hypnosis and until you do it, it's hard to understand what it's like. I look at hypnosis as a tool to help me do the things that I want to do. I'm confident about the changes that I've made because I don't have that feeling of avoidance anymore. I don't feel overwhelmed and I'm just ready to do what I need to do.

Phobia: Dana

Dana Turet (Public Speaking)
Psychology student
Austin, TX

I've had problems with public speaking pretty much my entire life. I've always been shy; my mom said that I used to hide behind her legs when people tried to talk to me. As I got older, it just became really difficult to function in school and in social situations where it's expected that you'll be able to stand up in front of people and speak confidently.

In college, it was required that I was able to perform at a certain level and act like an adult. I always thought of myself as a confident person, but whenever someone would ask me to stand up and speak, I didn't feel confident and didn't trust myself to just get up and talk. It affected my self-esteem and made me really question my ability.

When I tried to get in front of people, my hands would shake, my voice would shake, and I would get out of breath. Everybody always had advice on what to do, but I just couldn't fix it no matter what I tried.

I'd heard about hypnosis in one of my classes and was a little apprehensive about how it worked, but I knew that I needed help. When a friend recommended Laura's services I decided to find out what it was all about.

I noticed a change in my behavior after my first session. I had to give a speech the next day and I felt more confident and relaxed. I noticed that when I got up to give the speech, I didn't feel that paralyzing feeling. I felt more relaxed and in control.

What really clicked for me was the whole idea that you can't unlearn something, but that you can replace it with something new. I knew that I couldn't make my fear of public speaking disappear, but I could learn new behaviors and techniques to help me move in a different direction. The most important thing for me has been learning how to control aspects of myself that I couldn't before.

I would recommend Laura's services to anyone who wants to overcome their fears. People can save themselves a lot of stress, worry, and effort. I tried so many things that didn't work and if I'd known that it could be this easy, I could have saved myself a lot of time.

I'm confident that I've overcome my fear of public speaking and there's no way that I could go back. The things that I've learned have changed the way that I view the issue and approach the problem. I wouldn't want to go back to the way that I was because it wasn't working for me and now I feel happier and more in control of my life.