Hypnotherapy works with your unconscious to find out where the root of your anxiety comes from. Typically it comes from misinformation gathered from a past experience. Hypnotherapy can help to identify this and use suggestion techniques to correct any misinformation.
As with most phobias, glossophobia is not something you can control consciously. People may tell you to relax, but usually this does little to control your symptoms. This is because the symptoms you experience stem from your unconscious.
Glossophobia or speech anxiety is the fear of public speaking. The word glossophobia comes from a Greek word meaning tongue and fear or dread. Public speaking is the process or act of performing a speech to a live audience. Public speaking is commonly understood as formal, face-to-face speaking of a single person to a group of listeners.
There are seven elements of public speaking: The speaker, the message, the channel, the listener, the feedback, the interference and the situation.
Suggestion and visualization techniques can also be used to instill positive thinking, boost confidence and reduce anxiety. This will help you feel calm and collected when you are required to speak in public.
The thought of getting up in front of a crowd of people and making a speech is enough to make most of us break out in a sweat. Having a fear of public speaking is common – and it’s becoming even more common.
Modern lifestyles mean we are less likely to find ourselves in public situations. Much of our free time is spent in the comfort of our own homes or on-line. At work, more people are utilizing email, on-line hangouts and conference calls, so there is rarely a need to speak in front of an audience. This all means that when public speaking situations do come up, understandably we can feel anxious.
For some people this anxiety develops into a phobia – known as glossophobia.
We will look at how hypnotherapy for public speaking anxiety and glossophobia can help you build confidence.
Glossophobia is the fear of public speaking
Glossophobia has its roots in social anxiety and social phobia. When we are speaking publicly, the audience will be paying attention to you and listening to what you have to say. Glossophobia comes from a fear of being judged, which can be triggered when lots of people are paying attention to you. This, combined with doubts over your ability to deliver can feel overwhelming.
Fear of public speaking can be reinforced when we make mistakes. Even if we only make one small mistake when speaking, our minds tend to focus in on this, justifying our fears.
Symptoms of glossophobia can include:
- avoiding situations where you may be required to speak in front of a group
- feelings of panic when asked to speak publicly
- nausea
- increased heart rate or palpitations
- shaking
- dry mouth.
Experiencing a little anxiety when asked to speak in public is to be expected. If your anxiety overwhelms you however and holds you back from what you want to do in life, you should consider seeking help.
It is important to note that a fear of public speaking isn’t limited to making speeches in front of a crowd. Those with glossophobia may withdraw from a number of social situations, such as asking for directions, attending job interviews and speaking to shop assistants. Therefore it is a phobia that can affect day-to-day life.
Fear and your mind
When we experience fear, our minds tend to work against us. We have an influx of automatic, negative thoughts that feed into our sense of self-doubt. Becoming more aware of these thoughts and speaking to yourself with kindness is a great first step to managing your fear of public speaking. Fear makes our minds behave differently, to a point where logic and reason is all but forgotten. It does this by distorting reality and fixating on the negative.
Reality distortion
Fear has a habit of distorting reality. You may think “If I forget my words, everyone will laugh at me and I’ll lose their respect.” In reality however, it is highly unlikely that this would happen. If you were to lose track of what you were saying, it is far more likely that everyone would simply wait for you to remember. And even if some people did judge you, this wouldn’t affect your life.
This fear and anxiety can cause us to lose our perspective, thinking our lives will be over if it doesn’t go perfectly. Try to challenge this way of thinking by asking yourself – “Will this situation matter in five, 10 or 20 years time?”.
Fixating on the negative
Another common behaviour of the mind when it feels fear is to focus on the negative. This can lead us to think back to times in our lives when public speaking hasn’t gone to plan. It can also cause us to fixate on the physical sensations that are frightening us, like an increased heart rate or tight chest.
Recognizing this is helpful as you can re-direct these fixations on to something more positive. In a hypnotherapy session your hypnotherapist can teach you relaxation and visualization techniques. Try to utilize these and imagine yourself doing well.
How hypnosis for public speaking works
Hypnosis is essentially a state of deep relaxation. When a hypnotherapist puts you into this state, your unconscious becomes more receptive. This means the hypnotherapist can communicate with this part of your mind to uncover root causes of behaviour and influence thinking patterns.
In some cases it may be easy to pinpoint the underlying cause of a phobia. You may be able to recall an event that triggered a fear response for the first time. For many people however, it is hard to identify what caused the phobia.
If you don’t know why you have a fear of public speaking, hypnotherapy can help. Once you are in a deeply relaxed state, your hypnotherapist can talk to your unconscious and help to uncover the situation or event that triggered your glossophobia. Much of the time, the event is seemingly insignificant, but over time it grows in our mind to become something we can no longer control.
Once the root cause is revealed, your hypnotherapist can use suggestive language to change the route of your thoughts. The aim here is to promote positive thinking and a sense of calm when faced with public speaking, instead of the previous flood of negativity.
To get over my fear of public speaking – These steps may help:
- Know your topic and smile.
- Get organized and share you story.
- Practice, and then practice some more.
- Know they are there to listen to you.
- Challenge and address specific worries.
- Visualize your success.
- Do some deep breathing.
- Focus on your material, not on your audience.
- Do not fear a moment of silence embrace it.
We will also teach you relaxation techniques and visualization exercises. These enable you to continue your progress away from the hypnotherapy sessions themselves. You can utilize them before you need to speak publicly to help you stay calm and confident.
