In a new study it was found that cognitive therapy has worked for 85% of people with social anxiety (1) and is better than medication on its own or a combined mixture of medication and therapy.
100 people took part in the study for over a year and Professor Hans M. Nordahl, who led the study, said:
“We’ve set a new world record in effectively treating social anxiety disorders.
This is one of the best studies on social anxiety disorders ever.
It’s taken ten years to carry out and has been challenging both academically and in terms of logistics, but the result is really encouraging.”
Social anxiety is much more than feeling shy in social situations, it is an overwhelming fear that consumes the individual, affecting their self confidence and causes worry and distress before, during and after a social event. Even talking on the phone, meeting strangers, shopping or working and doing something in front of others can trigger anxiety due to the fear of being judged or watched by others. As adults we are more aware of how we act in front of others and what they think of us and we become more aware of what is deemed to be ‘acceptable behaviour’ which leads to feeling anxious and self conscious, and can even stop some from wanting to socialise or do anything outside of their comfort zone.
It is extremely common for medications to be prescribed to deal with social anxiety.
Professor Nordahl continues :
“Patients often rely more on the medication and don’t place as much importance on therapy.
They think it’s the drugs that will make them healthier, and they become dependent on something external rather than learning to regulate themselves.
So the medication camouflages a very important patient discovery: that by learning effective techniques, they have the ability to handle their anxiety themselves.”
“Cognitive therapy was easily the best treatment”.
I am delighted about the results of this study as they support my findings discovered during my work with my clients. I am passionate about what I do and how I can help a huge range of different problems using Hypnotherapy and NLP Life Coaching, which help me get to the root cause of the issue, and install new, positive beliefs that allow you to see things in a more positive stress-free way.
Hypnotherapy is a powerful tool I use along with NLP (Neurolinguistic Programming) and (Time Line Therapy) to release any hidden ‘demons’ that have been buried deep in the unconscious mind that cause this self-consciousness and anxiety. It allows me to replace them with new positive beliefs, thoughts and values allowing you to move on with your life in a more positive, confident and relaxed way.
Most other therapists use just one tool such as NLP or hypnotherapy but I find using Time Line Therapy together with NLP and hypnotherapy is highly effective and can’t imagine not having all 3 powerful tools at my disposal to help change my clients for life.
As the research has highlighted, medication just masks the problem, whereas working with the client and their mind means the root of the problem can be removed and new pathways installed along with learning new tools to allow clients feel comfortable socially and have an array of tools at their disposal if required. Therefore talking therapies are life changing if you are taking medication or not.
Please contact me for a chat if you'd like to make a change and feel happy and free of anxiety again. Because you can with a little work. And it's worth it!
Nicky - 01252 706995
http://www.mind-bodywellness.co.uk/anxiety.html
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