This is a recent case study into the process and the effects of Serenity NLPs dynamic and truly life-changing Anxiety HIT Programme. This shows each session and breaks down how it works and shows the results. I Hope you enjoy reading as much as we enjoyed doing.
“I wanted the old, happy KW back, the one I have all the fond memories of; the one I seem to have lost along the way.”
KW is a middle-aged male who runs a successful catering business in South West Scotland. He has suffered for years with the stress and strain of life and the crippling anxiety it brought. This lead to severe social anxiety and general anxiety in his day to day life. KW decided to try a different route, having tried most conventional methods and therapies to deal with his anxiety. Here KW gives his views and opinions on the treatment and shares the progress he made using the methods I have shown you in this book.
KW: Initially, I was apprehensive. You see all these TV shows with hypnotists on them, but Kevin was completely different. I felt relaxed and at ease almost instantly and kind of knew straight away this was a good fit for me. The first step is like diving off a 10-metre board at the pool. You have to trust the person guiding you that it’s safe and the right option. Once you have made the initial leap by contacting them and having the first meeting, well, I honestly didn’t give it a second thought.
I have suffered from stress and anxiety for around three years, with it increasing and getting worse as each day passed. As soon as I woke I was filled with dread and fear. That heavy unsettling feeling would be most prominent in the morning. Every time I had a thought or an idea that made it worse. It limited me in so many other areas and the biggest part was my motivation and determination to succeed. I tried all the self-talk and self-motivation posts on social media. I understood them but just didn’t have it in me at the time to follow them or act on them. I started to stay indoors a lot more, and eventfully distanced myself more than I should have at the time.
It kind of isolated me and it was a very lonely time, to be honest. It feels like you are the only one suffering and no one else understands. Tough love makes it worse and people saying things like: “It’s all in your head” or “You’re imagining it” or “Come on, just get up and get on with it” didn’t help. At times it made it all the worse, because I couldn’t be like them and just get up and get on with it. It affected my relationships with my friends and family. Even work was starting to suffer because I wouldn’t put myself out there for fear of being shot down, told I wasn’t good enough or even judged on my appearance. Everything I thought about just seemed to spiral. I could look at a small problem and see it as immense.
I went to my GP, but felt that all he wanted was to treat the symptoms and not the source. He put me on anti-anxiety medication. Looking back, the medication didn’t fix the problem. It masked the problem. I was aware that the second I wanted to stop the medication, the problems would re-appear. I have never been one to be dependent on any form of medication, and I didn’t like the lack of control over my choices, thoughts and feelings which it provided.
Having heard about NLP in the past I decided to look it up and read a bit more. It made perfect sense, so I arranged a session with Kevin and it went from there.
REMARKS: When KW first walked into my office, he appeared extremely nervous and shy about his position and situation. During the first half of the session, it became apparent that KW was a warm and caring person. He was displaying severe social anxiety and, in certain circumstances, general anxiety, especially when alone with his thoughts at night. He had gotten himself into a typical anxious behavioural pattern. He had a self-destructive internal dialogue which wouldn’t allow any positive thoughts, feelings or emotions to be shown to himself by himself.
KW has a fear of speaking with customers and potential new clients for his business. This was hampering the company progress and limiting it to only small-scale events with clients he already knew; or family and friends at weekends. He was turning something he enjoyed and had a passion for into an emotional trigger for the anxiety. KW was isolating himself from people and situations which would enhance not only his personal life but his business life, also.
Session 1: The first thing I did with KW was to teach him blockers for his panic and anxiety when the attacks came. We spent the second half of the first session teaching and practising ‘calm anchoring’ and ‘stop not today’ designed to stop dead any anxiety Attacks.
KW:After the very first session, I left the room on a high. For the first time, I knew I could limit the damage and the control anxiety had over me. Tapping was relentless for the first few days for me, and having got my calm anchor during the first session, it was already in place. All I had to do was press the button. I would switch between methods depending on where I was, or what I was doing. I preferred tapping in the comfort of my own home and not in public or in company, but I could press my anchor no matter where or when. It would level me and take me to the place I felt calmest in my life.
It was almost like a reset button all of its very own.
Eventually it just became less and less, as the anxiety seemed to actually listen to these two methods. After a few days it disappeared as soon as I started the blockers. It was as if it knew I was fighting back and it couldn’t be bothered to make the effort.
Session 2:When KW returned for his second session, he appeared much calmer and more at peace, although the anxiety was still present. The thought of being put in a position to deal with new clients or people was still a very uncomfortable one. But the lightness he felt, having stopped several panic and anxiety attacks from happening, was a relief. This gave him even more hope and determination. KW is a very kinaesthetic orientated person and that played a part in the second session. Here we used parts integration. This was a deal breaker. The change was immediate for him. It is something to behold when you see that all important shift take place. It can only be described as the same person swapping over to the person they always wanted to be, from the one they didn’t. It is always a complete privilege and honour to witness such a shift. It is a thing of beauty.
KW:The second session changed my entire life and that of my friends, family and everyone who supported me. I found it strange when my hands started moving all on their own and I had no control over them. But I followed the instruction and just focused on my breathing. So, I honestly couldn’t tell you what happened, but I do remember Kevin saying: “…and now, very gently, open your eyes…” and wow, it was if my eyes were replaced with brand new ones. I could see clearly. The fog that clouded my eyes wasn’t present. The constant turning and heaviness in my chest and stomach had left. I felt light, giddy almost, and just remember thinking; no way did he just take the anxiety from me.
I remember looking for it and trying to feel for it where it always sat. But all I felt was lightness. I am not sure that even makes sense, but that’s what I felt. Light and very different. Kevin asked me, if I was standing in a room now with ten new clients and had to give a sales pitch on my business, how would I react? “Bring it on” was my answer. This was so surreal that surely it wouldn’t be real.
But it was real, and it was instant. A few days later I secured a massive catering contract in central Scotland. Before Kevin, I probably wouldn’t even have attended the meeting. I managed to walk into a meeting with a lot of pressure on me to get it right, sell myself, sell my business and secure a new contract for the company. And I did. I totally did and I nailed it. I think the pride I felt in myself that day was something I will remember for the rest of my life. It was a defining moment for me.
Session 3:KW arrived excited and full of the joys of spring. He hadn’t had a panic or anxiety attack in a week. He still had little twinges here and there, but they came and went extremely fast, now. They weren’t enough to bother or affect him. He was hitting the gym every day and walking his dog for longer periods of time. He was starting to live his life to the full. The small twinges of anxiety were still twinges, and I wanted to teach him how to deal with them. This session focused on his internal dialogue. Words=thoughts=emotions. I used a reframe and sub modalities to deal with the residue of the anxious behaviours.
I used kinaesthetic methods on the sub modalities as KW was predominantly kinaesthetic in his emotions and feelings. He didn’t have any pictures or sounds to go with them. His body language and words showed that very early on. He used statements like, ‘I feel’, ‘this feeling’, pointing to his chest area when explaining how anxiety manifested itself in him. The good thing about these sessions was that we took the heavy predominate anxious feeling away. This gave him a desire and hunger to learn, do more, and push himself to the limits in this battle.
We were getting very close to the end, with only one more session left after this one. Yes, that’s correct. Four sessions in total is all that’s needed to be different. Four sessions and four different methods culminating in a whole new you. That’s the plan and the agenda I run off. Some people may try and get you to take them up on eight to twelve sessions for anxiety therapy. But if it’s done in this direct, effective way, four is all you need.
KW:I have to say, it felt a little strange when Kevin asked me to bring up what was left of my anxiety and really feel it. I hadn’t given it much notice for the past week, after the second session. But I put all my trust in his methods, and we brought it up on a scale of about 8 I think at the time. One sentence made all the difference in this session. He told me that anything you can do with an object you have in your hand, you can do with an object or feeling inside you.
I had so much fun putting frames around the feeling, pausing it, changing its colour, and pushing it into the distance. It felt so very real and, at the same time, slightly sad that this thing I have carried for so long was leaving me. I guess a little bit of shock and panic set in. Now I have to actually live my life just as I promised myself if I ever got anxiety free. That was short-lived. I was then shown and taught about my internal dialogue. How every word triggered a thought, then the thought leads onto a feeling, and the feeling guided my actions. If I became more aware, I could change them at the very first stage. Every morning, that’s exactly what I did. I got up, headed straight to the gym, and then took my dog for a walk. It’s amazing to see how this all started with a word. But it did, and now I am in control. I get to choose the word. And I choose happiness.
Session 4: As KW arrived, I have to admit I was filled with pride. His anxiety was gone. He had spoken with his doctor to ask him to drop and eventually remove the anti-anxiety medication. KW was now on the bare minimum. He had another review in a week to stop it, should he continue his remarkable journey. This session is based on current and future planning. Actions. Talking about and showing him how to behave and the different life style choices he has open to him. I also used hypnotherapy and increased his confidence, drive and determination. We rocket it up to the stars. We culminate all the sessions in this one. We test his own internal dialogue. I asked Kevin what he wanted now and his reply was simple. “To get back out there and take the world and everything in it, and use it to my advantage.”
KW:Session 4 was a perfect end for me. Although I still wasn’t sure what I would do being completely anxiety-free, and how I should approach life. My confidence was sky high by the time Kevin finished with me. I identified that my internal dialogue was damaging and made the choice to change it. My excitement for life and my business was back. I honestly didn’t think it was possible in a really short period of time. I have gone from being virtually a recluse, to pushing my business beyond what I thought possible, and feeling happy and content in myself. I am proud of who I am and what I achieved.
I am finally me again. I love me and I love it.
REMARKS:Kevin’s case was typical of modern day social anxiety. You get yourself flustered, you react badly to other people’s actions, and then you worry about the future. Because you can’t see it, anxiety comes along and just makes everything ten times worse. KW was put on an anxiety therapy which was designed to eliminate and remove anxiety quickly and effectively. For everyone who doesn’t believe in a quick fix, four sessions for something that you have lived with for years is quick, and extremely effective.
Closing comments –KW: I never once thought, at the start, that these simple methods and techniques would take me from 0 to 100 in such a short space of time. My anxiety is gone. My medication for anxiety is gone. My confidence and self-esteem are sky high. I am living and pushing my dreams every single day. I love how my life has changed, If anxiety ever does try to make an appearance, not only am I cured, I also have all the tools myself now to deal with it. But I am way too strong for anxiety. I truly believe it won’t be back any time soon.
Kevin:A few months have passed since I last saw KW, and in that time he has gone from strength to strength. He is living a life he wants, and arranging lots of meetings and business opportunities to tell the world about his business. He is continuing his pursuit of fitness and remains a very nice and calm man.
