PERFORMANCE ANXIETY
Performance anxiety is a phobia. If you suffer from it you will be familiar with the symptoms that can range from feeling as if you have sandpaper in your mouth, to feeling as if time has slowed down as your heart races at twice it's usual BPM! Your hands are sweaty, your thoughts are confused and you may even feel as if you want to throw up. The anxiety can hold you back from career promotions or from enjoying the creative pursuit you love most. Many of those who suffer with performance anxiety can have high expectations of themselves and others, are high achievers and perhaps carry a strong inner critic. Unfortunately the very thing you are afraid of can be triggered by the performance anxiety and you can find yourself freezing, going bright red and becoming flustered and confused, unable to think in an exam or concentrate, perhaps even having a panic attack.
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Public speaking, be it to an auditorium, school speeches or simply at a work meeting
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Stage performance (dance, music, acting etc)
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Exam or test performance anxiety
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Driving License test (some people have been known to sit it over a dozen times because of performance anxiety)
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​Anticipating how you are going to feel when the anxiety kicks in can be worse than the initial anxiety and you can find yourself palpitating just entering the room where the event previously took place. Some people take Beta- blockers when they know they have to perform, but many don't want to.
HYPNOSIS FOR PERFORMANCE ANXIETY
Hypnotherapy can help with performance anxiety. It involves a similar treatment I use for anxiety or phobia. It's all about calming the nervous, building your confidence and re-wiring those neural pathways.
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After we have done hypnotherapy and suggestions to make you more confident and fearless, we then immerse you in the very things that you may have difficulty with. As we move through these challenges, you are protected by knowing it's just in the imagination. We work through any fear that comes up and teach you how to control and respond to the fear. By practising in the imagination we are building new neural pathways that will serve you in real life.
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Heal Performance Anxiety by Reconnecting with Your Inner Child
Performance anxiety isn’t just about being nervous before a big event. For many people, it’s a deeply rooted emotional response—triggered by past experiences of criticism, humiliation, or being made to feel they were not good enough. These early wounds, often held by the inner child, can show up years later in adulthood as intense anxiety during public speaking, stage performances, or high-pressure situations.If your heart races, your hands sweat, and your thoughts become scattered when you're under pressure, you're likely experiencing performance anxiety—and it might be your inner child trying to protect you.
​Many of us carry within us an inner child—the emotional part of ourselves shaped by early life experiences. If, as a child, you were:
Criticised in front of others
Shamed for expressing yourself
Laughed at when you made a mistake
Told you weren’t smart, talented, or “enough”…
then your inner child may still be carrying that pain.
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When you step onto a stage, speak up in a meeting, or take a test, that part of you remembers those past experiences and sounds the alarm: “You’re not safe.”​I have a protocol that works well for identifying and healing the inner child - it's a form of hypnotherapy. ​Performance anxiety is a relatively easy one to crack with hypnotherapy. If you need some help to give you the confidence you need to feel calm and at ease, contact me.
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REVIEWS
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"I used to sweat like crazy before I had to speak at work. It turns out it was because of this experience I had when I was eight. I had totally forgotten about it, but my unconscious remembered and being in the public eye terrified me. Diana is alike a magician - she just finds the issue and heals it. Thank you so much. I feel like this held me back and now I feel free.
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James L - Banking
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"Diana is very direct, very empathetic and very effective as a therapist. I highly recommend her especially for performance anxiety. She worked wonders for me."
Craig L - Golfer
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"I have to do presentations regularly at work and I just had the worst anxiety thinking about having to do it. When I spoke I would get this rush of blood to my head and I couldn't think. I felt like my face was beetroot and I spoke really fast and it seemed to me that everyone could see how nervous I was. It was really embarrassing as I like to do my job well and it's expected of me that I can handle this in my position. I have a team of people working for me. It was getting worse and I found I was taking days off just to avoid having to do it. I got anxiety just thinking about it and developed insomnia the night before speaking. Diana worked with me and helped me to understand the incidents that had lead to this fear. It hadn't come out of nowhere - there were reasons that I didn't even realise. She helped me to grow my confidence and gave me tools to work through my fear of public speaking. Diana is very practical in her therapy style. She is also really intuitive and caring. I am so grateful I went as I feel I have discovered so much about myself and that it has changed me way beyond the issue I went to her for."
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KIM F - Tech Software Sales Management