Research anxiety: What to do

Over the course of your life, you will go through quite a bit of research and have gone through some research. It starts when you are a baby. Every few weeks and months you are checked to see if you are developing properly. This is to spot problems in time so doctors can do something about it. Very useful if you have a genetic predisposition for something, later in your life examinations have more to do with age-related ailments and diseases. At some point you may find that you are afraid of those examinations

There are several studies you may be afraid of, or parts of the study. Those fears and what you can do about them will be explored in more detail with this blog.

Fear of needles

One of the most common fears related to medical exams is the fear of needles. Many exams involve drawing blood, which can be painful for a moment. That’s not all—some people also dislike seeing their own blood and may even faint at the sight of it.

So, a fear of needles can involve a fear of pain, of blood, or perhaps even a fear of losing control —and that is, of course, very distressing.

If you’re afraid of the pain associated with a medical procedure, hypnotic anesthesia can go a long way toward reducing that fear. Before the procedure—or before the needle is inserted into your arm—you’ll be put under hypnosis and given suggestions to help numb the sensation of the injection.

If you don't have a hypnotherapist on hand during a test in which blood is drawn, you can first go to a hypnotherapist to learn self-hypnosis that will help you numb yourself.

Click here to read what you can do about fear of blood.

Fear of blood pressure screening

For a blood pressure check, you’ll have a cuff placed around your arm that is inflated, which is then used to measure your blood pressure. This isn’t as painful as a needle prick, but it can feel uncomfortable. This is something that might make you anxious about the blood pressure test, but of course, you might also be anxious about the possible results and what they will mean for your life.

After all, when you find out you have hypertension you often get advice to change your lifestyle or take medication.

Lifestyle change, for example, involves losing weight if you are overweight, eating less salt and maybe even less meat or fast food or something similar.

Those changes can feel too big to resolve on your own, and that can make you anxious to explore.

In that case, it is good to know that you can get help for this kind of change and that step by step change is also allowed.

In addition, this fear also says something about your self-confidence —specifically, your belief that you can change your life or the control you can exert over it. Hypnosis can help you with this as well.

This can be done by repeating hypnotic suggestions, such as:

"I am strong."

"I can do anything I set my mind to."

"Step by step is also good."

"I may ask for help."

These are just examples. Depending on your fears and concerns about examinations, a hypnotist can help you with other techniques or suggestions.

Fear of Population Screening

There are a number of population screening programs in the Netherlands, namely those for breast, cervical and colon cancer.

Cervical Cancer

When screening for cervical cancer, your doctor takes a swab from your vagina. This is then tested for cells that may indicate cancer or an increased risk of cancer.

The fear of the cervical cancer exam can be for the results, of course, but also for the procedure itself. Perhaps you have a male doctor and are not entirely comfortable with that or you find it annoying anyway when someone outside your intimate circle can look at your intimate parts. The cotton swab is very long, so you won't really be touched otherwise.

In this case, you can ask if a female doctor or assistant can help you. If that doesn’t solve the problem, a hypnotherapist can help you identify the source of that fear and, for example, use guided visualization to help you stay calm during the exam.

You may also be afraid of the results, especially if you don’t have children yet, because treatment for cervical cancer can cause infertility.

Breast Cancer

During a breast cancer screening, X-rays are taken of your breasts. Depending on the size of your breasts, this exam may be more or less painful because your breasts are compressed as flat as possible for the X-ray.

For this process, hypnosis can help as much as fear of needles or a blood pressure reading to make it a little more pleasant.

You may also experience fear regarding the results of a breast cancer diagnosis and what this will mean for you. Perhaps you’re afraid of changes to your appearance, especially if this has become an important part of your identity. In that case, hypnosis can help you figure out what else you can base your identity on—just as well, or even better. It helps if your identity isn’t based solely on your appearance.

Bowel Cancer

Men and women are invited to the colon cancer survey. For this study, all you have to do is prick your stool with a dong at home and you can send it back for the study. So this examination itself is somewhat less invasive than breast or cervical cancer screenings for which you still have to go to a location.

Even with this study, you can be especially anxious about the results, because colon cancer is obviously no fun.

Fear of the rash

When you're afraid of tests, it's often not just the fear of the test, but mostly the results of the test. Maybe your appearance is going to change, maybe you need to change your lifestyle or even take it much easier and then what?

Especially if you think you cannot possibly change yourself, this can cause a lot of anxiety or if you think you are going to be judged by those around you if you need to change things.

If you’re afraid of the consequences of test results, hypnosis can help in several ways to identify the source of that fear—except in cases where the results could literally mean death, as that is, of course, a very real fear. Even then, hypnosis can help you continue to enjoy life.

When it comes to conditions that aren’t immediately life-threatening but require lifestyle changes, hypnosis can be very helpful. For example, hypnosis is particularly effective in helping people quit smoking.

In addition, you can use hypnosis to find out and change blocking beliefs if they prevent you from living a healthy lifestyle.

This is done, for example, through regression. With regression, you are first put into a hypnotic state and then given the suggestion to go back to the very first moment you felt that something was supposed to be a certain way—a belief that is now preventing you from living a healthy life.

Because you are currently in hypnosis, your subconscious will quickly send a thought to the surface. This is then often the moment when that belief arose, often these are moments from your childhood so don't be alarmed if this is a young memory of yours.

Then the hypnotist will help you look at this moment from multiple angles and with your adult knowledge, allowing you to interpret the situation very differently than you initially did. This can cause you to realize very quickly that you can live a healthy life and do the things that will help you show more positive results on the next examination.

Would you like to know how hypnosis can help you and how you can use it to help others? Then come to a hypnosis workshop or sign up for one of the courses offered by the Hypnosis Institute of the Netherlands. The workshops and courses are held in Zwolle and Wormerveer. The courses are also available online.

Also pin this handy infographic as a reminder: