"Agoraphobia fell on me without me expecting it, and without hypnotherapy, I do not know if I could go out of my house today." Hugo * was 21 years old the first time he pushed the doors of a psychiatrist's office. Because of a health problem, he regularly discomfort.

Naturally shy, he does not like to disturb people. Result, by dying to faint in public, he does not dare to leave home. It is the beginning of an infernal spiral: it is closed in on itself, refuses to see whoever is, and gradually sinks into depression .

For him, agoraphobia is a vicious circle. Student in political science, he can not stand going to class anymore. But since he lives with his parents, he has to find some schemes:

For fear of hurting someone, I did not dare to go out. And most importantly, I did not dare to talk about my problem. Not even to my family! I pretended to go to school in the morning, and as soon as the apartment was empty, I went back to my room.

Because of his repeated absences, his school eventually sent him away. It's finally thanks to a classmate that he clicks. "My friend Mathieu was worried about not seeing me anymore, he ended up going to see my parents and gave them a swing, he was the first to put the words on my problem: agoraphobia".

Therapy, first steps towards healing

After their first worry, Hugo's parents quickly reacted by taking him to see a sophrologist and a psychiatrist. "The first objective was to fight against the stress , and really understand where the problem came from, but it was not easy.Between my shyness and agoraphobia, I spent my first sessions prostrate, unable to loosen the teeth" .

To make things easier, the therapist then offers to try hypnosis. "For me, it was a quack thing, I was expecting her to take out a clock, and to whisper," Your eyelids are heavy. "Clichés, which, convinced that it would never work, I decided to to accept, to leave me alone. "

However, as Antoine Bioy, Doctor in Psychology and Scientific Expert for the French Institute of Hypnosis (IFH) affirms:

Contrary to what one might think, people who do not believe in hypnosis can be the most receptive.

Hypnotherapy, an effective treatment

Unlike Hugo's worries, no clocks or little clichés. "My psychiatrist asked me to focus on her voice to help me relax, she was talking to me softly, she later explained to me that this state was called the hypnotic trance, and that she was giving me more open to suggestions ". The result ? "I quickly felt soothed, I breathed more easily."

Of course, the result was not there in a snap. But after a few sessions, the young man gradually managed to open up, and to talk about his problem to his psychiatrist.

Once she understood where my problem came from, we worked a lot on managing stress and emotions. Through the hypnosis sessions, I learned to modify my reactions in case of agoraphobia crisis.

Like any therapy, hypnosis does not solve problems immediately, you have to go step by step. That's why every week, Hugo launches a new challenge. Go shopping, at the pharmacy, at the bakery ... Gestures that seem innocuous to us, but that had become impossible for him. "Without hypnosis, I do not know if I will have found the courage to take those first steps, each of which was a victory for me, and every single victory, even the smallest, is good for moving forward.

Self-hypnosis, to continue the path in solo

As Antoine Bioy, Scientific Expert for IFH, explains, "Self-hypnosis is an excellent complement to hypnotherapy sessions." Therapists then have a guiding role: "The practitioner can give you keys to practice self-hypnosis yourself."

This is precisely the approach towards which Hugo and his psychiatrist have turned:

In teaching me self-hypnosis, my therapist wanted me to be able to regain my composure and manage my stress more easily in public. Especially in transport, which represent my pet peeve.

Thanks to this technique, the student is now more in control of his emotions. He was able to resume his studies, and gradually found a normal life. "Today, I just have a therapy session from time to time, to make sure I do not lose my footing, people are often scared to get started, but they should not. self-confidence ".

* The name has been changed.