Phobias are normally a learned response. We are not born with these phobias but have picked up a subconscious belief, often in childhood, that these things are to be fearful of. Phobias can then become similar to an old habit which becomes attached to specific trigger events or situations.

A good example of this is a fear of spiders. If a child witnesses an adult having a panic attack and screaming "SPIDER, SPIDER!!", there is a high probability that the child will develop a fear of spiders. This fear will then become deep routed in the subconscious mind and the next time the child encounters a spider their subconscious will react instantly. When they get older, they may learn that the likelihood of a spider being dangerous or hurting them (in this country) is extremely rare and they may be told by other people at a conscious level, “not to be so silly” or “It can't hurt you". This however will do absolutely nothing to help the person get over their fear. The problem is a learned response deeply rooted in the subconscious mind.

This is where hypnotherapy really comes into its own and can be extremely effective. The subconscious can be accessed and the learned response can be replaced with another belief.