I was losing myself. I found myself living in fear everyday. The days went by and I felt more and more disconnected to my own self. This feeling wasn’t normal for a 22-year-old girl who had a good job and was going to school. My day would start with negative thoughts. I would go through at least two-anxiety attacks everyday. I could be at work and in one second I felt my body going through every anxiety symptom. I would begin to sweat followed by irregular heartbeats and not being able to breathe. Every anxiety attack I would have I would think to myself, “This is the one that is going to kill me.”
I visited several doctors because I was sure that something physical was wrong with me but I was wrong. I had different tests and procedures done and doctors would always say I was healthy. I didn’t understand what was happening to me. My appetite changed and I lost about 15 pounds, which only scared me, more. I was scared of being alone and I was becoming needy with my boyfriend, which was affecting out relationship. I was skipping class and calling into work because anxiety and fear was on my mind all day. “I feel like I can’t breathe.” were the words I would say daily. I was losing control of everything from my thoughts to my actions, but what made me think I was going crazy, was that I knew I had the power within me to change it.
I tried doing yoga and tai chi but it didn’t quite help me, although it did help me realize that it wasn’t the body that needed healing, but it was the mind. I visited my local mental health institution and it was not a pleasant experience. It took about two weeks to get an appointment and see someone. I had an interview and they detected I was suffering from anxiety (something I already knew) and they gave me a couple handouts with suggestions of what to do when going through an attack. They explained they only had group therapy that met once a week for one hour and had a waitlist. So, that place was no help.
I decided to do my own research and came across hypnotherapy. I read about it and read reviews on people who got healing through hypnotherapy and I was convinced to give it a try. I was losing hope, but I was also desperate to fix myself because I wanted my healthy life back. I “Yelped” hypnotherapy around my area and came across a hypnotherapist in the area of Torrance and tried it out. I was extremely scared and nervous, but I tried to keep an open mind. Unfortunately, the therapist was not able to leave me content with the session I had with him. I was really going to give up and just live with the fact that I had to be stuck with anxiety all my life until I came across Suzanne.
As soon as I emailed Suzanne she set up a phone interview with me that went absolutely great. She injected hope in me through a simple phone interview. I started my therapy sessions with her in October 2015 and I am currently still receiving therapy from her but not for anxiety, because I no longer get anxiety attacks. I immediately felt comfortable in our first session. She helped me change my thinking pattern around. It was crazy how much negativity I had in my unconscious mind. She was a big help in teaching me to take control of what I thought I was losing control in. She’s an amazing mentor who has helped me discover my values and has helped me strengthen out my weaknesses. I am better human because of the therapy sessions I’ve had with Suzanne. The knowledge Suzanne has is amazing.
As of right now, I am not in the best situation financially since I was let go from my former job. I had invested 6 years in that company, and the beginning of July I was promoted to be the sales representative. It was all very exciting at first but, it got tough when there was a lot of stuff thrown at me, which my former boss never mentioned. It was a more stressful position but I amazed myself of how calm and collective I would handle the work stress. In the end of August I was let go in an unfair way since they used my school schedule as an excuse, yet they had already agreed with working around my school schedule. I felt betrayed and frustrated yet amazingly enough I was always in control. After several phone conversations and a couple of therapy sessions with Suzanne I was able to release the negative emotions and get my mind focused on my “compelling future.” Suzanne has guided me through stress I’ve received through school and also has guided me through stress from work. I am beyond thankful for having Suzanne as my mentor, therapist, and friend.
Melissa A., Wilmington, CA