Fears and phobias are emotional states that produce very disruptive effects in the lives of some individuals. Ordinary fears are feelings of alarm or disquiet caused by the expectation of a threatening situation. Fears are normal and experienced by everyone. We are usually quite aware of the causes of our fears. Fears are the logical and expected reaction of most individuals with similar experiences in a particular challenging or threatening situation. Individuals riding in an airplane that suddenly develops obvious mechanical problems will usually cause fear in most passengers; that is a normal & expected reaction. Besides such ordinary fears there are also irrational fears & phobias. Ordinary fears, phobias, and irrational fears all produce similar elements in the mind & body. There is a mental or cognitive element (thought) in both the conscious & subconscious mind in which a situation is recognized as being threatening. Then there is an emotional reaction generated by the subconscious mind consisting of apprehension and distress. This is followed by an uncomfortable physical reaction of sweating, queasiness & trembling. These physical reactions often include more rapid breathing, a faster heart beat, bladder tension, digestive disorders and an upset stomach. All of the emotional & physical reactions are followed by a desire to either confront and struggle with the cause of the fear, or a desire to flee the situation and escape discomfort.

Irrational fears are feelings of dread & uncertainty, that are somewhat related to previous events. The expression of these emotions is far more intense than circumstance might warrant. So irrational fears are an emotional overreaction that limits the individuals life activities or circumstances. A person may have been frightened as a child by a neighborhood dog, and as a result is now afraid of touching any type of animal at all. No matter how hard a person tries, they are unable to pet even the most gentle kitten or puppy. The experienced fear far outweighs the actual threat.

Phobias, on the other hand, are inner fears whose original cause is often hidden from the conscious mind. People believe they always know the cause of their phobias, but the conscious mind is often mistaken. Usually a phobia produces intense discomfort for a particular situation or an object which is often unrelated to the experience that produced the original fear. So, in essence, phobias are misplaced or misdirected fears that we have hidden from our awareness. The individual is aware that the phobia is completely illogical. They often have an intense fear of people, places or situations for which they usually cannot recall any past traumatic experience. A person may be afraid to be in a crowd, without ever having been frightened or harmed in a crowd. Or a person may be afraid of enclosed situations, such as an elevator, when she never had a bad experience while riding in an elevator. And whenever the phobic reaction occurs, there is absolutely no danger whatsoever that is truly threatening the individual.

During self-healing in inner awareness, the true causes of a phobia will be discovered. One learns that the current circumstances that produce the phobia have elements in common with the original disturbing event. However the conscious mind does not usually remember the original event nor recognize the similarity of elements between the two. The similarity of elements, however, is recognized by the inner subconscious mind. The original event was unpleasant & characterized by certain emotional, physical or mental discomforts. The subconscious mind then assumes that any current circumstances with any similar circumstantial elements are also threatening to the person. So the inner mind produces the phobic reaction & its unpleasant side-effects in order to warn the individual that she or he might be in peril. The phobic reaction is primarily a protective mechanism of the subconscious mind.

Self-healing in inner awareness quickly eliminates uncontrollable fears, irrational fears and phobias by discovering the original event(s) and emotions that caused the first fear reaction. Once this is done, then the original fears and any other related emotions are therapeutically dissolved away which immediately results in the complete restoration of emotional balance & harmony. Quite often other therapies, like repeated exposures with desensitization, are ineffective with phobias & fears because the subconscious mind is never accessed. The only truly effective way to completely eliminate phobias and irrational fears is with Self-healing in inner awareness. Once a phobia's associated emotions are dissolved away, then the old hidden feelings & the phobia itself are gone forever.