Fear of closed spaces

9-year-old Bea wanted to get rid of her claustrophobia. Her anxiety affected her everyday life. Tunnels, elevators, cable cars and all kinds of closed rooms caused strong discomfort and anxiety. When combined with darkness, it was even worse. Especially on school trips and family holidays this led to difficult situations.

Bea had been in child psychiatry for about a year, but the claustrophobia had not been resolved.

During session, in her imagination, she stepped into a closed room to bring her fear to the surface. There she visualized her fear as a heavy, black stone plate. It was not in, but on top of her chest and pushed down on it with its weight. This pressure made it difficult for her to breathe.

We rewound back to the time in her mother’s womb. It was narrow and dark, but Bea was fine. She could hear her mother’s heart beating and said everything was all right.

At age 3, the stone plate reappeared. Bea saw herself attending a gymnastics class with her mom. She went to the washroom by herself and stepped into one of the cabins. She heard a group of girls come in. They talked, laughed and washed their hands. Then the group left the toilet, but turned off the light.

Bea sat alone in complete darkness. She was frightened and had a panic attack.

To remove the negative thorns from her memories, she was given a magic remote control for the light in the washroom. This remote gave her full control over the light. She could switch it off and on at will.

Bea visualized this scene three times. Whenever the light went out, she switched it back on with her remote control. She finished up, washed her hands, and left the room.

The third time her imagination went even further. She ran out to the mother and proudly told her about the remote control and how she was no longer afraid of the dark.

The session was over. Spontaneously, Bea agreed to a test in the elevator. She entered the elevator and waited for her claustrophobia to appear. No fear, no discomfort – all gone.

Two weeks later, her mother said none of the fears had ever returned.