"I've had thousands of problems in my life, most of which never actually happened." Mark Twain. As never before, our lives are bombarded with daily events that stir fear - real or imagined - in both our individual and collective psyches. From financial worries to social anxiety, from public speaking to personal safety, "Free Yourself From Fears" show us how to 'unlearn' our unreal fears and find emotional freedom. Applying the power of psychology, O'Connor goes inside the mind and shows you how to deal not only with such common anxieties as fear of heights and flying but also fear of other people's opinions and even of our own success. This immensely practical, hands-on book will help you: know when to trust and when not to trust, develop your intuition to stay safe when there is real danger, defeat socially created fears in this age of anxiety, deal with change and worries about an uncertain future, and be in the here and now - true emotional freedom. One of the first books to address how to help children deal with fear and to deal with the all-pervasive and insidious feeling of "social anxiety," "Free Yourself From Fears" includes dozens of helpful exercises and practical techniques to help you achieve your best without anxiety and live without worry.

Table of Contents:
Part 1 - Our Experience of Fear The Nine Laws of Fear 1. What is Fear The two elements of fear The NLP approach to fear The physiology of fear 2. Fear - Friend or Foe? Positive intention Authentic fear Unreal fear Types of unreal fear Social reactions to fear How not to deal with fear Measure your fears 3. Learning and Unlearning Fears How we learn unreal fears Children's fears Enjoyable fear Unlearning fear 4. The Language of Fear Talking yourself into fear Telling other people Affirmations Is fear compulsory? Our relationshop with fear Metaphor Part II UNREAL FEAR - FEAR AS FOE 5. Fear in Time The circles test Unreal fear in the past Fears of the future Worry 6. Common Fears That Hold Us Hostage Fear of flying Fear of authority Fear of success Fear of dentists and doctors Fear of heights Fear of elevators Fear of death 7. Unquiet Times and Turbulent Minds Dangerous places Personal safety Laws and safety Danger and the media Social anxiety and stress 8. Social Fears Change Time pressure Appearances Fear of the future Information Choice 9. The Pressure To Achieve: The Price of Perfection Self-sabotage Excuses Other people's opinions Blame Beliefs Failure and feedback Fear of failure Performance anxiety Metaphors of failure 10. Dealing With Change: The Uncertain Future Changes with no choice The changes we choose External and internal change Tolerance of change Major changes Loss Habits Change and resources Rationalization and procrastination The fear cycle Transition Part III Authentic Fear -Fear as Friend The Nine Laws of Safety 11. Fear As A Sign To Take Action You need authentic fear The Darwin awards 12. How We Assess Safety and Risk How do you know you feel safe? Assume risk or assume safety? What do you need to feel safe? Risk 13. Acting on Fear: When to Heed the Warning Warning Signals Denying fear Predicting violence Danger signals The attribution error 14. Trust and Intuition: Your Two Guides Level of trust Three types of trust Reference experiences Learning from experience Intuition PART IV Finding Freedom - Techniques to Overcome Our Fears 15. The Value Behind the Fear The value under the fear Self-esteem The value of respect Fear of looking stupid Fear of commitment 16 Dealing With Fear in the Body Controlling your feeling of fear Controlling fear through breathing Controlling fear through feeling Controlling fear through relaxation 17. Dealing With Fear in the Mind How does this work in practice? Types of resources 18. Freedom From Social Anxiety The Hydra of social fears Beheading the Hydra Life in the present moment 19. Emotional Freedom: Here and Now Opening doors Courage Appendix 1: Thinking about Thinking with NLP Appendix 2: Summary of Skills for Freedom References Bibliography About the Author