Claustrophobia Hypnosis: Elevators, Tunnels, Easy Breath

Welcome. Before we begin, I want you to know something important. The fear you feel in elevators, in tunnels, in small rooms with the door closed, is not a flaw in you. It is a very old protective response, running in a body that is trying to keep you safe. The trouble is, it has learned to sound the alarm in places where no real danger exists. So the work we are going to do together is not about forcing yourself to be brave. It is about teaching your body, at a deep level, that it can breathe easily even when the space around you is small. We will use the breath as our anchor. Slow, low, simple. And we will use gentle imagery to let your nervous system rehearse being settled in the very places that used to tighten you up. There is nothing you need to force. Nothing you need to perform. Just let my voice guide you, and let your body follow at its own pace. Find a comfortable position now. Somewhere you can rest for a while without being disturbed. And when you are ready, we will begin.

Let your eyes close gently. And bring your attention to the surface underneath you. The chair, the bed, the floor. Whatever is holding you. Notice how it rises up to meet you. You do not have to hold yourself up. The support is already there. Let your weight settle into it. Now bring your awareness to your breath. Not changing it. Just noticing. The way the air moves in. And the way it moves out. And very gently, let the next breath move a little lower. Down past your chest. Into your belly. Let the belly soften and rise as you breathe in. And fall as you breathe out. This low, easy breath is the one your body knows when it feels safe. We are simply reminding it. Breathing in through the nose. Slow. Gentle. And out through the nose or softly through the mouth. Even slower on the out breath. With each out breath, let something soften. The muscles around your eyes. The jaw. The tongue resting at the bottom of the mouth. Let the shoulders drop away from the ears. Let the chest be quiet. The ribs easy. And the belly, warm and soft. Good. That is it. You are beginning to drop down into a more restful place. A place where your body and your mind can work together again. Each breath taking you deeper. Each sound around you, only deepening the calm.

Imagine now, in your mind, that you are standing in an open field. The kind of field where the sky stretches all the way to the horizon. There is grass under your feet. Soft air on your skin. And above you, a sky so wide there is no edge to it. Feel that openness. Feel how your body responds to space. The chest opens a little. The breath goes lower. The shoulders drop. This is your body in its natural state. And here is something important for your deeper mind to understand. This openness is not only outside of you. It lives inside you too. Inside your chest, there is always room for a full breath. Inside your body, there is always space for air to move. The sky inside you does not shrink when a door closes. It is always there. Always available. Walls can be near you. Ceilings can be low. And still, the space inside your chest remains wide. Still, the breath finds its way. Feel the field around you one more time. The openness of the sky. And then, gently, carry that sky with you as we go deeper.

In a moment, I am going to count slowly from ten down to one. And with each number, your body will soften a little more. Your breath will drop a little lower. And your mind will settle into a quieter, deeper place. Ten. Breath low and easy. Nine. The belly rising, falling. Eight. Shoulders heavy. Arms heavy. Seven. The back of the neck soft. Six. Dropping down, like a leaf falling slowly through still water. Five. Halfway there. And already the body feels quieter. Four. The breath so easy now, it breathes itself. Three. Mind slowing. Thoughts drifting. Two. Deeper still. One. All the way down. Into a place of calm, open awareness. Your conscious mind can rest now. And your deeper mind, the part of you that runs the breath, the heartbeat, the ancient patterns of safety, that part is wide awake. Listening. Ready to learn something new.

I want to speak now to the part of you that has been working so hard to keep you safe. The part that tightens your chest in elevators. The part that holds your breath in tunnels. The part that scans for exits in small rooms. That part is not your enemy. It is a very loyal guardian. And it has been using old information. So today, we are giving it new information. We are teaching your body a new response. Here is the first truth. Breath does not need much space. A full, easy breath needs only the space inside your own chest. That space goes with you everywhere. Into every elevator. Every tunnel. Every small room. The walls around you do not touch your lungs. The ceiling above you does not touch your breath. The air you need is already inside the space with you. Let that settle in. Now I want you to find your breath again. Low. Slow. Through the nose. Breathe in for a count of four. Hold gently for a count of two. And breathe out, slowly, for a count of six. Again. In, two, three, four. Soft hold. Out, two, three, four, five, six. This is your anchor breath. Your deeper mind is remembering it now. Coding it in. Storing it in the body, so it is there whenever you need it. From this moment forward, whenever you step into an enclosed space, your breath will naturally find this rhythm. Low in the belly. Slow. Easy. When the elevator doors close, your shoulders will drop. Your belly will soften. The breath will move. When the train enters the tunnel, your jaw will release. Your chest will stay open. The breath will move. When you sit in a small room, or lie in a scanner, or buckle into a seat, your body will remember. The sky is inside you. The breath is yours. The space you need is already here. And notice something else. Your body is allowed to feel a flicker of the old feeling. A small wave. And then, like a wave in the ocean, it passes through you and dissolves. You do not have to stop the wave. You only have to keep breathing low and slow. The wave needs nothing from you. It rises. It falls. It goes. Each time you breathe through it, the wave gets smaller. Each time you stay with your breath, your nervous system learns. This is not dangerous. This is just a small space, and I am here, breathing, and I am fine. Your body is a brilliant learner. It will take this new pattern and make it automatic. And to that loyal guardian part, the one that worked so hard, I want to say, thank you. You can rest now. The breath has this. The body has this. You are safe. You are free to soften.

Let's take these new responses for a walk. See yourself standing in front of an elevator. The doors are closed. You press the button. Notice how steady your breath is, even now. Low in the belly. Easy. The doors open. You step inside. You press the floor you need. The doors close. And you simply breathe. In. And out. The chest is open. The shoulders are soft. You feel the gentle movement of the elevator. And you are fine. Now see yourself in a car, approaching a long tunnel. The mouth of the tunnel comes closer. You enter. The light changes. The walls are close. And your breath stays exactly where it needs to be. Low. Slow. You even notice the small sounds of the tunnel, the hum, the echo, and your body stays settled. You emerge on the other side, and you realise something. You were fine the whole way through. See yourself in any small space you choose. A meeting room with the door closed. A busy train. A plane at takeoff. Wherever your life takes you. And in every one of these places, your breath is your companion. Low, slow, easy. And the sky that lives inside you is always, always open.

In a moment, I am going to bring you gently back. You will come back feeling calm, clear, and carrying this new breath pattern with you. I am going to count from one up to five. One. Awareness returning to your body. Feeling the surface beneath you. Two. Energy beginning to move back into your arms and legs. Three. The breath a little fuller now. The mind a little brighter. Four. Almost all the way back. Feeling refreshed, settled, and clear. And five. Eyes opening when you are ready. Fully present. Fully here.

From today, your body knows how to breathe in small spaces. Whenever you notice walls close by, or a door closing behind you, let that be your gentle reminder. Drop the breath into the belly. Slow the out breath. Let the shoulders fall. Each time you do this, the new pattern becomes stronger, and the old fear becomes smaller. Listen to this session as often as you like, especially before situations you want to move through with ease. Your nervous system learns through repetition and kindness. Give it both. Thank you for trusting yourself with this work. Take good care. And breathe easy.