Editor's letter 9 February 2020: This may sound crazy, but... - YOU Magazine Fashion Beauty Celebrity Health Life Relationships Horoscopes Food Interiors Travel Sign in Welcome!Log into your account Forgot your password? Password recovery Recover your password Search Sign in Welcome! Log into your account Forgot your password? Get help Password recovery Recover your password A password will be e-mailed to you. YOU Magazine Fashion Beauty Celebrity Health Life Relationships Horoscopes Food Interiors Travel Home Life Editor’ s letter This may sound crazy but… By You Magazine - February 9, 2020 …about this time last year, I was lucky enough to have a hypnosis session with the renowned hypnotherapist Paul McKenna. I could choose any issue I liked to have him help me address/resolve. My mind, dear YOU readers, is a veritable theme park of phobias, eccentricities and all-out flaws from which I could take my pick. I chose to take the plunge and confide a mental health problem that had plagued me for nearly 20 years. We can trace its origins back to the morning I was in New York City, on 11 September 2001. My hotel was mere blocks from the World Trade Center. I was unharmed, of course, but it’s hard to convey, in the world we know now, just how alien those events felt as they were unfolding. The shock, confusion and panic was followed by days of despair, grief and yet more fear. The ground shaking from a rumbling subway, or the noise of a backfiring car was all it took to set everyone on edge all over again. The (then new) relentless 24-hour news coverage spewed out as much gossip – perhaps the terrorists had also poisoned the air? – as fact. From that day I constantly worried that something similar would happen in London. And I mean constantly. Of course, unbearably, it did, with the terror attacks on London’s tubes and buses on 7 July 2005. I was five days overdue with my daughter and for a couple of hours couldn’t get hold of my husband. I’ve never allowed my fear to actually stop me travelling. But those attacks were in my mind every single time I used public transport. To the point where, often, I could not sleep the night before for worrying about getting on the underground the next day. So when I was offered this session with Paul, I summoned the courage to tell him about my problem. If he could knock even some of the edges of this neurosis, it would be a step in the right direction. What did I have to lose? I’ll be honest. I found it one of the most embarrassing hours of my life. He talked me through one of his favourite techniques, called Havening (which is explained in our interview with Paul). I didn’t see how it could possibly be working. I decided to go through the awkward motions and get out of there. ‘Nice try, but this won’t work,’ I thought. You probably know what I’m going to say – about six weeks after that session it hit me that I had not once thought about terrorism on the underground. That ‘silly’ hugging myself thing and moving my eyes this way and that while he spoke to me had changed a near 20-year obsession. I can’t express enough to you what a huge deal this was. So now, whatever Paul McKenna has to say, I for one am listening, and I’m delighted that we’ve interviewed him for today’s magazine – and you can get a first glimpse of his brilliant new book on relationships in today’s main paper. Based on my own experience, I’m sure he has a lot of wisdom worth all of us hearing! Enjoy the issue. Editor’ s picks A few things I’m coveting this week Ten per cent of sales of this gorgeous bedding go to Mind.org.uk Duvet/pillow set, from £66, livvyb.co.uk …or any day that ends in ‘y’ (one can but try!) Eye mask, £18, lazyoaf.com Cool petrol blue to add a pop to black dresses or cropped trousers Boots, £110, vagabond.com RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR Everything we know about The Crown season 5 Aldi s exercise equipment is on sale with up to 50% off The best Halloween events for 2022 across the UK Popular in Life The You magazine team reveal their New Year s resolutions December 31, 2021 Susannah Taylor The TLC tools your body will love January 23, 2022 How to stop living in fear February 6, 2022 Susannah Taylor My pick of the fittest leggings February 27, 2022 Women’ s Prize for Fiction 2022 winner announced June 17, 2022 These BBC dramas are returning for a second series June 30, 2022 Susannah Taylor gives the lowdown on nature s little helper – CBD April 17, 2022 The baby names that are banned across the world April 27, 2022 The Queen has released her own emojis May 26, 2022 Sally Brompton horoscopes 27th June-3rd July 2022 June 26, 2022 Popular CategoriesFood2704Life2496Fashion2240Beauty1738Celebrity1261Interiors684 Sign up for YOUMail Thanks for subscribing Please check your email to confirm (If you don't see the email, check the spam box) Fashion Beauty Celebrity Life Food Privacy & Cookies T&C Copyright 2022 - YOU Magazine. All Rights Reserved