Performance Anxiety. Stage Fright.
At times, we need nervous energy. Without the nerves and the adrenalin-boost this nervous anxiety gives us, performances are often flat and lacking everything that makes us human. And a performance without humanity communicates very little. But at the same time, as a music teacher once told me, we think a performance is all about us, hence the nerves, but it’s not about us at all – it’s only about the music. Performers are meant to be (just) a conduit between the composer and the music. And once this is understood, there should be no reason for nerves.
And yet knowing this, we still want humanity in a performance!
Many performers, whether they’re musicians, singers, dancers or actors suffer from pre-performance nerves or stage-fright. Anxiety after all, is just the brains way of getting us (when we find ourselves in a stressful situation) to do something, anything – just not nothing! At the same time, this nervousness is generated from the part of the brain that acts as our Health & Safety Officer telling us that this is not a good situation; that we’re putting ourself in a vulnerable position and we’ll be exposed and defenseless; especially if it all goes wrong! It’s dangerous, so just don’t do it.
But having practiced eight hours a day for the very reason of performing to an audience, it’s important to be able to combat these conflicting forces and just play.
Using hypnotherapy, I can help you to learn how to control your body’s response to this boost of adrenaline, build confidence and so be able to play courageously; learn how to concentrate, quieten the mind and gain better control of it, learn how to focus beyond any distractions, and stay in the moment. Hypnotherpy can also help you become more resilient so that you’re better able to recover quickly from mistakes, put them in perspective and move on. If you’re interested in exploring this area more, I’d be delighted to help.
*Results may vary from person to person.