Overcoming Phobias with the Rewind and Reframe Protocol, A Hypnotherapy Approach

Tap link to book

By Dean McLean-Thompson – Hypnotherapy with Dean www.hypnotherapywithdean.com | Instagram: @hypnotherapywithdean | Facebook: Hypnotherapy with Dean

What if Your Phobia Could Simply Melt Away?

For many people, a phobia feels like a lifelong burden. It can creep into your thoughts, influence your decisions, and even impact relationships and career opportunities. Whether it’s flying, spiders, needles, public speaking, or enclosed spaces, the fear can feel so powerful it’s as though it controls you completely.

But what if you could teach your brain a different response? One that allows you to step back into situations you’ve been avoiding and feel calm, safe, and confident?

At Hypnotherapy with Dean, I work with people every day who thought they would never be free of their phobias. Using a gentle yet powerful approach called the Rewind and Reframe Protocol, I’ve seen clients experience life-changing breakthroughs. Many achieve this in as little as three sessions.

This isn’t about exposure therapy or forcing yourself to face the fear head-on. Instead, it’s a method grounded in neuroscience that helps your brain unhook the fear response and replace it with a sense of ease and control.

Understanding Phobias and Why Your Brain Gets Stuck

A phobia isn’t just an exaggerated fear. It’s a learned response that’s been stored in the emotional part of your brain, the amygdala. Often this happens after a frightening experience, or sometimes after seeing someone else react fearfully. Even imagining the trigger can activate the fight-or-flight response, flooding your body with adrenaline and leaving you feeling powerless.

The problem is that your brain keeps replaying the fear pattern, strengthening the neural pathways each time. This is why phobias can persist for years and why simply “facing your fear” doesn’t always work. Traditional methods can feel overwhelming or even retraumatise.

The Rewind and Reframe Protocol offers something different. It allows your brain to revisit the memory of the fear in a safe, detached way and then rewrite the emotional response.

What Is the Rewind and Reframe Protocol?

The Rewind and Reframe Protocol is a therapeutic technique designed to neutralise the intense emotional charge associated with phobias. It works without requiring you to relive your trauma or speak in detail about the fear.

The process begins with creating a state of deep relaxation where your mind becomes calm and receptive to change. You’re guided to visualise your fear memory as if it’s a movie playing on a screen, allowing you to observe it from a safe distance. Then, using mental fast-forwarding and rewinding of this movie, your subconscious begins to break the link between the memory and the fear.

Once the emotional charge is reduced, we move into the reframing stage. Here, you visualise yourself confidently and calmly in situations that would once have triggered your phobia. The brain starts to form new associations, so when you face those situations in real life, you find yourself reacting with calmness and control.

Many people find their phobia’s hold begins to loosen within one or two sessions, and in most cases, full resolution is achieved in as little as three sessions.

A Personal Story, My Sister-in-Law and Her Fear of Spiders

One of the most powerful examples of this approach comes from my own family. My sister-in-law had struggled for years with a fear of spiders so intense that even a photograph would make her feel panicked. She avoided rooms in her house if she suspected one might be there and felt like her fear controlled her life.

When she agreed to try the Rewind and Reframe Protocol, I assured her she wouldn’t need to describe her fear in detail or be exposed to any actual spiders. Instead, over three sessions, we worked through the protocol step by step. She visualised the memory of her first frightening spider encounter as a movie, safely detached from it. As we rewound and fast-forwarded the memory several times, her brain began to let go of the fear response.

Over the next week, she noticed something incredible. She found a spider in her kitchen and, instead of freezing or panicking, she calmly used a glass and paper to move it outside. It was the first time in decades she felt in control around her fear. She went on to tell me that the change felt permanent, like her brain simply didn’t react the same way anymore.

Why This Approach Works So Well

The beauty of the Rewind and Reframe Protocol lies in its gentleness and speed. It doesn’t require you to re-experience distressing events, and you remain in full control throughout the process. Because it works at the subconscious level, the results often feel effortless. Many people describe it as though their brain “forgot” to be afraid.

Unlike other therapies that may take months or years, this approach can resolve phobias in as little as three sessions.

The Science Behind Rewind and Reframe

Modern neuroscience has shown that fear-based memories can be safely updated in the brain when revisited in a calm, controlled way. This process, called memory reconsolidation, allows the amygdala to disengage its automatic fear response. The hippocampus helps to update the memory as safe, and the prefrontal cortex strengthens rational thought so you can approach situations calmly.

The result is a brain that no longer fires off the panic response when you encounter your phobia. Instead, you feel neutral or even confident.

Why Choose Hypnotherapy with Dean?

At my practice in Huddersfield and Scunthorpe, I’ve seen people overcome all kinds of phobias using this approach, from fear of flying and needles to social anxiety and medical fears. I’m a qualified Solution-Focused Hypnotherapist, accredited by AfSFH and NCH, and I work in a compassionate, science-based way to help my clients achieve lasting change.

Sessions are available in person and online, so you can start your journey wherever you feel most comfortable.

Take Your First Step to Freedom

Your phobia doesn’t define you, and it doesn’t have to control your life anymore. With the Rewind and Reframe Protocol, you could take back control in as little as three sessions.

To find out more or book your free initial chat, visit www.hypnotherapywithdean.com. You can also email hello@hypnotherapywithdean.com or call 07476 890168. For tips and updates, follow me on Instagram @hypnotherapywithdean and Facebook Hypnotherapy with Dean.

Share Your Story

Have you lived with a phobia? What has helped you so far? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Share in the comments below or join the conversation on my socials.