We watched a TV show last night about magic tricks that went horribly wrong.
Some were unlucky accidents, like the gun malfunction that killed American magician, Chung Ling Soo during his bullet catch trick.
Some were just plain stooopid, like the guy who failed to escape his handcuffs and was dragged behind a speeding race car.
But the one that stood out for me the most was the Siegfried and Roy show where Roy was mauled by one of the white tigers.
At least that’s what I’d always thought had happened.
But according to the programme, the white tiger, Mantecore, wasn’t trying to kill him at all.
It was trying to protect him.
Apparently, Roy suffered a mini-stroke on stage, and the tiger, sensing that something was wrong, picked him up by the neck to move him away from danger – just as a mother would do to protect her cub.
It’s the same with phobias, anxiety and even problem behaviours.
Your brain isn’t trying to make your life a misery.
It’s trying to protect you.
But, just like the tiger, this protection isn’t always very helpful. And it comes at a high price.
For Roy, it was the end of his magic career.
For you, it might be missing out on the things you really want in life.
The good news is that, unlike a mother’s instinct to protect her cub, your brain’s protection mechanisms are all learned.
And that means you can change them.
If you’d like me to help you do this, book a date in my diary.
Heidi Woodgate