So how do hypnotic techniques help us combat these conditions? First, we must understand that the source of these reactions is within the subconscious mind. It is NOT the chemicals themselves that are doing this to us. It is the immune system's response that is the problem. After all (I used to grumble to myself) many people can live in moldy houses or smell gasoline without being affected in any way. Once this is accepted we can see that hypnosis, the primary strategy for accessing subconscious programming, MUST be a part of any long term solution to this condition. The alternative is symptom suppression with drugs. We must convince the client's subconscious mind in hypnosis that this particular toxin is simply not a threat to the body in the tiny doses that the body is experiencing. We do this by building positive associations in subconscious memory to the smell or taste of these substances, because it is the taste and smell of these things, even subconsciously perceived, which triggers these reactions.

Let me illustrate this with an example. A client was experiencing an unexpectedly severe asthmatic reaction to the smell of a new carpet in his home, a carpet which was out gassing industrial solvents including formaldehyde. In a hypnotic state I had him access the peculiar smell with his hypnotically enhanced imagination, a process referred to as "olfactory hallucination". This process must be accompanied by reassurances that the client's body will not react to this smell in any way. Otherwise, this hallucination has been known to trigger an allergic response in the hypnotized subject. We failed to find any negative memory associated with this smell. Apparently the body just, understandably, found it toxic. I then spoke to his subconscious mind. I told it that this smell was quite safe, that from now on this smell would always remind him of the beauty and pleasure of his beautiful new home, of which he was quite proud, and the new loving wife who shared that home with him. I built up these joyous feelings while he continued at my instruction to breathe in the smell of new carpets, which is now, I suggested, the smell of happiness and romance and a safe home. In one session, his allergic reaction was gone.

Another client who loved cats found herself allergic to them, with strong sinus congestion, burning and sneezing. We discovered in trance that her subconscious mind associated the cat odor, a smell which she was consciously unaware of, with traumatic events from her childhood, connected to a critical mother, in a house with cats. First, we used olfactory hallucination to follow this scent back to what it was "...your nose remembers about this smell that you have forgotten." After rescuing her inner child from these memories of abuse, she found a new home in her imagination with a very safe and loving and affectionate new mother - who had cats, of course. I then encouraged her to breathe in this wonderful smell of cats in the context of this safety and love.