If you’re scared of dogs and flinch at the thought of having to even pass a dog on the other side of the street, let alone get close to a dog, then you suffer from cynophobia.

There are a few things you can do to help overcome your fear of dogs:

Depending on how deep rooted your fear is, start looking at dogs in a safe environment, such as pictures of dogs on the web. Just do an image search on Google and you’ll see pictures of dogs that other people think are cute. The good news about images is that they don’t bark or jump up at you in an attempt to make friends.

Once you’re comfortable with that, move on to YouTube videos – you’ll start to get used to the noises associated with dogs and you’ll see people making friends with dogs.

Next up in your training is to meet dogs that are on a leash. This might still be a bit scary the first few times you try it. But next time you’re out walking in town or a park, ignore your instinct and let the occasional dog on a leash approach you. A wagging tail and a smile from the owner are usually giveaways that the dog is OK. But remember that dogs can be scared of humans too, so don’t force contact if the dog appears nervous.

Once you’re comfortable with this, it’s time to meet up with dogs who aren’t on a leash. This can take a while, so don’t worry if you can’t manage initially. Talk to friends and co-workers to find out who knows a friendly dog for you to start with – you’re looking for a dog who’s happy around humans but doesn’t jump up and try to climb up you and slobber you with kisses the minute you meet, because that can be overpowering even for people who get on well with dogs.

Gradually increase your comfort levels and you’ll begin to find how nice most dogs really are!

Another way is to use a hypnosis track to stop your fear of dogs. You’ll learn how to overcome your fear of dogs without worrying about it. It’s as simply a matter of listening to a soothing recording that will work with you to stop your dog phobia.