Anxiety, basic

Karen Horney coined the term primal fear. She described this as a child's fear of being left alone by his or her parents. A child is unable to survive without the help and care of adults and would be exposed to a hostile environment, nature, unpredictability and ultimately death. In hypnosis, fears are often a central theme. These range from generalized and diffuse fears, to specific phobias, often based on fundamental childhood experiences. Primal fear is thus also a major theme in hypnosis.