Blindfolds do not usually take up room in your average skier’s rucksack, but for a politician they were once an essential piece of kit.
Due to a fear of heights discovered 37 years ago atop the Eiffel Tower, Sittingbourne and Sheppey MP Derek Wyatt often had to cover his eyes when he was transported up the sides of snowy mountains.
But before a Christmas holiday at the Canadian ski resort of Whistler Blackcomb, the 59-year-old Labour member decided enough was enough and went to see a hypnotherapist.
He said: “I went up the Eiffel Tower when I was 22 and suddenly felt very queasy. It wasn’t something I had ever thought about previously, but I’ve had trouble with any height over about 10 feet ever since.
“I couldn’t go up ladders, I didn’t like open lifts and somebody else had to drive if we were going up narrow road tracks in places like Italy or France.
“I would have to be blindfolded on ski lifts and it got to the point where I knew I had to do something about it.
“If you’ve got children who want to be taken skiing, it’s not much fun if you can’t join in or have lunch with them at the top.”
A hypnotherapist working in London was recommended to Mr Wyatt, who was more than happy with the service he received.
He said: “She booked me in for four sessions of 90 minutes each, but after one session she told me I was cured.
“I’ve no idea how because she put me in a trance and I have no recollection of what happened at all. But apparently she had to wake me up a couple of times because the therapy doesn’t work if you’re asleep.”
Bad weather in the US state of Seattle meant Mr Wyatt and his family were forced to spend the first night of their holiday at a hotel in Hounslow, west London.
They eventually made it to Seattle before stepping on two further flights to Vancouver in Canada, and then finally Whistler for the skiing.
Mr Wyatt said: “I went on the Peak 2 Peak Gondola (which links the two mountains of Whistler and Blackcomb, and is the largest ski lift in the world) and there wasn’t so much of a wobble from me.
“I had hoped the hypnotherapy would work, but at my age I’d try anything to get over my fear. I was delighted when it did.
“I know people who have been helped to quit smoking and all sorts of other things, so I’d certainly recommend it.”
POSTED: 12/01/2009 08:30:00
Bookmark with:
Email to a friend: