Table of Contents
What is the key procedure in exposure therapy for phobia?
Exposure involves gradually and repeatedly going into feared situations until you feel less anxious. Exposure is not dangerous and will not make the fear worse. And after a while, your anxiety will naturally lessen. But in general, it is possible to perform exposure therapy yourself. If you truly believe you can handle exposure therapy, it is one of the most powerful ways to reduce anxiety. During exposure therapy, a therapist guides you through the process of confronting whatever causes you anxiety. There are three techniques one might experience in exposure therapy: in vivo, imaginal and flooding. Psychotherapy. Talking with a mental health professional can help you manage your specific phobia. Exposure therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy are the most effective treatments. Exposure therapy focuses on changing your response to the object or situation that you fear. Ethical concerns regarding exposure treatment for anxiety include fears of symptom exacerbation, high treatment dropout rates, client safety concerns, and the blurring of boundary lines between therapists and clients. Exposure therapy is an essential component of evidence-based cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) treatments for phobia, panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and social anxiety disorder.
Does exposure therapy work for phobias?
Exposure therapy works by gradually increasing the level of exposure to your fear, which allows you to gain control over your phobia. As the treatment progresses, you should begin to feel less anxious about your phobia. There are 4 major theories that attempt to explain the psychological mechanisms of exposure therapy: habituation, extinction, emotional processing, and self-efficacy (Table 2). Habituation theory purports that after repeated presentations of a stimulus, the response to that stimulus will decrease. Cognitive behavioral treatment for phobias involves un-pairing the anxiety response from the feared situation. CBT is able to do this partly by identifying problematic or irrational thinking patterns, and helping people take on new, more adaptive ways of thinking about challenging situations. Essentially, patients are exposed to feared objects, such as a contaminated door handle or difficult thoughts, like a loved one dying in a car crash, over and over again until their anxiety has decreased. People who have OCD are prevented from engaging in rituals or compulsions during the exposure.
Can exposure therapy make phobias worse?
Limitations of Exposure Therapy Some professionals believe that exposure therapy may make symptoms worse, especially when dealing with PTSD. Additionally, exposure therapy is difficult work that causes people to feel and confront things that they have worked hard to avoid. Exposure therapy is effective for the treatment of anxiety disorders. According to EBBP.org, about 60 to 90 percent of people have either no symptoms or mild symptoms of their original disorder after completing their exposure therapy. In exposure therapy, a person is exposed to a situation, event, or object that triggers anxiety, fear, or panic for them. Over a period of time, controlled exposure to a trigger by a trusted person in a safe space can lessen the anxiety or panic. They identify nine strategies which clinicians can use to maximize the effectiveness of exposure therapy including: expectancy violation, deepened extinction, occasional reinforced extinction, removal of safety signals, variability, retrieval cues, multiple contexts, reconsolidating, and affect labelling. How long does Exposure Therapy take? Exposure usually works relatively quickly, within a few weeks or a few months. A full course of treatment typically takes anywhere from 10 to 20 sessions, depending on the issue and how fast the client prefers to move through the process. Flooding therapy is an intensive type of exposure therapy in which you must face your fear at a maximum level of intensity for an extended amount of time. There’s no avoiding the situation and no attempt on the therapist’s part to reduce your anxiety or fear.
What is the first line treatment for specific phobia?
First-line treatment for specific phobia is cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) that includes exposure treatment [8]. Pharmacotherapy, specifically benzodiazepines have a limited role in treatment of specific phobia. CBT has a very high success rate in treating phobias, with upwards of 90% of people who receive CBT achieving full remission after only ten sessions of treatment. The basic treatment of choice for the phobic disorders involves what is called graduated exposure to the phobic stimulus. This means that the person is gradually and gently brought into contact with the avoided object or situations until he or she “gets used to ” it. The most common phobias include claustrophobia, social phobia, and arachnophobia. Rare phobias include ablutophobia, alektrophobia, and phobophobia. Effective phobia treatment can involve therapy, medication, or both, which help the individual better cope with their phobia.
How do you treat phobias naturally?
Relaxation, visualization, and breathing techniques can be used to help overcome phobias. 9 These techniques can be used during the desensitization process, when encountering what is feared, and even when thinking about possibly encountering the fear in the future. A phobia is a type of anxiety disorder. It is an extreme form of fear or anxiety, triggered by a particular situation or object. A situation that triggers a phobia. You may know it’s safe to be out on a balcony in a high-rise block, but feel terrified to go out on it. 1. Social Phobia: Fear of Social Interactions. Also known as Social Anxiety Disorder, social phobias are by far the most common fear or phobia our Talkspace therapists see in their clients. Although specific phobias often begin in childhood, their incidence peaks during midlife and old age. Phobias persist for several years or even decades in 10–30% of cases, and are strongly predictive of onset of other anxiety, mood, and substance-use disorders. Some people may experience multiple phobias. They can be broadly categorised into two groups: Specific phobias. Complex phobias.
What approach is best used to treat phobias?
The most effective treatment for phobias is psychotherapy. This involves working with a specially trained therapist to change your beliefs about the feared object or situation in an effort to manage your emotional response. Negative experiences. Many phobias develop as a result of having a negative experience or panic attack related to a specific object or situation. Genetics and environment. There may be a link between your own specific phobia and the phobia or anxiety of your parents — this could be due to genetics or learned behavior. Exposure therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy are the most effective treatments. Exposure therapy focuses on changing your response to the object or situation that you fear. A fear-inducing situation activates a small group of neurons in the amygdala. Exposure therapy silences these fear neurons, causing them to be less active. As a result of this reduced activity, fear responses are alleviated. Panic Disorder and Specific Phobias People who have a phobia will experience panic and anxiety when thinking about or being exposed to their fear. Panic disorder sufferers, on the other hand, are not generally triggered by a specific fear. People with panic disorder experience panic attacks suddenly and unexpectedly. But in general, it is possible to perform exposure therapy yourself. If you truly believe you can handle exposure therapy, it is one of the most powerful ways to reduce anxiety.
Can a phobia be cured?
Almost all phobias can be successfully treated and cured. Treating simple phobias involves gradually becoming exposed to the animal, object, place or situation that causes fear. This is known as desensitisation or self-exposure therapy. Almost all phobias can be successfully treated and cured. Treating simple phobias involves gradually becoming exposed to the animal, object, place or situation that causes fear. This is known as desensitisation or self-exposure therapy. Relaxation, visualization, and breathing techniques can be used to help overcome phobias. 9 These techniques can be used during the desensitization process, when encountering what is feared, and even when thinking about possibly encountering the fear in the future. A phobia can develop during childhood, adolescence or early adulthood. They can be linked to a frightening event or stressful situation. However, it’s not always clear why some phobias occur. Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia is one of the longest words in the dictionary — and, in an ironic twist, is the name for a fear of long words. Sesquipedalophobia is another term for the phobia. The American Psychiatric Association doesn’t officially recognize this phobia. Ethical concerns regarding exposure treatment for anxiety include fears of symptom exacerbation, high treatment dropout rates, client safety concerns, and the blurring of boundary lines between therapists and clients.