Table of Contents
What is the objective of prolonged exposure therapy?
Program Goals Prolonged Exposure (PE) Therapy is a cognitive–behavioral treatment program to reduce the symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anger, guilt, and general anxiety.
What is an example of prolonged exposure therapy?
One example might be: A mother is driving in a car with her daughter, the car collides with an oncoming vehicle. The daughter dies in the accident, but the mother survives. The mother avoids driving from then on. A prolonged exposure therapist guides the mother to approach the trauma of her memory.
What are the steps of prolonged exposure therapy?
Prolonged exposure therapy, or PE, for PTSD includes the following treatment components: Breathing retraining for a few minutes in session 1; education about common reactions to trauma; imaginal exposure, which is the reliving and imagination to the trauma memory; in vivo exposure, which is in real life exposure to …
What are the 4 principles of exposure therapy?
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.
What is the principle of exposure therapy?
Exposure therapy involves exposing the target patient to the anxiety source or its context without the intention to cause any danger (desensitization). Doing so is thought to help them overcome their anxiety or distress.
What is the effect of prolonged exposure?
Prolonged exposure teaches individuals to gradually approach their trauma-related memories, feelings and situations. They presumably learn that trauma-related memories and cues are not dangerous and do not need to be avoided.
What age is prolonged exposure therapy?
PE-A is designed to treat adolescents (aged 13-18) who are diagnosed with PTSD or who manifest trauma-related symptoms.
What are the negatives of prolonged exposure therapy?
Some of the cons include: Depending on where you live, it can be difficult to find a therapist with training in prolonged exposure therapy (although teletherapy can help address this problem). PE therapy requires you to experience unpleasant feelings and memories.
What are the disadvantages of exposure therapy?
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.
What is another name for exposure therapy?
The most common treatment that includes exposure is called cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). A key element of CBT is talking about thoughts, fears, and feelings. I often find that simply talking through thoughts about a topic exposes people to their fears.
What are the benefits of exposure therapy?
- Habituation: Over time, people find that their reactions to feared objects or situations decrease.
- Extinction: Exposure can help weaken previously learned associations between feared objects, activities or situations and bad outcomes.
What technique is used in exposure therapy?
Often, they use a graded approach, where they start by exposing you to a mildly feared stimulus or a mild version of your stimulus. Over time, your therapist will expose you to more feared stimuli in a safe environment. The number of sessions and length of time your treatment will take depends on your progress.