How To Overcome Bridge Phobia

By Maria M. Moller


Being afraid of dogs isn't something to be taken lightly. Although dogs are supposed to be man's best friend - and although they've been the longest domesticated animal - that doesn't stop you from freezing in your tracks when confronted by a dog. Whether it's a seemingly friendly dog, wagging its tail, or a menacing one baring its teeth. So what can you do to overcome your cynophobia?

There are various treatments in common use for this phobia. You may instinctively know which one is likely to be best for you or it may be a process of trial and error to see which one produces the best results for you. We're all different - in much the same way as there are many breeds of dogs, each with their own temperament and personality - which means there's no one size fits all treatment.

Modeling, another component of phobia treatment, is normally used together with systematic desensitization. In this case, the therapist must perform or model the right behavior first before asking the client to do the same. By observing the therapist, the client learns to associate calm responses to the therapist's behavior towards the feared object or situation. The last component of this method is flooding, which entails the client, who is taught relaxation techniques, to be consistently exposed to the feared object until the OCD or phobia is extinguished. This treatment is the least preferred by clients because of the great distress it can cause them.

A special type of phobia, the blood-injection-injury phobia, needs a different kind of phobia treatment. People who are inflicted with this experience a critical decrease in blood pressure and heart rate which can lead to fainting. The phobia treatment technique used for this case is the applied tension technique. The therapist teaches the clients during treatment how to tense muscles in the arms, legs and chest until they can feel the blood rising up to their cheeks. This method increases the blood pressure and heart rate, keeping the phobic person from fainting when faced with blood-injection injuries.

There are other types of phobia treatment available. Cognitive-behavioral treatments combine the behavioral techniques mentioned above with cognitive techniques that help in identifying and challenging distressing thoughts about the feared objects. This type of treatment is very effective for social phobia since it can be administered in a group setting. Biological treatments are the last type of method. People are prescribed with medicines such as benzodiazepines, monoamine oxidase inhibitors and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors to provide temporary relief, since they cannot extinguish phobias. There are also studies that proved that relapse happens soon after stopping the medication. To sum it up, it eems that behavior therapy, the best method, still involves the adage "confront your fears."

Extremely shy individuals only feel at ease when family members and very close friends are around. However, situations where the people are unfamiliar or if they have to communicate with a group of new individuals are very difficult for them to deal with. Social phobia may get in the way of any individual's life that's why it should be properly dealt with.

These negative experiences and beliefs can be self perpetuating. The phobic person does not see his or her part in the break-up. This reinforces the belief that he or she can not trust members of the same sex and so rejects the next person who gets close.There are some classic behaviors exhibited by phobic men and women. For clarity's sake we will use he in this list of common commitment phobic behaviors. You may see yourself or a friend in some or many of these behaviors.

A history of short relationships - he may bolt when he senses you are looking for a commitment. He may be quite satisfied with a long distance relationship and resist suggestions that either of you move to be closer.He will be moody and distant and blame you for his behavior.He refuses to plan ahead because this represents commitment for him.He is evasive and secretive in order to keep you out of his space.He is not willing to socialize with your friends and family for fear this will be construed as commitment.We could go on for pages and pages listing behaviors common to commitment phobics. However one or two of these behaviors in an individual does not make him a candidate for commitment phobia and fear treatment and cure.

Dental phobia may stem from your fear of pain, of needles, of the effects of anesthesia, unpleasant experiences with past dentists, or the fear of entrusting your mouth to a total stranger. It is therefore important to find a supportive dentist or orthodontist like those in Hornchurch or Brentwood whom you can trust and feel at ease with. Ask your friends or relatives to recommend dentists they have tried before and are satisfied with the treatment they got.

Support System.As much as therapy and medications can help in anxiety attack treatment, so does family and close friends as support system to an individual. One becomes more courageous if he knows that the important people in his life are supportive of him. Further, while he is taking small steps, setting a small goal and gradually reaching for it, the encouragements in between of family and friends will go a long way.Combating social anxiety is never easy but with the help of social phobia treatment and the support of family and friends, an individual can slowly confront anxiety. One can learn management of fear, coping with an anxiety attack symptom and develop confidence in dealing with social situations.




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment