How do medications treat specific phobias?
The main approach to treating specific phobia is a type of therapy called cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Medications are not a common treatment option, but in some circumstances they may form part of a treatment plan. 2
What are the different types of phobia therapy?
Types of Therapy for Phobias Many therapeutic approaches to phobia treatment involve slowly exposing a person to the thing they fear and addressing underlying beliefs that may be contributing to the phobia. Exposure therapy, also known as systematic desensitization, has been shown to be an effective phobia treatment method.
What is exposure therapy for phobia?
Exposure therapy, also known as systematic desensitization, has been shown to be an effective phobia treatment method.
Can phobias be cured?
By “unlearning” the response and substituting rational reactions, the phobia can be cured. This model favors therapy as a preferred treatment. Many phobia sufferers are best treated with a combination of medication and therapy. Most psychiatrists do not perform the types of therapy best suited to phobia treatment.
What is the best treatment for phobias?
When it comes to dealing with a specific phobia, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy can help particularly with a component of CBT called Exposure Response Prevention (also known as exposure therapy). There are manuals that providers can use for treating specific phobias with ERP.
How to help a phobia?
Here are the tips from Dr. Carole: Tips. Tip#1: The most effective treatment for phobias is intensive psychotherapy. Talk therapy at least once a week can get to the root of the phobia. For example, someone who has a phobia of snakes may have been sexually abused as a child.
How many people overcome social phobias?
National Institute of Mental Health, around seventy-five percent of individuals with specific phobias overcome their fears through CBT, while eighty percent of those with social phobia are relieved through medication, CBT, or a combination of both. Connect with Dr. Kim Chronister –. Back to Top.
What is cognitive behavior therapy?
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is an evidence-based and highly effective talking therapy which can help you manage specific phobias (e.g. phobias about specific objects or situations such as a fear of dogs or a fear of heights) and more complex phobias including social anxiety and agoraphobia.
What is MBCT in psychology?
With MBCT, a client can learn how to use cognitive methods and mindfulness meditation to interrupt the process that triggers the response. MBCT also helps clients learn how to recognize their sense of themselves as separate from their thoughts and moods.
What is exposure therapy?
Exposure therapy, a type of cognitive-behavioral therapy, is one of the most effective types of treatment for phobias. There are some innovative new types of exposure therapy that use virtual reality. Some clients also respond well to hypnotherapy. Connect with Janet Civitelli –.
How to calm down a panic attack?
They can even help you during a panic attack. Yoga is great to keep the balance in your mind and your body. Meditation can help you to accept and to let go of negative thoughts. PMR (progressive muscle relaxation) will help you to focus solely on your muscles and give you a deep state of relaxation.
What is the best treatment for phobias?
Exposure therapy is the gold standard for treating phobias. Many people have also had success with cognitive behavioral therapy, which aims to replace cognitive distortions with realistic ideas about what scares you. If you’ve ever experienced a phobia, you probably already know that the terror you feel isn’t rational.
How to help someone with phobias?
It may be a good idea to work with a therapist to learn mindfulness techniques. Practicing them often on your own as well can help you use them when you’re face-to-face with a phobia. Here are some mindfulness techniques that may be helpful: meditation. deep breathing.
How to reduce anxiety and phobias?
Mindfulness training. Mindfulness techniques can help reduce the level of stress you feel. This technique may not stop the initial rush of anxiety a phobia can release, but mindfulness training may help you lessen the severity of the fear. It may be a good idea to work with a therapist to learn mindfulness techniques.
What is CBT therapy?
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) often incorporates the same systematic desensitization methods used in exposure therapy. CBT also focuses on the specific thoughts and beliefs you have associated with the phobias.
How to calm a phobia?
Once you’re equipped to calm yourself when under stress, you and your therapist can build a hierarchy of experiences related to your phobias. Include the least scary ones at the bottom and the biggest fears at the top. Exposure therapy is a way of gradually bringing you closer to something you fear.
How do you know if you need therapy for a phobia?
How to know when you need therapy for a phobia. Lots of people have an unconventional fear or two. Spiders may give you the heebie-jeebies. Your chest may tighten as the airplane you’re on taxis along the runway. Sometimes, being confronted with these fears brings on a barrage of anxiety symptoms like: sweaty palms.
What is exposure therapy?
Exposure therapy is a way of gradually bringing you closer to something you fear. It usually begins first in your imagination, then in various representations, perhaps cartoons, drawings, or photographs. As you approach each one, your therapist guides you in using your relaxation skills to calm your anxiety.
What is the first line of treatment for phobias?
The first-line treatment for specific phobia is exposure therapy . Prescription medications are not considered to be effective as the only treatment. But antidepressants, anti-anxiety medications, and beta blockers might be used in addition to therapy or to treat comorbid conditions.
What is the best medication for anxiety?
Anti-anxiety medication can help rapidly reduce the symptoms of anxiety and panic attacks. The most common of these are called benzodiazepines, which are a type of sedative. These include Klonopin (clonazepam), Valium (diazepam), and Ativan (lorazepam) .
What is the best herbal medicine for anxiety?
The most widely studied herbal medication in relation to anxiety disorders is a compound called kava. This comes from the kava kava plant, which is a member of the pepper family.
What is the most common antidepressant?
Antidepressants are used to treat depression, but they can also be helpful for treating anxiety disorders. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) are the most common antidepressants used as first-line treatments for anxiety.
Can you avoid phobias?
While avoidance can be useful for some with specific phobia, it can be damaging if it involves changing your life dramatically. Seeking treatment from a medical professional may help you live a healthier and less restrictive life.
Can medications be used for phobias?
As mentioned above, it is believed that medications by themselves are of limited use in the treatment of specific phobias. But there have been investigations into whether some medications might be effective at enhancing therapy treatment of specific phobias when taken alongside, before, or after exposure therapy.
What is the best therapy for phobias?
Many therapeutic approaches to phobia treatment involve slowly exposing a person to the thing they fear and addressing underlying beliefs that may be contributing to the phobia. Exposure therapy , also known as systematic desensitization, has been shown to be an effective phobia treatment method.
How to deal with a phobia?
It it often the case that the object of a phobia might present itself without warning. In these instances, there may not be time for a person to seek professional help, and it may be necessary for them to use relaxation techniques in order to cope and avoid escalating their fear response. Coping strategies people may use when forced to expose themselves to a phobia include: 1 Focusing on or slowing down breathing. 2 Learn about your phobia. Sometimes, education about the object of a phobia may help slow down the fear response associated with it. 3 Progressive muscle relaxation. Practice tensing up and relaxing different muscle groups, focusing all attention on that activity.
How to overcome a phobia?
Hypnotherapy may help some manage and overcome a phobia. Most often led by a therapist, hypnotherapy involves taking the person with a phobia through the process of guided visualization. They may imagine they are encountering the object of their phobia and then practice self-soothing techniques. Eye movement and desensitization ...
What is Claudia's phobia of hot water?
Addressing phobia of hot water in therapy: Claudia, 23, enters therapy, reporting an extreme fear of being burned by hot water. Her phobia is such that she experiences extreme anxiety when showering, doing dishes, or washing her hands because she worries the water will suddenly become hotter and burn her.
What is content vs phobia?
Contents v. Phobias. Treatment for Phobias. Types of Phobias. A phobia is a fear related to certain objects or situations. When a phobia is so severe that it interferes with a person’s ability to function, a therapist or other mental health professional may be able to help them address and explore ways to overcome fear, anxiety, ...
Can phobias present themselves without warning?
It it often the case that the object of a phobia might present itself without warning. In these instances, there may not be time for a person to seek professional help, and it may be necessary for them to use relaxation techniques in order to cope and avoid escalating their fear response.
Does Claudia remember her phobia?
The therapist asks Claudia if she remembers when the phobia began, but she cannot tell him. It takes some time in therapy, but eventually Claudia is able to recall several instances from early childhood—the memories of which she had buried—of her mother punishing her by holding her hands under running water.
What is the best treatment for phobias?
The best treatment for specific phobias is a form of psychotherapy called exposure therapy. Sometimes your doctor may also recommend other therapies or medication. Understanding the cause of a phobia is actually less important than focusing on how to treat the avoidance behavior that has developed over time.
How does treatment help with phobias?
The goal of treatment is to improve quality of life so that you're no longer limited by your phobias. As you learn how to better manage and relate to your reactions, thoughts and feelings, you'll find that your anxiety and fear are reduced and no longer in control of your life. Treatment is usually directed at one specific phobia at a time.
How to help phobias?
Generally psychotherapy using exposure therapy is successful in treating specific phobias. However, sometimes medications can help reduce the anxiety and panic symptoms you experience from thinking about or being exposed to the object or situation you fear.
What are the drugs that help you relax?
Sedatives. Medications called benzodiazepines help you relax by reducing the amount of anxiety you feel.
How to overcome phobias?
You can also take some steps on your own: Try not to avoid feared situations. Practice staying near feared situations as frequently as you can rather than avoiding them completely.
What is cognitive behavioral therapy?
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) involves exposure combined with other techniques to learn ways to view and cope with the feared object or situation differently. You learn alternative beliefs about your fears and bodily sensations and the impact they've had on your life.
How to help a child overcome phobias?
Don't reinforce specific phobias. Take advantage of opportunities to help children overcome their fears.
Therapies
Prescription Medications
- Slow down breathing if you are having a phobic attack
- Practice relaxation techniques
- Get adequate sleep
- Avoid caffeine and other stimulants
- Challenge negative thoughts about your phobia
- Any type of phobia
- Distress and disturbance in normal routine
See a doctor immediately if you notice:
- Intense and disabling fear
- Loss of consciousness
Adjunctive Treatment
Alternative Treatments
Summary
A Word from Verywell
- Many phobia sufferers are best treated with a combination of medication and therapy. Most psychiatrists do not perform the types of therapy best suited to phobia treatment. Therefore, psychiatrists and therapists often form referral networks to help clients meet both needs. Mental health centers often have a range of mental health specialists on st...