which treatment is not effective for treating specific phobias

What phobias cant be cured?

What is the first-line treatment for a specific phobia?

How effective is exposure therapy for phobias?

What drugs are used to treat phobias?

How does specific phobia get worse?

How are specific phobias maintained?

How does phobia treatment work?

Which psychotherapy would use systematic desensitization to treat a person with a specific phobia?

What is the best therapy for phobias?

Exposure therapy . Exposure therapy is one of the most commonly used forms of therapy for specific phobias. This type of therapy involves facing the very thing causing your anxiety. In this therapy, you’ll gradually approach the object or situation that causes you fear and anxiety.

Can phobias be treated?

The good news is that specific phobias can be treated. There are many ways to find relief from your symptoms and ease your anxiety.

What is a specific phobia?

Specific phobias usually center on one particular thing — an object, a situation, or a circumstance. Maybe you have a fear of flying or driving over bridges. Or perhaps the mere thought of snakes or spiders sends you into a tailspin. Whatever specific phobia you have, the fear can become so overwhelming that you go out of your way to avoid it.

Can phobias be exhausting?

If you have a specific phobia, you’re not alone. Many people admit to having at least one fear, whether that be of dogs, bugs, the dark, water, or clowns. Phobias can be exhausting. They can also interfere with day-to-day life, preventing you from traveling, going into certain places, or even watching movies or TV shows.

What is persistent fear?

You have a persistent fear that is excessive or unreasonable toward specific objects or situations. Exposure to the object or situation causes immediate anxiety. Your fear is greater than the actual threat. You avoid the object or situation at all costs.

What is CBT therapy?

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is one type of psychotherapy, also known as talk therapy, used for people living with anxiety disorders, such as specific phobias.

Can you take antidepressants for phobias?

Medications are not typically recommended for specific phobias. However, if the phobia starts to interfere with day-to-day life and symptoms become more challenging to manage, medications — such as anti-anxiety medications and antidepressants — might be helpful to lessen symptoms of anxiety.

What is the best treatment for phobias?

Another treatment option for specific phobias that is being explored is glucocorticoids. These are a type of steroid hormone that regulate immune, inflammatory, and stress responses while also potentially affecting learning and memory processes.

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 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.

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.

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 take medication for phobias?

Medication isn't usually recommended for treating phobias, because talking therapies are usually effective and don't have any side effects. However, medication is sometimes prescribed on a short-term basis to treat the effects of phobias, such as anxiety.

What is the name of the drug that is used to treat phobias?

Clomipramine (Anafranil) is a type of tricyclic antidepressant (TCA) that's licensed to treat phobias. Side effects include: Moclobemide (Manerix) is a type of antidepressant from the monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI) group of antidepressants. It's sometimes prescribed to treat social phobia.

Can you avoid flying phobias?

However, it may not always be possible to avoid certain phobias, such as a fear of flying. In this instance, you may decide to get professional help and advice to find out about treatment options.

Can phobias be curable?

In this instance, you may decide to get professional help and advice to find out about treatment options. Most phobias are curable, but no single treatment is guaranteed to work for all phobias. In some cases, a combination of different treatments may be recommended. The main treatment types are: self-help techniques.

How to help phobias?

Talking treatments. Talking treatments, such as counselling, are often very effective at treating phobias. In particular, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and mindfulness have been found to be very effective for treating phobias.

What is CBT therapy?

Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) CBT is a type of counselling that can help you manage your problems by changing the way you think and behave. It can be used to develop practical ways of dealing with your phobia.

What is CBT for phobias?

This is known as desensitisation or exposure therapy.

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 a phobia?

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, and other effects of the phobia so they can be less affected by fear as they move ...

Is phobia a mental health condition?

Addressing Phobias in Therapy. For the most part, phobias are a treatable mental health condition. Once treatment has begun, a phobia is likely to improve and generally does not have long-lasting effects. Those experiencing a phobia may obtain significant benefits from therapy, especially when a specific phobia occurs along with another form ...

Is phobia a mental illness?

For the most part, phobias are a treatable mental health condition. Once treatment has begun, a phobia is likely to improve and generally does not have long-lasting effects. Those experiencing a phobia may obtain significant benefits from therapy, especially when a specific phobia occurs along with another form of anxiety or a diagnosable personality disorder, as this comorbidity is believed to lead to an increased risk of suicidal ideation and attempts.

Can a phobia be discussed?

Those with phobias are generally aware of them, and many are readily able to discuss the condition with a mental health professional. Some may find their symptoms embarrassing or distressing, and they may be reluc tant to discuss their phobia, which can be a barrier to effective treatment.

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 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 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 a phobia?

SDI Productions/Getty Images. A phobia is a strong but irrational fear of something specific — usually an object, a situation, a person, or an experience. Having a phobia is not uncommon: According to the National Institute of Mental Health, an estimated 12.5 percent of U.S. adults will experience a phobia at some point in their lifetimes. ...

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 are the symptoms of a phobia?

sweaty palms. an increased heart rate. quick breathing. Phobias magnify those symptoms even further. About half the people who have specific phobias describe them as mild. The other half say their symptoms are moderate to severe. Sometimes, simply thinking about the source of a phobia can prompt a flood of anxiety.

Does mindfulness help with social phobia?

Trusted Source. , mindfulness techniques combined with cognitive behavioral therapy improved participants’ social phobia symptoms in the long term. And recent research has shown that mindfulness techniques can be used along with exposure therapy to curb the effects of anxiety.

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.

What is the best treatment for phobias?

A beta-blocker your physician may prescribe is Inderal (propranolol). Some beta-blockers provide short-term phobia relief because they slow your heart rate and decrease your blood pressure. They might be useful if you suffer from social phobia but must give a speech. Possible side effects of beta-blockers include:

Can you stop taking phobia pills?

In addition, some people do not like the way certain drugs make them feel. The risks of discontinuation vary by the type of medications you are on, but it is never a good idea to simply stop taking any medications without consulting your doctor.

Is medication more common for social phobia?

Medication is more common in the treatment of social phobia and agoraphobia than for specific phobia. 1 . People with social phobia, or social anxiety disorder, feel intensely self-conscious and tend to avoid social interaction.

What is a person's fear of a specific object or situation?

People with social phobia , or social anxiety disorder, feel intensely self-conscious and tend to avoid social interaction. Agoraphobics are afraid of places or situations that make them feel trapped, alone, and helpless. Specific phobia is a fear of a specific object or situation (for example, a fear of dogs or thunder ).

What is a specific phobia?

Specific phobia is a fear of a specific object or situation (for example, a fear of dogs or thunder ). All phobias are a form of anxiety disorder, so most medications address that issue.

What are the best medications for social phobia?

Other medications that have been studied for the treatment of social phobia include: 1 . Antiepileptic drugs: gabapentin, Lyrica (pregabalin), Keppra (levetiracetam) Tricyclic antidepressants: Tofranil ( imipramine) and Anafranil (clomipramine)

Why are beta blockers good for phobias?

Some beta-blockers provide short-term phobia relief because they slow your heart rate and decrease your blood pressure. They might be useful if you suffer from social phobia but must give a speech. Possible side effects of beta-blockers include: Cold fingers. Sleep problems and feeling tired.

Can a phobia be treated in vivo?

This therapy appears to be useful for phobias that may be difficult to treat in vivo; namely, flying phobias (where repeated plane flights are impractical) and height phobias, but more studies are needed to demonstrate its efficacy for a broader range of phobia subtypes.

Why are phobias maintained?

From a behavioral perspective, specific phobias are maintained because of avoidance of the phobic stimuli so that the individual does not have the opportunity to learn ...

How long does a spider phobia treatment last?

The treatment usually last a number of hours, and can be administered in one very long session (e.g., one 3-hour session for spider phobia) or across multiple sessions (e.g., three to eight 1-1.5-hour-long sessions). A range of specific phobias respond well to in vivo treatment, although treatment acceptance and dropout can be a problem.

Does cognitive therapy help with flying phobia?

Evidence regarding the utility of cognitive therapy for flying phobia is mixed, and it is not clear that adding cognitive therapy to exposure therapy for other phobia types improves outcomes.

Is systematic desensitization better than in vivo?

Treatment using systematic desensitization tends to take longer than in vivo exposure , and appears to be more effective at changing subjective anxiety than at reducing avoidance. Thus, it is not recommended as the first line of treatment if a client is willing to try in vivo or an alternate form of exposure therapy.

Therapies

Prescription Medications

Adjunctive Treatment

Alternative Treatments

Summary

• 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. Treatments with D-cycloserine and glucocorticoids have been studie...

See more on verywellhealth.com

A Word from Verywell