Online Therapy for Phobias
On the United We Care mental health platform, you can find therapists who are trained to help people with phobias understand and treat their phobias and emotional responses.
What is a Phobia?
Do you have a fear of insects, water or heights to an extent that you find it hard to stay emotionally stable when put in such a situation? This might be a phobia. A phobia is an intense irrational fear or anxiety about a specific object or situation.
Types of Phobias
The most common phobias include:
- Acrophobia - fear of heights
- Aerophobia - fear of flying
- Arachnophobia - fear of spiders
- Astraphobia - fear of thunder and lightning
- Autophobia - fear of being alone
- Claustrophobia -fear of confined or crowded spaces
- Hemophobia -fear of blood
- Hydrophobia - fear of water
- Ophidiophobia - fear of snakes
- Zoophobia - fear of animals
Examples of Phobias
One could have a phobia of flying, heights, animals, receiving an injection, or seeing blood.
Effects of Phobias
People with phobias can develop psychological disorders like social anxiety disorder, separation anxiety disorder, panic disorder, OCD, trauma related disorder, eating disorder or schizophrenic disorders. Phobias can intervene with a person’s daily functioning and create chaos in their social, personal and professional life.
Causes of Phobias
Phobias are usually caused due to an uncomfortable or stressful experience of the phobic object in childhood, high anxiety paired with the phobic object, a frightening event, or learned behavior by someone at home or in the family.
Symptoms of Phobias
The common symptoms of phobia are out of proportion fear and anxiety, vomiting, fatigue, trouble functioning, shaking, goose bumps, and rapid breathing.
Therapy for Phobias | Phobia Treatment
Phobias can be treated by 2 main approaches: Medication and Psychotherapy.
Medication
Medication is used to reduce the symptoms of phobias. Medication works better when used in conjunction with psychotherapy.
Psychotherapy
In psychotherapy, the two main therapies are used to treat phobias are:
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
The purpose of CBT is to help the client overcome negative automatic thoughts which results in phobic reactions, and teaching them to overcome their fear by changing the way they think and react.
Exposure Therapy
In exposure therapy, also known as desensitization, the client is exposed to the fear gradually.
Getting Rid of Phobias | Natural Remedies for Phobia Treatment
Dealing with phobias can be stressful. Here are a few natural ways to treat phobias without medication or therapy:
Physical Activity
Physical activity like walking, running or stretching for 30 minutes daily helps in the production of endorphins, which improves and reduces anxiety.
Relaxation Through Breathing
When you feel anxious, find a comfortable place to sit or lie down. Gently close your eyes, breathe in and out while you count from 1 to 10.
Mindful Meditation
In simple terms, moment-by-moment awareness helps identify triggers and manage them effectively.