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Help with phobias?

Fear is a form of anxiety triggered by a situation or an object. We know what it’s like to be afraid in certain situations and change our behaviour accordingly – avoiding dark alleys and standing back from the edge of a cliff. These are understandable responses to situations where we might be harmed. When there is a real threat, for example if you are about to be attacked, fear is a sensible and realistic response, and your body will release adrenaline and prepare for ‘fight or flight’.

A fear becomes a phobia when you have an exaggerated or unrealistic sense of danger about a situation (eg. going outside) or object (eg. buttons). You will often begin to organise your life around avoiding the thing that is causing you anxiety.

Help is at hand

What are the symptoms?

If you have a phobia, you usually won’t have any symptoms until you face the situation or object that you fear. If your phobia is very severe, then even thinking about the object of your phobia can provoke anxiety. Some of the most common signs and symptoms of phobia are in the diagram below.

Causes of phobia

Phobias often begin early in an individual’s life and may occur for a number of reasons. It seems phobias can run in families; however whether this is hereditary or simply learned behaviour is unclear. For example a child may learn a phobia by observing a family member’s reaction to an object or situation. Traumatic experiences and brain chemicals are also believed to influence the development of phobias

What are phobias?

 

Fear is a form of anxiety triggered by a situation or an object. We know what it’s like to be afraid in certain situations and change our behaviour accordingly – avoiding dark alleys and standing back from the edge of a cliff. These are understandable responses to situations where we might be harmed. When there is a real threat, for example if you are about to be attacked, fear is a sensible and realistic response, and your body will release adrenaline and prepare for ‘fight or flight’.

 

A fear becomes a phobia when you have an exaggerated or unrealistic sense of danger about a situation. You will often begin to organise your life around avoiding the thing that is causing you anxiety

 

 

Treatment for phobia

Hypnotherapy can help to identify the root cause of the phobia and enable individuals to react to the particular object or situation they once feared in a calmer manner when encountering it in the future. Phobias are displaced fears and because they are not rational, they can be dealt with.

Hypnotherapy can also help with relaxation and visualisation techniques for desensitisation and forming new habits such as being more calm and relaxed.

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