phobia

If you have any questions on anxiety, including generalised anxiety, panic attacks, social anxiety, post traumatic stress disorder or phobias, please post them here. (Currently open for pre-clinic questions. These will be answered by Experts from 15 to 21 October 2014).

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karenacoyle
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Joined: Tue May 07, 2013 3:37 pm
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by karenacoyle on Thu Oct 16, 2014 12:33 pm

Re: phobia

Hello
It sounds as if you may be suffering from a phobia but would like to try some self-help measures at home to help resolve your symptoms.
It is difficult to be specific about this as a lot depends on what type of phobia that you may be suffering from - would you like to say a little more about this?

There is help available, no matter how long you may have been suffering from a particular phobia or even if you have had some help previously, but the phobia has not quite resolved.

You may be able to do some self help exercises at home if the phobia you suffer from is mild such as making sure that you try to do some physical exercise, eat a good balanced diet, try to avoid stimulants such as taking a lot of caffeine, do relaxation exercises http://www.netmums.com/parenting-suppor ... ce-anxiety and try to have a good sleep routine.

If these simple measures are not enough, I would suggest that you contact your GP who can refer you to you local mental health team for an assessment, prescribe medication or refer you to a psychologist who may offer a range of therapies such as CBT, psychotherapy or group therapy.

If you are unable to go to your GP, why not consider having a telephone consultation with her and it may be possible for your GP to arrange for a therapist to visit you at home.

You will find further information about the help available for phobias on the NHS here:http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/phobias/Pa ... ction.aspx

I hope this helps.
Briege Coyle
Netmums’ Health Visitor

http://www.talkhealthpartnership.com/on ... _coyle.php

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Wendy Green
Posts: 159
Joined: Thu May 24, 2012 11:27 am
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by Wendy Green on Fri Oct 17, 2014 6:29 pm

Re: phobia

Hi,

There are a few self-help measures you can try to overcome phobias. These include managed exposure, relaxation techniques, and challenging negative thoughts. Below is a brief overview of these techniques.

According to CBT the best way to overcome a phobia is to face your fears until they gradually disappear. This process is known as desensitisation or exposure. The best way to do this is through managed exposure, which involves doing things step-by-step, gradually building up the length of time and degree to which you expose yourself to your fear. To benefit from this approach you shouldn’t put yourself in a position where you feel overwhelmed with fear and take fright or, at the other end of the scale, act so cautiously that you don’t give yourself the opportunity to master your fear.

For example, if you’re frightened of swimming in the deep end of the swimming pool, one extreme might be challenging yourself to dive in at the deep end and the other simply sitting at the side of the pool, at the deep end, dipping your toes in the water. You need find a balance between these two extremes. Your managed exposure programme to overcome your fear of swimming in the deep end might involve starting at the shallow end and swimming along the edge of the pool (so that you can grab the side if you need to) heading towards the deep end, as far as you can without feeling too anxious or panicky. The next time you would swim a little further, until you feel comfortable swimming to the far end of the pool. Your eventual aim could be to swim down the middle of the pool from one end to the other.

Practicing a relaxation technique such as deep breathing, muscle relaxation or a simple meditation whenever you feel panicky will help to calm you down and relieve symptoms like palpitations or that suffocating feeling. Find out more here http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anx ... tress.aspx and here http://www.how-to-meditate.org/

Challenging the negative thoughts that drive your phobia can be an effective way of overcoming it. For example, if you have a fear of flying and you’re on a plane when the pilot warns you there’s going to be some turbulence you might think:’ That’s it, we’re going to crash.’ To challenge this negative thought think of evidence that it might not be true. For example:‘I’ve flown through turbulence before and the plane didn’t crash.’ Or ‘Flying is the safest form of travel, so we’re unlikely to crash’. By challenging and changing your thoughts you should start to feel more relaxed about flying.

I hope these self-help tips help you with your particular phobia. :D
Wendy Green
Health Expert and Author

http://www.talkhealthpartnership.com/on ... _green.php

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Adam Eason
Posts: 56
Joined: Wed Aug 07, 2013 9:16 am
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by Adam Eason on Mon Oct 20, 2014 11:54 am

Re: phobia

In addition to the excellent advice given here, you might also like to read some of the related points made in another thread (about a specific phobia) that I have made:

viewtopic.php?f=689&t=6892
Adam Eason
Clinical & Cognitive Behavioural Hypnotherapist

http://www.talkhealthpartnership.com/on ... _eason.php

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