Do you live in the Aurora area?
Do you find yourself afraid of answering a phone? Do you secretly take the stairs to your office every day because you’re afraid of the elevator? The statistics show that an alarming 12 million people struggle with a phobia in the United States. A phobia is defined as a persistent, or irrational fear of a specific object, activity, or situation that leads to a compelling desire to avoid it. There are three types of phobias; social phobia, which is the fear of social settings and social interactions, agoraphobia, which is the fear of a specific place or situation where escape may be difficult, and specific phobia which is where an individual has a specific fear of an object or situation such as public speaking, plains, or heights. Phobias are very common. Sometimes they start in childhood for no obvious reason; sometimes the phobia may emerge after a traumatic event; and other times they develop from an attempt to make sense of an unexpected anxiety or panic.
Therapy treatment in regards to a phobia is treated with the highest level of compassion, patience, and direction. First, the therapist completes an extensive phobia intake whereby the therapist and client discuss the history of the phobia, process through different emotions with the phobia, and discuss possible triggers to the phobia. With the information gathered the therapist and client develop a treatment plan to assistant the client in confronting the phobia and alleviating the fear. The therapist discusses different tools and strategies to confront the fear and process the frightened thoughts when they come. Then, through a process of systematic desensitization the therapist and client create a hierarchal list of feared events relating to their particular phobia. With this list, the therapist and client together work at exposing the client to the feared event slowly and respectfully.
Living with a phobia can feeling enslaving to its victims. Do not let fear stop you from being the person you want to be. You do not have to life in fear; there is help out there. Call us today for an initial consultation at 303-481-4229.