How phobias develop?
People develop phobias after common experiences such as these. Those who had inhibited temperaments in childhood and neurotic personalities in adulthood are more vulnerable, and this vulnerability has a substantial genetic component.
A study that followed a sample of young women over a 17-month period found that those who developed phobias tended to have more pre-existing psychological problems, poorer coping skills and a more pessimistic mindset than their peers.
Treatment:
Luckily for phobia sufferers, treatment is generally quick and effective. Cognitive-behaviour therapists have an assortment of techniques for confronting fears and challenging the avoidance and thinking biases that sustain them. Usually these methods involve progressive exposure to the feared object or situation up the steps of a “fear hierarchy”, from relatively nonthreatening encounters to the most terrifying.
These “behavioural experiments” are often supplemented by relaxation techniques, modelling of exposure by the therapist and correction of catastrophic thoughts.
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