Face your fears, one step at a time
It's only normal to want the thing or circumstance you fear to be avoided. Yet overcoming your fears is the secret when it comes to conquering phobias. Although avoidance in the short term may make you feel better, it prevents you from discovering that your phobia may not be as terrifying or overwhelming as you think. You never get the chance to learn how to deal with your worries and manage the situation with experience. As a consequence, in your view, the phobia becomes increasingly scarier and more overwhelming.
Through gradually and repeatedly exposing yourself to what you fear in a healthy and controlled manner, the most successful way to resolve a phobia is. You'll learn to ride out the anxiety and fear during this exposure period before it finally passes. Via repeated experiences of your anxiety, you will begin to understand that the worst will not happen; you will not die or "lose it." You will feel more secure and in control with each exposure. The phobia is starting to lose its influence.
It's important to start with a situation that you can handle and work from there on your way up, building your confidence and coping abilities as you move up the "fear ladder."
Compose a list. Create a list of your phobia-related terrifying circumstances. If you're afraid of flying, your list may include buying your ticket, packing your luggage, driving to the airport, watching planes take off and land, going through security, boarding the plane, and listening to the flight attendant present the safety instructions (in addition to the obvious, such as taking a flight or getting through takeoff).
Construct your ladder of fear. Arrange the things from the least terrifying to the most scary on your list. You should be slightly nervous about the first move, but not so scared that you are too intimidated to attempt it. It can be helpful to think about the end goal when designing the ladder (for example, to be able to be close to dogs without panicking) and then break down the steps required to achieve that goal.
Up the ladder, work your way. Start with the first step and don't move on until you feel more at ease doing it. Stay in the situation long enough for the anxiety to decrease, if possible. The more you're exposed to the thing you're scared of, the more you're going to get used to it and the less nervous you're going to feel the next time you face it. If you've taken a step without having too much pressure on many different occasions, you can move on to the next step. Break it down into smaller steps or move slower if a step is too difficult.
Exercise. The more you practice regularly, the faster your improvement will be. Don't hurry, however. Go at a pace that without feeling frustrated you can handle. And remember: when you confront your fears, you can feel uncomfortable and nervous, but the feelings are just temporary. The fear will fade if you stick with it.
Learn to calm down quickly
You experience a number of unpleasant physical symptoms when you're afraid or anxious, such as a pounding heart and a suffocating sensation. These physical stimuli can be terrifying and a major part of what makes your phobia so distressing. You will, however, become more secure in your ability to handle unpleasant feelings and face your fears by learning how to calm yourself down quickly.
Conduct a basic deep breathing workout.
You tend to take quick, rapid breaths (known as hyperventilating) when you're nervous, which actually contributes to the physical feelings of anxiety. You may reverse these physical symptoms and feel less nervous, less out of breath, and less anxious by breathing deeply from the abdomen. Practice when you feel relaxed until the exercise is familiar and comfortable.
With your back straight, sit or stand comfortably. Place your chest in one hand and your stomach in the other.
Take a deep breath, counting up to four, through your nose. Your hand on your stomach should be lifted. The hand can move very little on your stomach.
For a count of seven, hold your breath.
Exhale to a count of eight through your mouth, forcing as much air out as you can while your abdominal muscles contract. The hand on your stomach should shift in when you exhale, but there should be very little movement of the other hand.
Inhale again until you feel comfortable and focused, completing the cycle.
Practice this form of deep breathing twice a day for five minutes. When you're relaxed with the procedure, when dealing with your phobia or in any difficult situation, you should use it.
Use your senses
Sight, sound, taste, scent, touch, or movement are one of the fastest and most effective ways to alleviate anxiety by engaging one or more of your senses. But because everyone is different, in order to learn what works best for you, you will need to do some experimentation.
Movement: Go for a stroll, hop up and down or stretch gently. To relieve anxiety, dancing, drumming, and running can be particularly effective.
Sight-Look at something on the Internet that relaxes you or makes you smile: a stunning view, family pictures, cat videos.
Sound: listening to soothing music, singing a favorite melody or playing a musical instrument. Or enjoy nature's soothing (either live or recorded) sounds: ocean waves, wind through the trees, singing birds.
Smell-Candles with soft scents. Smell the flowers in your backyard. Breathe in the fresh, clean air. Spritz on a favorite perfume for you.
Taste- Eat a favorite treat slowly, savoring each taste. Only drink a cup of herbal tea or coffee. Chew on a gum stick. Enjoy your favourite hard candy or mint.
Touch-Give yourself a massage with your hand or neck. Cuddle with a friend. Cover yourself in a blanket that's soft. Sitting in the cool breeze outside.
Challenge negative thoughts about your phobia
When you have a phobia, if you're introduced to the situation you fear, you appear to overestimate how bad it would be and underestimate your ability to cope. Negative and unrealistic are typically the nervous thoughts that cause and fuel phobias. You will begin to challenge these unhelpful ways of thinking by writing down the negative feelings you have when challenged by your phobia. These thoughts fall into the following categories several times:
Saying Fortune. "For instance, "This bridge is going to collapse;" "I'll certainly make a fool of myself;" "I'll probably lose it when the doors of the elevator close.
Generalisation. Overgeneralization. "Once, I fainted while having a shot. "Without passing out, I would never be able to get a shot again;" "The pit bull lunged at me. Every dog is dangerous.
Catastrophization. The captain informed us that we were going through turbulence. The aircraft is going to crash! "A guy coughed next to me. It's probably swine flu. I could get really sick! ”
Review them until you've defined your negative feelings. In order to get started, use the following example.
It is also good to come up with some constructive coping statements that, when confronting your phobia, you can say yourself. For instance:
Before, I felt this way and nothing bad happened. It may be uncomfortable, but it will not do me any harm.
"If the worst happens, and while I'm driving, I have a panic attack, I'll just pull over and wait for it to pass."
I flew a lot of times and the plane never crashed. Statistically, it's really safe to fly.'
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