If you want to reclaim your life from phobias and fears, Dr. Taji Huang, PhD in Glendale, California can help. To defeat your fear, you must face it, but you don’t have to face it alone. Professional counseling can lead you on the path to a better life.
Fears Vs. Phobias
Fear is a natural, healthy response to danger. However, for people with an anxiety disorder (like a specific phobia), fear doesn’t go away on its own and can build upon itself to an unbearable degree. It can even manifest physical symptoms like trouble breathing, a racing heartbeat, dizziness, sweating, and nausea.
Phobias are defined as intense, irrational fears of specific things or situations. Often, people who have a phobia know there’s no legitimate reason for their fear, yet they feel powerless to control their reaction and will organize their lives around avoiding that particular trigger. Many phobias stem from negative experiences attached to that trigger, while others could be inherited from relatives, either through genetics or learned behaviors as a child.
Common Phobias
Psychologists group phobias into three main categories. First are agoraphobia — the fear of open or public places and claustrophobia, the fear of confined areas. Second is social phobia (also called social anxiety disorder) which is a fear of social situations. The third is the specific phobias or “simple phobias” that have tangible triggers.
- Heights (Acrophobia)
- Flying (Aerophobia)
- Specific Animals, Like Spiders (Arachnophobia)
- Thunder & Lightning (Astraphobia)
- Blood (Hemophobia)
- Receiving An Injection (Trypanophobia)
Treatment Options For Phobias & Fears
The most effective therapy for phobias is exposure therapy. It’s the ideal choice for treating specific phobias because it focuses on desensitizing you to your trigger. This is usually done through a gradual, controlled approach toward the trigger while you practice relaxing. For example, a therapist may start by showing you pictures of spiders, then lead you through an imaginary encounter with a spider, and eventually work up to bringing in a caged tarantula.
Behavioral therapy is another effective option for treating phobias, especially the ones with more abstract triggers. This kind of fear therapy is about changing how you think about a situation thus breaking the cycle of anxiety and the need to avoid what triggers it. In the process, you develop coping strategies that are based on confidence and control rather than powerlessness.
Schedule Your Consultation Today
When fear makes daily life difficult, strains relationships with others or keeps you from succeeding, getting help is essential to freeing you from these unhealthy patterns. Overcoming phobias means confronting them. With time and counseling, it is possible. Take the first step to a less fearful life by reaching out to Dr. Taji Huang, PhD for professional therapy. Contact Dr. Taji today to schedule your first appointment.