Fear & Phobia - How To Overcome Them?

Both phobia and fear are characterized by emotional responses involving physical reactions, like rapid breathing, increased pulse and heart rate. These relate to situations that make individuals uncomfortable. However, there is a difference between the two. Psychologists often distinguish between phobias and fears.

What is the fear?

Fear is an emotional response to a perceived or real threat. It is a basic human emotion, which works like an instinct, and is programmed into our nervous system. From the time we are born, we are prepared with certain survival instincts essential to respond with fear when we feel unsafe or sense danger. When we see danger, our brain instantly reacts, sending signals to activate the nervous system. This triggers physical responses - rapid breathing, increased heart rate and sensations in the head, stomach and chest. This is called ‘flight or fight’ response, as your body prepares to fight off the threat or tries to run away from it. Your body remains in the ‘flight-fight’ state until the brain turns off the response.

Fear is a common and normal reaction to events or objects. For instance – many people are scared of spiders. They experience a mild to moderate anxiety reaction on seeing one.

What is a phobia?

Phobias are similar to fears – with one major difference. The anxiety felt in case of phobia is particularly strong enough to interfere with one’s quality of life and/or their functional ability. With a phobia, the fear of the potential danger is out of proportion.

Let’s take an example of the spiders. A person with a phobia of spiders would spend a considerable amount of time worrying about one, and trying to make sure that they do not come across spiders – they would avoid certain places in order to steer clear of the insects.

Phobias usually develop due to a traumatic/scary experience with an object or an event in the past. A small structure in the brain - the amygdale - keeps track of experiences that trigger strong emotions. Once a particular situation or thing triggers fear, the amygdala warns the individual by sending fear reactions every time she/he encounters a similar situation or object.

Some common types of phobia include -

• Social phobia - the fear of socializing with people
• Agoraphobia - the fear of public/open spaces
• Arachnophobia - the fear of spiders
• Claustrophobia - the fear of closed/confined places
• Aerophobia - the fear of flying

Overcoming Fears and Phobias

Fears and phobias can be overcome if you learn to face them. This may not be as easy as it seems. However, with the help of a therapist, you may be able to get over your fears and irrational phobias.

Hypnotherapy has proven to be an effective form of treatment for phobias and fear. Hypnosis identifies the root cause or event that is the underlying cause of the phobia. A Hypnotherapist then attempts to change the person's reaction to the phobia trigger.

Exposure or Desensitization Therapy can also help individuals with phobia change their response to the source of fear. They are exposed to whatever is causing their phobia over a series of escalating steps.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy will help a person learn various ways of reacting to and understanding the source of his/her fear and phobia. This makes it easier to cope with the situation and teaches a person experiencing phobia/fear to control their thoughts and feelings.

Make a list of scary things/situations related to your phobia and try to overcome them. The more you practice, the more you will progress. However, be sure to go at a pace that you can manage without being overwhelmed. You might feel anxious and uncomfortable initially, but as you face your worst fears, your anxiety will fade away.

Inconsolable fears and irrational phobias can be a source of ongoing distress for an individual. Nevertheless, in most cases, these are manageable - the source of fear is very often avoidable.