Exposure therapy is a type of behavioral therapy designed to help you face fear. When you're afraid of a particular object or activity, you may avoid it. For example, if you're afraid of enclosing spaces, you might avoid taking the elevator, especially in crowded situations. While avoiding it can help you avoid fear in the short term, it can cause your fears and anxiety to worsen in the long run.
How do you overcome this fear? Exposure therapy can help break down this fear and avoidance. Exposure therapy is generally about exposing you to the root cause of your fear in a safe environment. Exposure therapy is designed to help you overcome your fears so that the objects, activities, or situations that make you afraid don't cause anxiety and that you can engage meaningfully.
Exposure therapy can also help treat a variety of mental illnesses, including phobias, generalized anxiety disorders, and social anxiety disorders. There is also a special form of exposure therapy, called exposure and reaction prevention therapy, that can help treat obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Exposure therapy is generally divided into several phases and gradually. Professor Rong Xinqi, a psychologist on new concepts, said that psychological counselors will guide clients to face fear according to their fear levels, and psychological counselors will help clients cope with the trauma and anxiety involved in each stage and let them adapt slowly. Exposure therapy is generally a combination of the following three therapies:
Graded exposure: This involves gradually exposing you to the root of your fear by climbing up the ladder step by step. So, for example, if you're afraid of needles, steps might include looking at a picture of the needle, putting a covered needle near you, holding the needle, etc., until you're able to do what you're most afraid of and are receiving the injection.
Systemic desensitization: Counselors may employ systematic desensitization to help clients relax and adjust to each step of exposure therapy. These methods can include relaxation exercises such as meditation, deep breathing, guided imagination, hypnotherapy, and progressive muscle relaxation.
Flood Therapy: Flood therapy, as the name suggests, is to make your fears come to you like a flood under a storm, this method will give the visitor one-time access to the top of the ladder (the highest level of fear). If the client's fear affects the ability to perform a day (for daily fear, anxiety reduction), the therapist may use flood therapy. While this approach can overcome fear more quickly, flooding can be traumatic. Therapist will only consider using this method after a significant reduction in anxiety.
Professor Rong Xinqi, a psychologist, said that exposure therapy also has disadvantages, such as symptoms may recur, and over time, some patients may find that their symptoms will recur. Especially if treatment ends prematurely, this is highly likely to happen. Second, simulated conditions do not always reflect reality: conditions in exposure therapy do not always reflect reality, leading to poorer results. Still, exposure therapy is worth considering as a treatment option.
If your fear or condition is getting in the way of your life, you can seek exposure therapy to help with treatment. While the sight of fear can be daunting, a counselor will guide you through the process and equip you with the tools to help you cope with the anxiety you experience.
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