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As human beings we are all very different but one thing is certain, we all have our personal likes and dislikes and the vast majority of us will have some kind of phobias. Does that surprise you? When suffering from phobias/anxiety it is very easy to think it is only you who are suffering, everybody else is okay and you are the one with the problem. However, this is most certainly not the case and to give you some confidence, you can learn to live with any phobia as well as control your anxiety.
Identify your phobia
One of the main problems with phobias is the fact that by definition they are an irrational fear of someone or something. Whether you are scared of snakes, scared of thunder or anything else, if you think about it why are you scared? There will be some instances where for example a fear of snakes may well have emerged after you were bitten or had an uncomfortable experience but the vast majority of us with a particular phobia have no real experience or understanding of the underlying issue. How many of us would say we are scared of snakes but we have never touched one, never been near one and never had an uncomfortable experience with one?
Before you can begin to learn to control a phobia you need to identify the phobia and if possible when it first began and what brought it on.
Thinking clearly
If you put yourself in the shoes of a friend and they were asking you about their phobias what would your advice be? The first thing to do is to identify phobia, when it happened, why it happened and then you can start to think more clearly. Some people can learn to eliminate their phobias while others can learn to live with them but either way there is no reason why they should have a material impact upon your future life. Sometimes the simplest thoughts can make a massive difference to your phobias, looking at them in the cold light of day you will often wonder why you are concerned.
If for example you have a phobia of the dentist, as many people do, what do you fear may happen? What would you like to happen? What would put you at ease?
Talking about your phobias
While we are all different it can help to talk about your phobias especially if we take the dentist example above. I know of individuals who have had extreme phobias of going to the dentist only to get there, find a very helpful dentist technician they can talk to and they are then able to control their fear. Many phobias relate to a fear of the unknown so if you talk about your phobia, you get more information and you understand it better, this must give you a better than even chance of reducing your fear and concern?
Sometimes it is best if you are able to talk to somebody who has a similar phobia because they will immediately understand exactly what you think. The fear, beating heart, sweaty palms and the sleepless nights wondering about specific situations are all commonplace amongst those who suffer from phobias. The fact is that even the worst case real-life scenario will probably be nowhere near as difficult and challenging as your worst unknown fear. One thing which phobias and anxiety do is to increase your tension levels and prompt you to think of a worst-case scenario.
Breathing exercises
Many people take panic attacks when they are presented with their phobias or a difficult situation they cannot get out of. There are very simple breathing techniques which will help you to reduce the tension, the anxiety and bring you back down to earth. It is worth noting at this point that nobody has ever died of a panic attack and while your heart may beat faster than normal it will not explode and you will not have a heart attack. When you reach the height of your phobia/anxiety episode it is important to bring yourself down through calming thoughts and actions so that you can think rationally and take control.
One of the most common characteristics amongst those who suffer from phobias/anxiety is a lack of control, the great unknown and the fight or flight responses this prompts from our bodies. When you are in the middle of a phobia attack trying to think rationally, think of what you are scared of and challenge your fears. It will very quickly become apparent that you are over blowing the situation, if there is any danger then simply leave the area but this type of mental exercise allows you to take control again.
Learn the tell-tale signs
It is most certainly more difficult to bring a phobia under control when it is at the height of your anxiety than when it is just beginning to emerge. Over time you will begin to learn the tell-tale signs of anxiety/phobias and when your body is starting to prepare itself. This is the time when you do your breathing exercises, when you force yourself to think rationally and where possible think of calming thoughts. Think of your parents, your friends, your grandparents or situations which you thoroughly enjoyed. Anything to take your mind off the initial signs of a phobia/anxiety attack!
In the early days it may be difficult to learn the tell-tale signs of a phobia/anxiety attack but they will eventually hit home to you. You may feel your head pounding, your heart may be beating faster than normal and you may begin to perspire. Rather than panicking even more, and increasing your anxiety levels, use some of the calming exercises above and try to cut off the developing episode before it has a chance to grab hold. It may take some time to perfect the skills, each of us are different and have different calming influences, but the ability to challenge your developing phobia/anxiety attack in the early stages can reduce much of the grief and concern.
Conclusion
While there is no doubt that phobias and anxiety can and do have a material impact upon the life of many people, they are controllable, they can be challenged head-on and there is no reason why they should ruin your life. Learn relaxation techniques, challenge your concerns during a phobia/anxiety episode when strong enough and learn the tell-tale signs of a developing episode. Each of these individual actions may seem relatively small and inconsequential in isolation but if you put them together they offer a very useful way to control your phobias and anxiety.
Some people can eliminate phobias and anxiety from their lives forever while others simply learn to live with them. Either way, there is no reason why phobia/anxiety should rule your life!
Identify your phobia
One of the main problems with phobias is the fact that by definition they are an irrational fear of someone or something. Whether you are scared of snakes, scared of thunder or anything else, if you think about it why are you scared? There will be some instances where for example a fear of snakes may well have emerged after you were bitten or had an uncomfortable experience but the vast majority of us with a particular phobia have no real experience or understanding of the underlying issue. How many of us would say we are scared of snakes but we have never touched one, never been near one and never had an uncomfortable experience with one?
Before you can begin to learn to control a phobia you need to identify the phobia and if possible when it first began and what brought it on.
Thinking clearly
If you put yourself in the shoes of a friend and they were asking you about their phobias what would your advice be? The first thing to do is to identify phobia, when it happened, why it happened and then you can start to think more clearly. Some people can learn to eliminate their phobias while others can learn to live with them but either way there is no reason why they should have a material impact upon your future life. Sometimes the simplest thoughts can make a massive difference to your phobias, looking at them in the cold light of day you will often wonder why you are concerned.
If for example you have a phobia of the dentist, as many people do, what do you fear may happen? What would you like to happen? What would put you at ease?
Talking about your phobias
While we are all different it can help to talk about your phobias especially if we take the dentist example above. I know of individuals who have had extreme phobias of going to the dentist only to get there, find a very helpful dentist technician they can talk to and they are then able to control their fear. Many phobias relate to a fear of the unknown so if you talk about your phobia, you get more information and you understand it better, this must give you a better than even chance of reducing your fear and concern?
Sometimes it is best if you are able to talk to somebody who has a similar phobia because they will immediately understand exactly what you think. The fear, beating heart, sweaty palms and the sleepless nights wondering about specific situations are all commonplace amongst those who suffer from phobias. The fact is that even the worst case real-life scenario will probably be nowhere near as difficult and challenging as your worst unknown fear. One thing which phobias and anxiety do is to increase your tension levels and prompt you to think of a worst-case scenario.
Breathing exercises
Many people take panic attacks when they are presented with their phobias or a difficult situation they cannot get out of. There are very simple breathing techniques which will help you to reduce the tension, the anxiety and bring you back down to earth. It is worth noting at this point that nobody has ever died of a panic attack and while your heart may beat faster than normal it will not explode and you will not have a heart attack. When you reach the height of your phobia/anxiety episode it is important to bring yourself down through calming thoughts and actions so that you can think rationally and take control.
One of the most common characteristics amongst those who suffer from phobias/anxiety is a lack of control, the great unknown and the fight or flight responses this prompts from our bodies. When you are in the middle of a phobia attack trying to think rationally, think of what you are scared of and challenge your fears. It will very quickly become apparent that you are over blowing the situation, if there is any danger then simply leave the area but this type of mental exercise allows you to take control again.
Learn the tell-tale signs
It is most certainly more difficult to bring a phobia under control when it is at the height of your anxiety than when it is just beginning to emerge. Over time you will begin to learn the tell-tale signs of anxiety/phobias and when your body is starting to prepare itself. This is the time when you do your breathing exercises, when you force yourself to think rationally and where possible think of calming thoughts. Think of your parents, your friends, your grandparents or situations which you thoroughly enjoyed. Anything to take your mind off the initial signs of a phobia/anxiety attack!
In the early days it may be difficult to learn the tell-tale signs of a phobia/anxiety attack but they will eventually hit home to you. You may feel your head pounding, your heart may be beating faster than normal and you may begin to perspire. Rather than panicking even more, and increasing your anxiety levels, use some of the calming exercises above and try to cut off the developing episode before it has a chance to grab hold. It may take some time to perfect the skills, each of us are different and have different calming influences, but the ability to challenge your developing phobia/anxiety attack in the early stages can reduce much of the grief and concern.
Conclusion
While there is no doubt that phobias and anxiety can and do have a material impact upon the life of many people, they are controllable, they can be challenged head-on and there is no reason why they should ruin your life. Learn relaxation techniques, challenge your concerns during a phobia/anxiety episode when strong enough and learn the tell-tale signs of a developing episode. Each of these individual actions may seem relatively small and inconsequential in isolation but if you put them together they offer a very useful way to control your phobias and anxiety.
Some people can eliminate phobias and anxiety from their lives forever while others simply learn to live with them. Either way, there is no reason why phobia/anxiety should rule your life!