If you suffer from a phobia it is very easy to get wrapped up in the moment and fail to understand what has brought on your phobia or what has made a difficult situation sometimes intolerable. When you are in the middle of a severe phobia attack, or anxiety takes over, your mind can play tricks creating something of a vicious circle. There are many people who complain of phobias based upon actions which they had no problems with in the past but all of a sudden they find intolerable. Issues such as flying on a plane are often seen as an adventure the first few times but for some people they can turn into a phobia of flying bringing on severe panic attacks.
What happens to your brain?
As we have mentioned in some of our earlier articles, we are each born with a sense of fight or flight which allows our brains to analyse a specific situation and decide whether to fight it or whether to flee. Phobias, panic attacks and anxiety issues are often linked to a muddled sense of fight or flight which can create issues which we see as potentially threatening but we are unable to actually identify. In many ways this is the fear of the unknown or in some cases the fear of fear itself.
If you speak to anybody who has suffered from phobias or panic attacks they will describe a situation of intense headaches, confusion and a fear which grows for no apparent reason. Many people also have a place of comfort which may predominantly emerge in the shape of your home which you see as a safe haven.
Retuning your mind
Aside from the physical effects of a phobia or anxiety attack, which are real despite the fact many people mock those suffering from these conditions, there is a need to retune your mind. If you break things down into individual stages and engage with relaxing breathing techniques this will then allow you to think more clearly and distance yourself from the harrowing impact of anxiety. Once you are able to think more clearly you can look at things in the cold light of day and try to understand why you are scared, what brought on your fear and perhaps more importantly what calms you down.
Some therapists suggest that phobias and anxiety are caused by changes in the way your mind “is wired”. This sounds very dramatic but the solution is to teach yourself to think in a specific way which brings reality back to your life. One of the most dramatic impacts which phobias and anxiety have on your life is a reduction in the ability to think rationally about the situation you’re in and what is going through your mind.
Conclusion
It is perhaps simplifying the situation to suggest that phobias and anxiety are caused by the way in which our minds are “wired” but it does give an insight into what causes them. If you can retune your thoughts towards reality and cold hard facts about why you are scared and what you are scared of, you can then begin to understand your situation more clearly. This is perhaps the most important stage in the recovery process which allows you to basically take back control of your life.
