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Phobias

Phobias

You can learn to live your life in spite of your phobia. You are stronger than your fear, and it does not have to control you.

Do you have a phobia?

A phobia is a persistent, irrational fear of an animal, person, object, or situation. The object of the fear is something that has very little chance of causing real harm.

When you see the source of your phobia, it creates feelings of intense panic. Sometimes those feelings manifest in physical symptoms like elevated heart rate, trouble breathing, dizziness, or shaking. These reactions feel out of your control, and only occur when you’re faced with the source of your fear.

Like other anxiety disorders, phobias can seem like nothing at first. Many people get nervous during turbulence on a plane, or overwhelmed in a busy social setting. But when those feelings start to affect your life on a daily basis, there’s something else at play.

 

Phobias can take many shapes, but some of the more common types are:

If you have one of these phobias, you likely go out of your way to avoid the object of your fear. As your fears increasingly impact your life, you may wonder if they are actually a phobia.

For example, if you have a phobia of flying, you may avoid it to the point of not attending important events. Or if you have a fear of heights, you might always take the stairs instead of the elevator, or avoid buildings with elevators entirely.

With most anxiety disorders, there is often a desire to work around it, ultimately ignoring the disorder itself. This reaction makes the anxiety more and more powerful in your own mind. And reaching out for help may concern you.

Counseling for phobias - What is phobia counseling?

In fact, phobias are very common, and very treatable. Similar to other anxiety disorders, first your therapist will confirm a diagnosis, based on your specific symptoms.

Treatment generally involves cognitive-behavioral therapy, sometimes in addition to medication. Cognitive-behavioral therapy involves exposure and response prevention (ERP) and cognitive therapy.

Similarly to treatment of OCD, cognitive therapy is used to teach you new, healthy ways to think about your fears. And ERP is used to slowly change the way you respond to those fears when they present themselves. It involves facing your fears, instead of avoiding them.

This process will always be done at your own pace, with small and controlled steps. For example: if you’re scared of heights, the first step may be to just think about getting in an elevator, without being anywhere near one.

Slowly but surely, your mind will start to process your fears in a way that is manageable, and doesn’t negatively affect your daily life. Though this may take some time, it is absolutely possible for you to overcome your phobia. And we will help you reach that goal.

Our Expert Clinicians

Therapists and Coaches who work with clients experiencing various issues anything in between.

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Here’s what to expect when you work with us:

Free Phone Consult:

At Bricolage, we extend a free 15-minute phone consultation to make sure we are a good fit to work together. We will discuss what your goals are, explain what therapy will look like, and how your life will be different after working with us. By the end of this call, you will have
a clear idea of your next steps.

Initial Session:

Your first meeting with your therapist will be between 60 and 70 minutes and will allow the two of you to begin to build a relationship.
You will go over the information you provided before this initial session as well as dive into all of the elements of your story. Throughout
this appointment, you and your therapist will work as a team to create your action plan.

Weekly Sessions:

Once you and your therapist begin to work deeply together, you will experience a type of treatment that has been completely tailored
to you and your needs. Your therapist will take keen notice of where you are in your wellness journey and ensure that the exercises you complete in session will bring you a sense of comfort and peace as you move forward.we

Completion of Goals

As a team, you and your therapist will continue to evaluate your progress and growth. Eventually, the two of you will recognize that you
are responding to stressors more effectively and that weekly therapy might no longer be necessary. At this point you can choose to come to session less often and together you will decide what level of support you need for the future.

Our team of compassionate professionals will help you tap into the strengths you already possess and guide you to stop looking for the “if” and start taking advantage of the NOW.

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