- Published: September 19, 2022
- Updated: September 19, 2022
- University / College: University of Victoria (UVic)
- Language: English
- Downloads: 29
The National Institute of Mental Health has stated that 5. 1%-12. 5% Of all American’s encounter some sort Of phobia. They are the most common psychiatric illness among women of all ages and men over 25.
When someone has a phobia, they start to feel panic, dread, or anxious when they are near what they are afraid of and they feel relieved when they avoid it. There is a phobia for just about everything. But, mental health professionals group them into three categories. Specific, social and agar. The two phobias I am going to discuss are all specific phobias. Specific phobias are simple and the most common.
More of us are traveling by plane these days, but that doesn’t mean we’ll enjoy the trip. “ A United airlines jumbo jet hit massive air turbulence over the pacific, killing one woman and injuring 102 people. ” A news report like this can be all it takes to have the fear to fly. One of the most common phobias in the world is fear of flying.
Aerobics mainly worry that the plane could crash, and they might die. US airs fearful flyer program is a great way to overcome aerobic. Every year US airs offers this program in cities across the US. These classes are taught by a clinical social worker, and a pilot, that help people through aviation education, relaxation techniques, and a short flight.
A woman named Hillary decided one day to try a treatment sort of like the program offered by IIS airs. As a kid, Hillary loved to go on airplanes. “ l loved the smell of jet fuel, the peanuts, the playing cards, the free cans of coke” explains Hillary.
One day, when she was about twenty, she was on a rocky flight and began to panic. She was afraid she was going to die during the flight. After that, she tried different things to help her through a flight, such as carrying good-luck charms or sitting in certain spots on the plane. Four years later, she realized that she had a phobia and enrolled in a three-day workshop called ‘ freedom from fear”. The goal of her group of twelve people was to fly from New York to Boston and back by the third day of the workshop. They learned technical information about flying, and practiced ways to get rid of their fears, such as breathing and relaxing. They also explored the controls, opened the doors and windows and walked around on the plane to feel more comfortable. On the third day everyone took the trip and did fine.
After other flights since then, Hillary says she is not crazy about flying, but still likes the peanuts. So, we’re not all afraid of the same thing, button know that feeling, when your hesitant for a split second at the tip of a steep track after a long slow climb. You know what’s about to happen and there’s now way to avoid it now. You grip the handrail, palms sweating, heart pounding and brace yourself for he wild ride down. Most of us have experienced that sudden rush of fear, and get a thrill out of it. But, people who suffer from Coaster phobia, the fear of roller coasters, try to avoid it. Psychologists Brian Newark, an associate professor at Harvard Medical School and Mike Otto, a director of behavior therapy programs at Massachusetts General Hospital, explain that engineers design these rides to thrill us, and if you sit back and let it unfold, you will most likely enjoy the ride.
Why do we tighten our hands on the harness handles if we’re sure the cart isn’t going to fly off the track? Do we honestly think we can really steer the car to land safe by gripping harder? These reactions are caused by the mind and body, which responds to the speed and the force of the ride as a real danger instead of just a thrill. “ The one thing that gets people on is they know there’s a limit to how long it lasts”, says Michael Boodles president of Great coasters International Inc. “ Its like they have this threshold to fear that they normally wouldn’t want to experience, but because they know there’s an end in sight they’re willing to go for it. Newark and Tot’s solution to this is the coaster phobia stress management program. ‘ A phobia demands you have a serious life interference. You can go through your whole life and not ride roller coasters and be perfectly fine.
But, to those who fear them, life is often less enjoyable” says psychologist Michael Otto. So, what is it that you have that intense, ridiculous amount of fear for? Phobias affect people of all ages, so you’re not alone. There are therapies out there to help. Why live your whole live avoiding something you might have enjoyed?