Phobias can have a serious impact on a person's lifestyle, due to the distress and symptoms suffered. Most people with simple phobias prefer to live with the condition, though taking precautions to avoid the cause of fear as much as possible or resort to self-help interventions to overcome their fear. Some seek the help of a non-medical counselor trained in behavior therapy. Unlike in developed countries, few in developing or under-developed countries seek the help of a General Practitioner (GP) who will probably direct them to a psychiatrist depending on the intensity of the symptoms.

People with phobias can be treated through Basic Counseling, Psychotherapy and Cognitive Behavior therapy. Counseling has many approachesthat usually involve weekly sessions with a counselor who helps the person deal with specific problems related to the phobia. Counseling works well in treating simple phobias.

Psychotherapy is an in-depth treatment ofthe phobia often focusing on locating and dealing with the root cause and identifying ways for the affected person to cope with the fear.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) explores thoughts, feelings and associated behaviors, combined with practical ways to help a person overcome the phobia. CBT has two components in the treatment process. First component involves confronting the object or situation that causes distress. Next comes dealing with any frightening thoughts and behavior associated with the anxiety. A graded exposure called Desensitization is usually recommended for confronting the feared object or situation while having a grip on the level of anxiety. For example, to overcome a fear of cockroaches, a person should first read about cockroaches, see pictures, touch pictures of cockroaches, then proceed to touch a paper or plastic model of a cockroach and finally try to handle a dead cockroach.

The next step of dealing with frightening thoughts can be handled in the manner given in the following samples:

Sample1

Dreaded Object: Cockroach

Frightening thought: The cockroach will surely land on me. I’ll feel yucky.                            

Rational Thought: Cockroaches don’t bite. Even if this one bites, no one has died of a cockroach-bite. I am bigger than the cockroach. I can easily squash it. I won’t feel so yucky after I’ve had a wash.

Sample 2

Dreaded situation: Public Speaking

Frightening thought: I’ll make a blunder and people will think I’m a fool.    

Rational Thoughts: So what? No one’s going to chop my head off even in a worst-case scenario. I’m good at other things. Never mind if I bungle, there’s always a next time.

Psychiatrists sometimes find it necessary to treat social phobia with a combination of cognitive behavior therapy, antidepressants, tranquilizers and beta-blockers. Medicines are used only for a short time and always alongside behavioural therapy. Scientists have recently zeroed in on Oxytocin hormone treatment for those suffering from social phobia.

Play Therapy

Play therapy is often used to treat children with phobias. Instead of teaching or changing behavior directly, the therapist uses a play-way method and encourages the child to act out and release his or her conflicting emotions. Toys are used and the child is gently guided into new ways of thinking.

Childhood fears and anxieties can develop into serious phobias in later life. Parents and other responsible adults in charge of a child need to address the situation and help the child overcome its fears before they grow out of proportion and haunt the child for the rest of its life.

Tips to deal with phobias

• Sharing your fear with friends and family is a vital step in the healing process

• Interacting with an additional support can make coping easier

• Read and hear first-person accounts of how others struggled with a phobia and beat it eventually

• Seek a therapist if symptoms persist

People with phobias constantly worry about the possibility of their feared object or situation looming around every corner. ‘Conquer your fear’ may sound like a clichéd advice, but as far as phobias are concerned, that is the best line anyone can give or take. Considering that phobias can paralyse the mind and cripple people’s existence, it helps to remember the words of Theodore Roosevelt, “Courage is not having the strength to go on; it is going on when you don’t have the strength.”