4.4.2 Treatment of Phobias

• Phobias are irrational fears of specific objects, situations, or activities that lead to significant distress and avoidance
• What is the specific phobia associated with spiders?

  Arachnophobia
• Agoraphobia involves fear and avoidance of public places or situations from which escape might be difficult or embarrassing
• Social phobia involves the fear of social situations where one might be scrutinized or embarrassed.
• What is the key principle of systematic desensitization in treating phobias?

  Gradual exposure
• In flooding therapy, individuals are immediately and intensely exposed to the phobic stimulus without any relaxation
• CBT for phobias combines cognitive restructuring with behavioral techniques.
• What is the first step in systematic desensitization?

  Relaxation training
• Steps in systematic desensitization

  1️⃣ Relaxation training

  2️⃣ Anxiety hierarchy

  3️⃣ Gradual exposure
• Exposure therapy aims to reduce anxiety by enabling individuals to confront their fears in a safe and controlled
• Match the type of exposure therapy with its description:

  In vivo exposure ↔️ Direct interaction with the real feared object or situation

  Imaginal exposure ↔️ Mentally reliving the feared experience through guided imagery

  Virtual reality exposure ↔️ Using computer-generated environments to simulate real-world scenarios
• What are phobias defined as?

  Irrational fears
• Specific phobia is the fear of a particular object or situation
• Social phobia involves the fear of being scrutinized in social situations.
• What is agoraphobia characterized by?

  Fear of public places
• Phobias lead to significant distress and avoidance behaviours
• Specific phobia includes fear of objects like spiders or situations like heights.
• Match the phobia type with its trigger:

  Specific Phobia ↔️ Specific objects or situations

  Social Phobia ↔️ Social situations

  Agoraphobia ↔️ Public places
• What might someone with arachnophobia avoid?

  Rooms with spiders
• The primary treatment approaches for phobias include systematic desensitization, flooding, and cognitive behavioral therapy
• Systematic desensitization involves immediate and intense exposure to the phobic stimulus.

  False
• What is a key technique in systematic desensitization?

  Relaxation training
• Systematic desensitization reduces anxiety by breaking the association between the feared stimulus and the fear response
• Steps of exposure therapy

  1️⃣ Assessment and planning

  2️⃣ Fear hierarchy

  3️⃣ Gradual exposure

  4️⃣ Cognitive restructuring

  5️⃣ Maintenance and relapse prevention
• In vivo exposure involves simulated real-world scenarios using technology.

  False
• What might someone with arachnophobia do during exposure therapy?

  Touch a spider
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) combines cognitive restructuring and behavioral techniques
• Match the CBT component with its description:

  Cognitive Restructuring ↔️ Identifying and altering negative thoughts

  Behavioral Techniques ↔️ Gradually exposing the individual to feared situations
• What is the goal of reality exposure in phobia treatment?

  Simulate real-world scenarios
• One benefit of reality exposure is improved coping skills
• Initial anxiety may increase during reality exposure
• Example steps in reality exposure for arachnophobia

  1️⃣ Look at pictures of spiders

  2️⃣ Touch a spider in a controlled environment
• What is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for phobias?

  Combines cognitive and behavioral techniques
• Cognitive restructuring involves identifying and altering negative thoughts
• Behavioral techniques in CBT involve gradual exposure to feared situations
• Match the CBT component with its description:

  Cognitive Restructuring ↔️ Changing negative thoughts

  Behavioral Techniques ↔️ Exposure to feared objects
• What might a person with social phobia do in CBT to overcome their fear?

  Engage in social interactions
• CBT aims to challenge and modify negative thoughts and avoidance behaviors
• Cognitive restructuring in CBT focuses on identifying negative thoughts that maintain fear
• Steps in behavioral techniques for phobias

  1️⃣ Gradual exposure to feared situations

  2️⃣ Practice relaxation techniques