maintenance of mental wellbeing

• EVIDENCE-BASED INTERVENTION


  Treatments that have been tested and founded to be effective in valid and reliable research studies
• Short-acting anti-anxiety benzodiazepine agents (GABA agonists)


  A type of anti-anxiety medication that acts selectively on GABA receptors in the brain
• Benzodiazepines increase the inhibitory effect on GABA
• Short-acting benzodiazepines remain in the bloodstream for a short period of time
• Short-acting benzodiazepines slow down the central nervous system activity
• How benzodiazepines work


  They mimic or enhance the action of a neurotransmitter when binding to its receptor on the post-synaptic neuron
• A GABA agonist increases the inhibitory effectiveness of GABA in the brain, producing a calming effect on the central nervous system
• Strengths of benzodiazepines


  • Fast-acting reduction in phobic symptoms
  • Helps engage with tasks
• Limitations of benzodiazepines


  • Only treats symptoms
  • Does not address root cause
  • Side effects: drowsiness and addiction
• Breathing retraining


  A technique that teaches adaptive breathing to people with a specific phobia
• Individuals with specific phobia may experience abnormal breathing patterns
• Rapid, short shallow breaths (hyperventilation) can result in oxygen and carbon dioxide imbalances in the blood
• Low carbon dioxide levels can cause reactions such as dizziness, light-headedness, blurred vision, and pins and needles
• Breathing retraining helps maintain or implement helpful breathing patterns when faced with a phobic stimulus
• Appropriate breathing patterns involve slow, regular breaths
• As arousal lowers, stress and anxiety also lower
• How breathing retraining works

  1. Teach conscious control of breathing

  2. Apply learned techniques in presence of phobic stimulus
• Breathing retraining increases the threshold for the onset of panic attacks
• Strengths of breathing retraining


  • Can be used easily in public
  • Can be used alone or with other interventions
• Limitations of breathing retraining

  • Requires regular practice
  • May not be usable during fight-flight-freeze response
• PSYCHOLOGICAL INTERVENTIONS


  Phobias can be considered a ‘learned response’ to a specific stimulus
• Psychotherapeutic interventions can help ‘unlearn’ unwarranted associations
• Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)


  Relies on the assumption that feelings and behaviors are related to thoughts about a situation
• The relationship between thoughts, feelings, and actions is bidirectional
• CBT process


  1. Identify, challenge, and change negative cognitions

  2. Identify and change unhelpful behaviors
• Cognitive component of CBT


  Encourages identification of fear-related thoughts and cognitive biases
• Behavioral component of CBT

  Helps identify maladaptive behaviors and teaches relaxation techniques
• Systematic Desensitisation


  A specific behavioral therapy involving exposure to graduated steps of a phobic stimulus
• Systematic desensitisation aims to replace an anxiety response with a relaxation response
• Three steps in systematic desensitisation

  1. Teach relaxation technique

  2. Create fear hierarchy

  3. Pair items in hierarchy with relaxation
• Individuals should only move to the next level in the hierarchy when they feel relaxation/absence of fear
• What are social interventions in the context of phobias?

  Social interventions involve other people important to the individual with phobia to support them.
• What is the purpose of psychoeducation for families and supporters of individuals with phobias?


  • To explain specific information about phobias as mental health disorders
  • To inform about symptoms and treatment
  • To enable effective support for the individual in eliminating the phobia
• What are anxious thoughts in relation to phobias?

  Anxious thoughts are negative thoughts that promote an anxiety reaction to a fear stimulus.
• How do unrealistic thoughts relate to phobias?

  Unrealistic thoughts may be overestimations of the danger presented by a situation.
• What role do supporters play in challenging anxious thoughts?

  Supporters can encourage individuals to recognize when a thought is anxiety-provoking or unrealistic.
• What strategies can supporters use to help individuals challenge their anxious thoughts?

  • Stay calm
  • Acknowledge the fear/anxiety in the presence of the fear stimulus
  • Gently challenge the factual biases of the thought (not the emotion)
  • Avoid belittling or making fun of the individual
  • Challenge thoughts even when the fear stimulus is not present
• Why is it important not to belittle or make fun of individuals with phobias?

  Belittling can promote stigma and worsen the individual's anxiety.
• What is the consequence of encouraging avoidance behaviors in individuals with specific phobias?

  Encouraging avoidance behaviors perpetuates the phobia.
• What are some methods individuals can use to manage their phobias instead of avoidance?

  • Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
  • Systematic desensitization
  • Breathing retraining