How to use exposure therapy to overcome phobias
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 14 ต.ค. 2024
- 3 steps to conquer your phobias: 1. Make an exposure plan; 2. Start low; 3. Get bored. I show you how to do this, and face my own bee phobia in the process, on this week's episode of THE PSYCH SHOW.
Watch a follow up to this video here: • How To Start Overcomin... .
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Topics Discussed:
phobia
cognitive behavioral therapy
exposure therapy
bee phobia
Learn more:
Cognitive behavioral therapy for anxiety: • Can You Hack Your Brai...
Overcoming Social Anxiety: • How I overcame social ...
Deep Breathing for Anxiety: • How to do deep breathing
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THE PSYCH SHOW! Weekly adventures in psychology, the brain, and behavioral sciences with Dr. Ali Mattu!
What fears are you trying to overcome?
interesting, I have OCD so am familiar with these concepts. one I'm proud of overcoming was a fear of going cross eyed and eyes in general (kind of ironic now I speak mostly about vision, a sign of successful overcoming).
:) I'm not scared of bees but I'm a bit antsy over ants, though a friend is trying to convince me to get bitten by the most painful one. probably not how exposures work either, but I imagine no other ant will be as scary after that if I do it..
Congrats on facing those OCD fears!
Bees were difficult for me before this exposure but ants I have no problems with. I saw a lot of ants growing up in California so I just got used to them. Another example of anxiety being nature's way.
Instead of doing exposures related to the most scary/painful insects, cognitive behavioral therapists recommend doing exposures related to the insect you're more likely to encounter where you live. So unless you're likely to encounter an ant with a painful bite, it wouldn't be necessary to include them in your fear hierarchy.
The video is very cute, I am just like you Doc. Bees and dogs are my phobia, I cannot overcome bees, but my fears for dogs decreased after I try to play some harmless dogs.
Thanks for your kind words! It took me a LONG time to overcome the bee phobia as well so I feel your pain.
BATS
My 7 year old son developed a phobia of wasps when he saw his friend get stung in the face. It was preventing him from going outside this summer (and we finally have a backyard!). Watched this video with him, chatted a bit, and we got to work on exposure therapy right away with a wasp in a jar. 30 minutes later he was standing in the backyard next to the flower patch the wasps were buzzing around. A week later and we're pretty much back to normal.
Thank you! The concept of exposure therapy is so important (not just for phobias, but for facing difficult things in general), and this was a very well explained and executed video on the topic.
well done on facing your fear of bees! Also it sets a good example because not only do you present the theory, but walk the talk :) you're very brave! :)
Thank you! As an anxiety disorder therapist, I have to walk the walk!
I have forced myself to be around people but the anxiety just never goes away
I used to work as a door-to-door Salesman and Trust Me by anxiety was everywhere but I eventually got used to it and started to actually like to talk to people if you do it almost everyday I guarantee you eventually you're going to get used to it
Is it because you assume people will always judge you? If so, that is an actual term in psychology known as the imaginary audience- most people suffer from a mild version of it, but a more severe case can affect someone as well.
@@ireallylikenuggets9490 Nevertheless, if used correctly it can help people understand themselves better and to voluntarily put themselves in situations they feel less comfortable in while reducing anxiety and stress over time, that's exactly what helped me and it's something people should do in general because we are existential creatures, and it shouldn't be bad.
Because you forgot to fight with your irrational thoughts and replace them with rational ones.Cognitive restructuring can help you with that.
This is a reasonable outcome because 1) neurologically fear is build to last, and 2) whereas bees don’t respond to your fear-related behavior, people do. So it is only normal that people with social anxiety have a much harder time getting ‘over’ it, than people with a singular phobia, such as arachnaphobia for instance.
Above that, exposing yourself to social contexts despite your anxiety is something to be extremely proud of!!
Maybe it helps to evaluate yourself differently. Try not to expect that the anxiety will disappear, but rather focus on your own normal functioning and the variety of normal responses to that, in order to reflect more positively on your social performance.
You could assign yourself to a practice of actively looking to the face of the person talking and every now and again asking a question related to what this person says. This way you practice social skill in a controlled manner, whilst being able to monitor normal responses in relation to your appearance.
Hats off to your hard work to attempt to overcome your anxiety! Keep up the good work😄👍🙏🏻
Because the greatest phobia is the fear of unknown!
The less we know something, the less predictable it is to us. That's why we create insane scenarios involving the subject of out fears, where often in reality it's completely (or almost) impossible to occur. This is the source of most of the phobias - misunderstanding and the lack of information.
Well, some of the phobias have a strong reasoning, like the fear of heights - you slip, you fall and you badly injure yourself or even die. But, most of them are completely ridiculous (fear of birds, or butterflies). Food for thought.
Uncertainty, unknown, and lack of experience - each of these things fuel phobias.
"Wife to the rescue..." Love it! :D
She always saves the day :-)
I have phobia of almost every insect that fly, specially bees, wasps and bumblebees. Maybe your video will be an inspiration to me. Thanks!
Thank you for the explanation. I jumped stages during my exposure therapy and got more anxious and quit. Will start over with better hierarchy
I am currently speaking with my therapist about exposure therapy so I can overcome my fear of roaches, it’s taking over my life and I would like to have my comfortability back
I have agoraphobia and every time I think the exposure is working, all of sudden, I go back to being extremely anxious again. It's been 3 years already. This is so hard.
It’s been 7 years for me, keep strong
I hope you’re getting better ^-^ I have emetophobia and have been dealing with it for about 3-4 years. I am NEVER joking when I say I’d rather die than get sick.
I love you
How are you now? I have zero faith in this exposure therapy, I have been doing it 'intensly' every day for over 2 years. All that happens is that anxiety gets stronger and stronger and stronger surrounding it! It's totally ruining areas of my life, thankfully, I am a very happy type of person and so I'm always extremely greatfull for that, but it would be so wonderful to get rid of this totally irrational fear. I hope you are doing better ❤
@TheBaldyheed When I wrote that comment I couldn't stay outside for 2 minutes without having a panic attack. Now I can handle the anxiety for an hour or so. Exposure therapy is working but it's a slow process, especially because I have other health issues. I don't recommend doing this too intensely, be kind and patient with yourself, try to understand your limits. At the beginning I was pushing myself to go over my limits and that's what caused more issues. My tips are: breathing exercises, being with someone or something to feel safe and holding an ice cube. I hope we can heal from this!
Had a client that was a bee-whisperer. One or two would often check in with him as he arrived or left the building ..crawling around his hands and arms. I don’t have a bee phobia but that didn’t seem fun to me until observing his joy of nature. It’s amazing how those we serve often teach us.
Thank you for being vulnerable.. Best video I’ve seen this week!
You are amazing. The idea of using yourself as an example to help us is very kind and unpatronizing (don't know if that's an actual word). Thank you.
This was very inspiring!! THANK YOU SO MUCH! I have a fear of failure--- I'm an artist so I fear of doing a bad drawing and people pointing and laughing at it. Sounds SO silly but to me it has paralyzed me from drawing at all! Which is so sad! It comes from the perfectionist mentality. But it's actually just fear. I'm not going to die even if someone laughs. I think I'm going to try this and not edit everything perfectly, maybe allow a few mistakes.
Thanks for your comment! I completely agree - trying not to edit everything perfectly and making intentional mistakes is a great way to practice exposure therapy on your own. Good luck!
Glad people are recognising cynophobia and I do have it and it’s really severe I avoid places where dogs are me my teacher brought his dog to school it was legit tournure I had a massive panic attack and passed out I’m glad that people are recognising it and not bullying me like they have before!
Just watching this makes me anxious. You did really well!
Thank you!!
This one really help me.
It's first time i search for help. First step i made is watching videos about bees, then i went fishing with my dad(a lot of bees there), now im here. If i keep going this way, imma get over this fear.
You got this!
This was very helpful! I'm going to use this for overcoming my fear of having my blood pressure taken.
I am here for this too. I wish us good luck.
Very helpful! I, too, have a phobia of bees and I appreciate this a lot. I’ll try out these steps and hope to overcome this fear. I also heard that bees can sense fear, which is another cause of the stinging to occur. Thanks for this video!
So inspirational. I am going to try this.
Good luck!
We are in this all together. We are gonna solve this problem.
We are all gonna overcoming them.
I know what you guys are feeling. We got each other back.
Just an add on to the exposure plan,. Include a reward, however big or small for each exposure task, something that keeps you or someone who know is doing it motivated. Of course, make a ultimate reward for when you or the person is doing it overcome their ultimate fear!!!
I really liked this. It was fun. I'm sick and tired of all of the melodramatic emotional affirmation / connection tactics used in TH-cam therapy videos. As though if I'm not put into a highly vulnerable and suggestive state the info won't take hold. Such tactics have utility, but to see them constantly employed in video after video starts to seem very condescending.
Thank you.
I am doing exposure therapy for my checking OCD. It is so difficult because my compulsions are so varied but it really is helping.. (example, I can now Wash my clothes n put them away with no checks or panic!) it is a SLOW process but you mentioning it took you a good few months to overcome certain stages on your journey is a relief. Go you!
I used to have a phobia of bees that centered around the fact that a childhood friend of mine died after being stung by six bees when I was about 5,
The phobia was awful, I couldn't be near anything that buzzed next to me. I would freak out from flies and wasps, and sometimes beetles if they where loud enough.
But slowly over time I have kinda gotten used to bees by watching "save the bee's" videos and learning a bit about them through videos. I still don't like bee's touching me or flying my my head. But I won't go in to absolute panic mode anymore
I have emetophobia. The fear of vomiting, hear or see other people vomiting. It's the worse. It's still a thing that few people talk about and It's "rare" compared to other phobias, I can't avoid vomiting, I can't controll my body to not doing it, I have panick attacks, I can't eat properly and I can't sleep. I feel like nobody understands me.
Fantastic work! I’m helping people with fear of dogs. Well done
this was a really good video you did grate with the beez, im here to learn and i just remember seeing people do things that were dangerous that gave me anxiety and then i would see the same people be afraid of other things i was not afraid of. i guess theirs always room for improve we can still work on things lets take action
Does exposure therapy help with PTSD? Lol just curious. Actually I think it would be great if you could do some videos on it! I think you have the most honest and transparent videos about mental health !
I am a grad student in Counseling, Clinical Mental Health at DePaul. Great video on exposure. Excellent information delivered creatively. Keep up the good work!
This fear of bees and wasps has made me stop going to class. I can't handle being in a class with a couple of these flying around above me. No one seems to care and we need to leave the windows open for the Covid precautions. On top of that, with the climate change and living in a mostly warm country like Spain, bees and wasps are out all year. I can't even go outside without feeling uncontrolably paranoid and looking over my shouldler. I know it's a phobia because I don't even care about getting stung, the problem is seeing them and hearing the buzz close to me. Thanks for this video, definitely better than paying my therapist 70 euros per session when it was completely useless.
How is your phobia now?
i have a phobia of cockroaches and it’s gotten to the point where i’m constantly on edge, i get paranoid before i can sleep and then i’m awake. i don’t do thing because i’m scared i’ll find them. it’s really freaking awful, but i’m going to try this and hopefully i’ll be able to live my life again.
Thanks for getting into the details. I was looking for this kind of video :)
I thought this couldn't be broken down further and the solution deepens. Enjoyed the video.
I found your channel because of Dr Mike's TH-cam😊so glad I found yours cuz I've learned a lot fromy you❤
Thanks for checking out my videos! Happy to have you here 🙌🏽
I can relate to that. Panic attacks on any type of transport. Anxiety symptoms increase when I don't take medication. So, yes, I'm f**ked up.
I just found your channel. This is great! Thank you for doing your part to educate folks about the value of exposure therapy!
And i like how u use terms like spiking to explain mental phenomenon.
Proof that over analyzing is a good thing as long as we are analyzing the truth. Science and love are one and the same.
Although therapy is meant to alleviate problems. Once the problems are past. Therapy turns into training.
The true job of a healer happens after the patient is healed.
We can use exposure therapy to turn ourselves into super humans.
This is what transhumanists dont want us to get. We dont need augmentations or drugs or political policy to be better.
We can train.
I have a phobia of bees too here’s why when I was 6 a bee got caught in my hair and I freaked out and that was traumatizing for me so I’m still scared of them
Same, I got a bee stuck in my hair in March 2020 and I wouldn’t go outside for months afterwards. I still have the phobia, but I actually can go outside now.
Edit: Because it isn’t spring anymore and stuff. Hopefully I don’t get as bad when the bees come back.
Fear of intimacy. Its a fairly new fear so Im hopeful it will dissipate naturally
If youre stung by a bee, remain calm (lol) and remove the venom sack with a knife or something flat. You scrap it off in the direction it went in without pushing the sack of venom into you. It reduces the pain drastically. Also bees fly in certain patterns depending on their environment/job. They only attack if feeling threatened and will die once they sting you. If theyre feeling threatened they'll zig-zag in fast movements and make a louder buzzing. But they also sense the electro frequencies so if youre scared, you will scare them. Theyre actually the most adorable little insects with fuzzy legs.
Very interesting! I used to have a phobia of dogs. Like I'm pretty big, but I'd cross the street if there were a chihuahua coming or something. I think I went through some bad exposures that made things worse. But I eventually worked it out. I still don't like dogs, but I'm not really unnecessarily afraid of them anymore. ^_^
In my experience small dogs can cause more anxiety because they have more energy and are more unpredictable in their movements. Glad your fear isn't getting in the way of life anymore!
I also have a bee/wasp/hornet phobia! I am allergic, so it would be unsafe to do a full exposure, but a few years ago I started doing audio/visual exposures. Today I can handle videos on my own time just fine!
But anytime I'm outside in the spring or summer, I have issues over reacting to every stimulus, like a fly buzzing or a shadow in my peripheral vision. Not really sure how to get over that safely.
On the plus side, I haven't been stung since my initial reaction, 16 years ago, so I guess I've gotten good at avoiding them lol
Great question! Also congratulations on completing the audio/visual exposures! THAT'S A BIG STEP! The first thing I encourage you to do is speak to your doctor about what you need to do to be prepared in case you are stung by a bee (e.g. carry an EpiPen). Make sure and follow their directions. Next, remember that for you a certain degree of being on guard is normal since you are allergic to bees. What you'll want to do is exposure to everyday situations that you want to be in and could be nervous about. For example, eating outside during the spring/summer time. Going on a picnic. Going for long walks in a park. Things like that. Once you have become used to everyday outdoor situations you want to be in, you should experience a big decline in your anxiety about bees. If you are still struggling, that'll be the time to seek the help of an expert. Good luck!
your reaction to the bees in the flowers are about where im at in the open, but my 100+ is when ive been in a vehicle and a bee got sucked in, i nearly crashed once driving and nearly jumped out a moving vehicle in the passenger seat
i have a fear of worms and absolutely can confirm that exposure to the fear works. i still really dont like them but at least i can go for a walk in wet conditions and be ok as long as i dont focus on the fearful thoughts that come up
Worm will eat you 😉
So yes I have a bunch of phobias which do include bugs of many kinds but is more often on the hygiene side of things and mess. I realise how much this affects my 3 year old. Every time he drops food on the floor or has an accident with something unhygienic or messy I get upset with him and it builds a fear in him each time. I feel like the worst parent in the world as I now notice he gets upset when he gets his clothes dirty, if he has an accident he will get a fright and cry or he will look straight at me with fear in his eyes like a deer in headlights. This is not normal, he should not live with these fears (as they hold him back from learning and developing positively) and I can see if I don’t put the effort in myself to stop this behaviour from my part his fears will develop into an anxiety and he will lack confidence in every new thing he is exposed to. I notice this because I grew up with this myself as a kid with my mum. So now I have to do the work to put a massive stop to all my phobias and anxiety. To be calm and show my son we can live in the moment without panicking or stressing about something not going to plan. Things happen but we forget about them if we don't let them affect us, the only way we remember something is if we let it affect us in a negative way and allow a negative response. Life without phobias is like a life of luxury and I want my son and I to live it!
I just searched exposure therapy because of my bee phobia. I didn't realize I'd find a video with that exact example! Maybe I'll start by watching some bee videos... Thanks for sharing!
Ah, welcome to the club!!! Glad you found my video and best of luck on the exposures!
When I read the "Bee on my arm" point, and tried to see how it would apply to my phobia (bugs and spiders) I felt cold sweat. Ugh. No. Not in this lifetime and not in the next.
I don’t know if it’s a phobia but recently I’m scared of being on the second floor or above (if it’s not the ground floor, I’d feel uneasy). I’m scared not because of the height, but I’m scared that the floor isn’t strong enough and that I’m actually floating without touching the ground. I’m not necessarily scared of falling... but it’s just the thought of being floating without concrete ground to step on that scares me. I know it doesn’t make sense and I don’t know what is it called. Do you perhaps know what is it and do you have any sources that explain more about it? This is very new to me and I’m always feeling anxious whenever I woke up from my sleep. Thank you so much.
Thx to this i will overcome anxiety to fly problem
I used to be afraid of touching surfaces and I used to be afraid of being touched. I did something similar which is exposure therapy and I was finally able to overcome Mysophobia and haphephobia. I'm no longer afraid of germs, bacteria or viruses and I'm no longer afraid of being touched. There's just one to go!
Our family has planned to go on a plane next year to Hawaii but my little sister has a lot of phobias that have to do with transportation like horses, planes, elevators, and escalators. We went to Canada recently and we had to go home early because of her phobias.
Thanks for your comment and for watching. If your trip is a year away, now is the perfect time to start practicing exposures related to horses, elevators, escalators, and eventually planes. I would start small, for example riding up an down a small elevator, and keep doing it until she begins to get bored of it. Then, you can move on to the next step. If possible, riding on trains could be a good step before airplanes. Good luck!
Best video on exposure therapy I've seen!
I have no ideas yet but I think this may have really helped me
Mine is just insects in general but it’s very Seaver to the point I cry hysterically and can’t move when I see a bug even if it’s just sitting there
What about fear of dogs? Exposure does work with therapy dogs, but out in the field you will encounter untrained dogs with idiotic owners that don't have them under control. My brother was brutally attacked by a dog and almost lost his eyesight. So in contrast to fears like the fear of bees, the consequences of a dog attack can be pretty dangerous. And to make things worse, dogs smell fear and act aggressively when people shows signs of fear, which unleashes a spiral that makes it hard to unlearn this fear. I had times when it was less severe, but at least once a year, I have a bad encounter and this triggers the fear again.
if you have friends with dogs I recommend going over to their houses and hanging out with the dog
I have been paralyzed in PTSD for over two years. I have dumped money on everything and every therapy under the sun. I have been in talk therapy for over 30 years. I recently exited IOP that was not addressing things. I simply get to walk into the life that I've worked so hard for and am stuck in my NS. I know it is only protecting me.
I did a somatic release workshop that revealed more so fear of abandonment, brutalization, being seen, not supported, alone...things like that. Performance anxiety. I can look back at my life and see how the perceived level of success has allowed the avoidance to remain while this root has deepened to now complete paralysis as life has truly happened.
Any suggestions on down regulating NS to move forward? I've done sooo many things & am out of funds to keep missing the mark. At least I now see the true roots. Thx for any insight!
my friend is terrified of bugs in general, maybe ill try this with her
If you're focusing on bugs, aim for bugs that she is likely to encounter in the real world. A day in the park, time in the backyard, those types of situations offer great opportunity for exposure.
I have issues with confronting individuals, particularly in my workplace. I've been able to face this fear slightly by speaking to strangers out on the streets on philosophical questions (which I very much enjoy). But when a situation arises where someone either said something I view as being rude or did something like litter, I become anxious and find it difficult to confront them.
Sometimes it's as innocent as having a question on something profound that might have been uttered by an employee, other times they may say something slightly rude about someone. I guess I desire the courage to speak my mind in times of stress/fear.
What can I do to start addressing this concern of mine?
Great video by the way!
Thanks for watching! This is a concern that often comes up in my work, helping people to be able to assert themselves in social situations. I'd suggest practicing being more assertive in non-workplace situations. Perhaps with individuals in customer service, then other people on the street, then friends and family, and finally with your coworkers. You could start with sharing small disagreements with your coworkers, such as asking them if they liked a certain film or TV show and then sharing the opposite view. Once you become more comfortable with small disagreements, you can move on to bigger ones. Good luck!
The Psych Show Thank you very much for responding!
"they are not coming after me.. and I'm really surprised by that.." 😂
I have a phobia of bees ( along with all other stinging insects) and im trying to find an exposure therapist to help, but while im searching Im doing a little on my own because I am at the point where going outside in the daylight when stinging bugs are active, is stressful for me. I'm making my own exposure plan. I'm thinking of starting with just listening to the sounds of bees buzzing ( because whenever i hear one i already get scared before i see it so i figured that could be a good starting spot)
i have a huge fear of vomit... whether i am vomiting or someone else is... even if someone says "my stomach hurts" i automatically go into panic mode i will cry, scream, faint, or even physically hurts the person.... i am thinking about exposure therapy but 1st i dont know how it would work for my fear and 2nd i dont know if i could handle it... typing this post has taken and hour and a half because or typing the V word... HELP!!!
Thanks for your comment!
Vomit phobia is something exposure therapists treat. We take a similar process as outlined in this video - starting very small with just words, ideas, images, videos, etc.
What's different is we integrate eating of different foods and exposure to fake vomit. For example, we might make fake vomit using the recipe below:
Mix together:
- 1 part Beef of Barley Soup
- 1 part Cream of Mushroom Soup
- Blue Cheese or other crumbly, strong smelling cheese
- Sprinkle of oatmeal flakes till desired consistency is reached
Seal mixture in a clear container and leave in the sun (preferably in a sunny and warm windows) for 2 full days.
Good luck!
Can u add me in facebook
Same :(
I was told by a classmate in kindergarten that saying "throw up" three times would make me sick. I'm not particularly afraid of it, but since then I've consciously avoided saying words or phrases like "throw up", "vomit", etc, so I find it kind of interesting that someone else would have trouble saying the word for a completely different reason.
I think that’s called emetophobia
I have a ridiculous fear of crossing the street because my classmate died when crossing the street back then. It's so ridiculous I feel like a failure
I have that fear too but for no reason I can think of. I finally got a prescription for an anti-anxiety medication and that helped a lot.
@@413smr What anti-anxiety medication did you receive?
I have severe emetaphobia. I fear other people vomiting. I have 2 young kids so it's the worst it's ever been. I stay up for hours at night obsessing and preparing for if they were to throw up in their sleep. I've had it for as long as I can remember but this is the first time in my life that I can't avoid it. Just typing about it makes my insides start to shake. In the past if I was around somone throwing up and couldn't get away from it I have passed out
I have a fear of death. Idk how to try exposure on that... I can try with my phobia of snakes. Btw congratulations on alleviating your phobia. Happy for you!
Thank you! For fears of death, the important thing is to understand what you are actually afraid of? What is it about death that scares you? Then, try to find ways of testing out that fear if you can.
@@drali i am afraid to die. I am afraid that I won't exist one day. That I won't breathe. And my consciousness would cease to exist. I don't feel too anxious about it now. It used to be bad when I was a kid. Now I have learnt to brush it aside.
There's no greater uncertainty for us then death. Sounds like you have come to some terms with that. It's something we all have to do in our own way.
@@drali yeah. We do.
I have a fear of bees. When I was younger, we had a beehive located inside a metal windowsill next to our back door. One day, as I was walking past it, I glanced at the bees for a few seconds and one of them stung my face for no reason. To make matters worse, our yard became infested with carpenter bees. My parents thought it was good for the garden but the bees only chased me, but did nothing to others. When we moved to our current house, which has an open yard, there are a lot of carpenter bees everywhere. We have chickens and ducks, so I have to check on them daily. However, almost every day, I have to stand by the back door for almost 10 minutes, staring at the bees because they won't leave. Whenever I complain about the bees harassing me, my parents and siblings just get annoyed and say they will leave me alone if I leave them alone. It's hard not to provoke them when they hover around the door every day.
I have overcome my fear of european grass snakes (yep, specificley them although non poisonous) and fear of public occations, but my phobia of rats and mice have become horrible now.
I used to be able to pick dead mice from traps (not rats though, no way!) and i have even stomped baby mice and picking them up in their tails when they invaded a few years ago. But then 2 years ago i walked into a room with no lights in the ceiling. I had to walk up to a lamp on the floor, and there i encounterd the trap that always use to stand there, but this time with a dead mouse in it. I was only like 50 cm (roughley 2 ft) or something from the "kiwi with feet" as my brain interpreted the first millisecond of seeing it. From that moment i dream nightmares, and i don't even dare to open the locker to the trash bin under the sink knowing that there have been mice there. Trash cans and recycling stations are scary too.
Stuff like bee's, spiders and mice are probably amongst the most horrible of the common ones since you theoreticley could encounter them in your home on a daily basis.
I made up a list like you did and then i compared it with yours and i found out we basicley had the same fears. On the top i had mice/rats crawling on me and in the bottom i had seeing individuals on photo's or video's. I will try and overcome this fear, but only so i can take dead mice from traps and such. I will never ever touch a rat, never!
Thank you for your comment. It sounds like you are experiencing some similar struggles as I have with bees. Something we stress in exposure therapy is helping people to be able to engage in normal behavior. For example, disposing of mice from traps, getting rid of spiders, and walking past bees are all normal behaviors (the mice especially for me here in New York). We don't stress situations that you are unlikely to encounter (e.g. be stuck in a room filled with mice). Be sure to start very low in difficulty, get used to the situations, and *then* move forward. Good luck!
One question. Does this work with social anxiety?
+abdou salem absolutely! The exact same approach works. The difference is what the exposures are focused on. Treatment will focus on things like starting conversations with people, intentionally bringing awareness to yourself, things like that.
@@drali You can't POSSIBLY be Serious.
Apiphobia...or melissophobia, depending on whether you prefer Latin or Greek (respectively) is one Malady. Gynophobia is QUITE Another. Aside from the fact that bees and human females are both living beings, there is NO Similarity between them. In fact, trying Exposure Therapy with a Gynophobe could make him WORSE than if no Therapy were ever attempted.
And using this to try and treat Caligynephobia could cause even More Severe Adverse Consequences. Yeah...I'm talking about reaching a Nadir such that one would attempt "The Ultimate Act of Desperation." UGH!
I would know.
Hey man, great video. Wondering - I have a fear of travel. If I think about the idea of taking a trip somewhere, much less actually going on that trip, I get majorly stressed. As a side effect of this, I have developed anxiety over looking at maps. I just start obsessing about it if I even look at a map and it can get pretty bad for me. What would you suggest?
Good question. A fear of travel can involve many different things. Some questions that might help you determine the best way forward:
1) What is it that you are afraid of:
- Is it planning for a trip?
- Is it interacting with other people like agents and security at the airport or on the airplane?
- Is it being stuck in an airplane?
- Is it a fear that something will go wrong during the flight?
- Is it having to sit and touch things that you don't want to?
- Is it being in a new place?
- Or how about being away from the people you are close to?
2) Once you know what it is you are afraid of, then you can start to learn more about this situation and create a plan that involves exposure. You'll want to slowly reduce the things that you do to make you feel less anxiety (safety behaviors) and slowly increase actions that move you closer to the thing you fear.
3) As you move forward in that process, you will become more used to anxiety and you'll learn a lot of information that will slowly change your thoughts.
Good luck!
Thanks :D Basically its a medley of things. For driving trips, its being stuck in a car as a passenger, if I'm driving its the driving itself on busy highways, its being out of my comfort zone away from home, its getting lost, its thinking about whether I really want to go where ever I'm going that much in the first place. I never used to feel this way - I'd just go, but then a bunch of things happened that kinda turned me off too it and I never really got back to wanting to do it. I took a fairly long road trip recently and I spent the whole time on the road just stressing to no end. So I guess your suggestion is just to keep putting myself in that situation, eh? That's the idea behind exposure therapy, isn't it? Thanks for the detailed response before, I appreciate it. :)
Sounds like you're struggling with worries about travel, being separated from people you're close to or being away from home, and uncertainty about the future. Exposure will help, starting with low anxiety provoking situations and moving up from there. But you could also benefit from learning how to deal with worries - learning problem solving skills to use when you can do something about your worries and learning acceptance based skills for when you can't change anything. You can learn more about anxiety here: www.adaa.org/. Also, The Anxiety and Phobia Workbook by Edmund Bourne is a good resource.
Thanks mon frere! I'll look into it. :)
Hey man I don't think I have arachniphobia now that I read all of these comments, it doesnt make me hyperventilate, faint, or anything extreme, however when I look at one or think of one I start itchcing and having goosegumps, I also cant play any game that has spiders on it. However after this video im going to try and overcome this small fear of mine thanks
I am definitely going to try to this I run every time I see a bee
Hope it goes well!
The Psych Show ty
The Psych Show I just hope I don't get sting
If that happens, you'll likely learn how to cope with it. Good luck!
It's not easy overcoming Trypophobia
thanks for posting this video
I have a question. What happens if during your exposures a bee bites you. Doesn't that confirm your beliefs and make you feel even more anxious? Thank you for the video!
🤣omggg never thought of this. Absolutely good question Nicolas. I hope someone answers.
actually people will learn that stunk by bee is no more than feel hurt little. and not danger. your amigdala will learn it.
I use to be scared of the Candy Man. I did the ritual several times with the lights on and off and nothing happened. Now I laugh at the fear and even sing the Candy Man song. Can't wait to see the new Candy Man movie, I already watched the first 3.
Congratulations on your bee victory! :D
Exposure therapy does not work for me I have all kinds of phobias
and for example when I was a teenager I since I have acrophobia As well as many others
forced myself to go on the Ferris wheel at our county fair, so I did
but I was petrified I was so scared the whole time and the experience just has made me worse over the years
having children and afraid that they were going to fall from the ride and things like that,
I have tried as well having agoraphobia to go out
amongst people;
to go out and do things,
and it just makes it worse
I also am fearful of germs of any sort
and having been a nurse for 30 years people say
“how did you do that if you’re afraid of germs “
but it was only because I just sort of turned my mind off when people needed me
and that’s the only way I got through it
but I had to retire early because I had breakdowns that took my mind for months at a time that I don’t even remember.
I have severe anxiety and depression as well
and so I’m not seeing a therapist presently because I can’t afford it
I am seeing A psychiatrist
but I don’t know how I’m going to live these last year’s of my life feeling the way I do
I just wanted to say this about your posting
because for me exposure therapy does not work at all
I feel there is no hope for me.............😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩
I have tyrophobia and exposure makes it worse.
This is how I react to almost any large flying insect, especially moths.
Can you make a video on OCD?
Definitely! Along with social anxiety and panic disorder, OCD is on my to do list. The good news is the basic treatment is the same, though the focus of exposure changes.
I have severe entomophobia and my mom basically told me to grow up or I'll never be a marine biologist (which I mean... insects do scare me but water insects are cool so I don't see where she's coming from there) so I'm doing my best to try to overcome it. It's SO HARD though! It looks so easy in this video when bees don't particularly scare me, but the idea of doing this sort of things with cicadas or stuff like that? I want to puke just thinking about it :c
I have apiphobia, not professionally diagnosed, but I get into a panic whenever a bee or wasp is near me. When I was younger I used to be highly allergic to bee / wasp venom, whenever I got stung it was a trip to the emergency room or both an allergy shot and an anti-venom shot.
Now that I'm older I think I out grew the allergy, the last several times I've been stung I had no allergic reaction, but I still go full panic mode whenever I suspect a bee or wasp is near. I've jumped out of a car (it was parked) because a fly buzzed me in the car and I couldn't positively identify it as a fly. I've jumped off of my porch and hurt my ankle pretty badly because I was trying to get away from a bumble bee that buzzed by me. These incidence have happened since being pretty sure that I've out grew that allergy.
I don't have an issue looking a cartoons of bees / wasps, I don't have an issue looking a photos of bees / wasp, and I don't have issue watching videos or documentaries about bees / wasps, my issue is when I suspect that they are near me. I'd say about 20 ft distance between me and a bee / wasp when I see it, I start to feel pretty anxious, within 10ft I'm highly anxious and desperately want to leave the area, 6ft I have to leave the area, closer than that I'm leaving the area the quickest way possible even if I have to plow through someone to do it.
Did you feel at that point of time that you were ready to face the bees was it too much of a huge jump? How long did it take you to manage your phobia like this? Also, what breathing techniques do you recommend? I wish this video was longer.. I wanna know more about the steps you took. How often did you look at the images/videos? For how long?
Thanks for your comment, Amber!
For breathing, check out this video I made: th-cam.com/video/6hYflDNyhJg/w-d-xo.html
Exposure therapy is like walking up stairs - you take one step at a time. You don't leap from the base of the stairs to the top all at once. So we want to make sure each step feels like a manageable step. If it's too much, finding a way to make it more manageable is important.
How long did it take me to deal with this phobia? A long time. I started to get anxious about bees when I was a kid and was able to avoid them for most of my life. I finally got tired of it when it began getting in the way of things (the story I mention in the video) and that's when I started to do exposures. I probably did all the exposures mentioned here over the course of a year. I didn't have any deadlines so that pace worked out for me. When I'm working with patients, we move much faster through treatment.
I engaged in each exposure until my anxiety went down on it's own. I'd monitor my anxiety using the SUDS scale (0-10 or 0-100). Usually, I'd stay with the situation until my anxiety dropped in half. For example, if I started at 80 I'd stick with it until it went down to 40. Sometimes that took 5-10 minutes, earlier on it took up to 45 minutes, rarely it went beyond that.
Maybe I can make a follow up video that has more details about how to do this on your own?
The Psych Show you just have to relax your amygdala
I 100 have arachnophobia. Spiders are such a problem for me. I get nightmares and hallucinations about them. I imagine them wrapping me up and eating me alive. My parents get mad at me for sleeping downstairs because of a spider in my room. I constantly ask my brother to get the spiders for me. One time I was sitting on a couch and the blanket next to me I saw a spider. I screamed jumped up and my brother killed it. The hallucinations are the worst part.
Also kashyyyk on Jedi fallen order doesn’t help😂
I'm also scared of bees, I got stung many times when I was a kid
These type of bees barley sting. I used to pet them. Kept them in my hand. Check your heart health with your family doctor, before exposure therapy.
Since COVID, I'm paranoid of crowded places. I'm fully vaccinated but, if I see more than two or three cars at a store or even the PO box, I'll either leave really early or wait for people to leave.
This is the phobia I am working on. The problem is "I am not allergic" is not a rational thought as anyone can become allergic to bees at any time - the first, fifth, or tenth time you are stung. The first and second time you might have no reaction. The third time you might die. How do move beyond this knowledge?
Does exposure therapy work by expectation subversion? Fear is not caused by things, but by the idea of things. If the idea that something bad will happen causes fear, that is merely a negative expectation. If the bad experience creates a certain level of anxiety, then the memory or expectation of that experience is the cause of that level of anxiety in the future.
The anxiety from expectation is the average of all the interactions processed associated with the trigger: good and bad. In other words, the SUDs decreases over time as the ACTUAL neutral/good outcomes average out the strength of the EXPECTED outcome.
Consequently, tossing in another bad outcome would bring that average back up.
Would introducing other things associated with good outcomes affect this method in any way? Would the strength of the good feelings compared to the strength of the bad feelings determine whether aversion for the good trigger or acceptance of the bad trigger happens?
I have a phobia of heights. I always knew I was afraid but I now understand it to be pretty extreme. It is pretty anxiety inducing to walk across bridges. I really want to get to a healthier fear of heights.
I am slightly trypophobic. It resurfaced recently when I stumbled upon trypophobia. I was really never repulsed by a cluster of holes till it had me thinking. As a little girl, I remember seeing a beehive. It was ugly, brown and had lots of holes. I remember thinking how disgusting it looks and I remember stomping on it. Looking at holes now make me itch. I've been doing the exposure therapy to help me get over it. Because I can't unsee it now 🤦🏽♀️
I am having suicidal thoughts because of it.
Have u found any solution?
You can pet bumble bees and they won't do anything. The are like flying pandas. Plus, I think they can only sting once and they die if they do so they don't.
I just weird cuz I’m scared of choking and like it makes me scared of eating
1. Can I ask you - now, a year later, if a bee flies by.. are you more relaxed than before? Is this a one-time deal - once you got it you got it thing or does it have to be maintained?
2. I totally believe you yet the the idea of watching a video of cockroaches... I don't think I can. I mean - I would really love to be rid of this phobia and I know this therapy works but honestly - It sounds like HELL to me. Even making such a list, just thinking of making this list I almost puke :(
3. How come in ALL the phobia treatment shows they never show an example of dealing with roaches? this is probably the most common of all. (if we're talking animals).
Thank you for watching!
1. I have had bees fly by and I do feel much more calm than I did before. HOWEVER, I have to choose to stay in these situations and not avoid them. If I do start avoiding them, my phobia could come back. It doesn't mean I go out and seek out opportunities to be around bees, I'm beyond that now thanks to my exposures. It does mean when the feared situations occur I have to act as most people would instead of find a way to avoid them.
2. It sounds like for you making a list would be an exposure in itself. That's okay! If making a list is too hard, you can just start by writing down the first 2 or 3 steps of that list (e.g. writing down the word cockroach, a silly cartoon drawing of a cockroach, a black and white illustration of a cockroach). If planning out higher level exposures is too much, don't worry about it at this stage.
3. You're right, they're a very common phobia. There's some research that suggests the more dissimilar an animal or insect is from us, the more likely we are to be afraid of it (and cockroaches look VERY different from us). As a clinical psychologist in New York City, I treat a lot of cockroach phobias. Be assured, you are not alone!
So, question. First off, thank you for this video. I’m going to give this a try. I have a fear of wasps and other aggressive stingers (especially the huge European hornets). Bees absolutely do not bother me at all, but hornets, wasps, and yellow jackets do. I live in the Southern US and I’m a gardener. These are plentiful here. A few years ago, my fear ramped up into phobia category and I have no idea why (I would argue. I get almost ice cold and frozen with fear when I see hornets. It was getting where they were coming around and I wouldn’t go outside. The problem is, with aggressive stingers, they do come after people at times and they are extremely unpredictable. I’ve tried to expose myself around them to a certain degree, but how do I minimize the anxiety spike when they do come toward me? Stick with it, I assume, but it’s very difficult and makes me want to give up, which then makes me become stuck in that fear mode. Have any suggestions?
I notice no one answered. I assume because a fear of wasps and other aggressive flying insects is actually rational! LOL. I too have a severe fear of wasps especially and am currently working at a place that has a nest somewhere in the building and am having to deal with them during my shifts when 4-6 of them a night start flying around. It's absolutely terrifying for me. Not to mention the embarrassment/shame of acting like a complete out of control fool when one comes near me and all my co-workers don't seem to have any fear of them. It's an awful situation.
Haha i didnt think this video was gonna start with that buzzing sound 😭😭😭 guess my exposure therapy starts now
To be honest, I have ablutophobia (fear of showers). I dont get scared to bath at all. But when there is a shower in my bathroom, I am almost dead. I feel like to get out of there as soon as possible. My family thinks this is so weird. But, for me, it feels like I am facing something even worse than death.
Please help me..
Thanks!
3:08 wow you got scared there xD
I have a fear of being physically alone along with a fear of darkness. I find that I cannot stay at home alone for long periods of time before panic starts to set in and my irrational thoughts take over. I also get very anxious when I listen to music at a high volume while alone. Since I can’t hear anything besides the music, I get anxious very quickly. Sometimes I still get anxious while in my room when I know there are other people in the house. Add being alone plus a dark room and I would have a full on panic attack. Any methods on how to deal with this?
Have another person in the house. Tell them to be to a near room, and when you are ready turn off the lights. Have a conversation in the dark. Do that for a sometime and when you feel ready try it alone.
I am working on a plan to overcome my fear of driving on the highway.
My SUDS was at a 50 listening to the buzzing. Lol The bumble bees are innocent I think. What is your advice for wasp? I have a huge fear of wasp and yellow jackets to the extent that I will often not go outside unless I have to. Usually its after dark. I dont think I can face a wasp lol