Flooding

[uryjm]

Has anyone experience of "flooding" in order to tackle phobias? It just struck me while watching that telly programme the other night that everyone was almost supporting the lady's agrophobia problem. I said to my wife that maybe they should have bundled her in the car, driven her fifty miles from home, booted her out the car into a field and driven off. Let her make her own way home. I mean, what's the worse that could happen? I don't mean to be cruel or flippant here. You have to tackle anxiety head on, face your fear and get your confidence back. Gain control over it. Don't let it defeat you. I guess this what flooding does? But does it work?

Jim

Babylon's Burning With Anxiety

[nomorepanic]

Someone told us that his brother did this to him - I am not sure if the post is on the message board or not. His brother dropped him off in town and left him. He got home but wasn't completely cured.

I am not sure how successful it is though.

Nicola

[benoo5]

i think that method,is a little too harsh...the idea is good,but should be done gradually.
my one phobia is snakes,ime not scared of them,ime absolutely terrified.
if someone locked me in a cage with them,and tell me they were harmless,i really think i would suffer a heart attack...bryan

[nomorepanic]

Bryan

I am sure you would be fine. We all feel fear when we have to do things we don't want to or don't like.

Just like your fear is of snakes, some sufferers feel that about having to do simple things - i.e. leaving the house, driving, shopping etc.

I do believe that phobias can be cured using exposure therapy but I haven't tried it. My main phobias are being shut in and heights. The height thing I can live with - I just avoid heights - lol. The claustrophobia is a bigger problem cos it stops me doing things like flying.


Nicola

[benoo5]

well nic,
as you know,ime 44,and snakes have only affected my life twice,so ime lucky.
the first time was a few years ago,we were called to see a patient in a block of flats,who lived alone.
the warden let us in,and we were greated by a collapsed male,lying on the kitchen floor,crawling over him was a rather large snake , i totally froze,and backed away..my female assistant,aged 23,just picked up the snake,and put it in the lounge,and closed the door,while i looked after the patient.
the second time was just a few months ago,when a lady i had met,invited me home for a coffee.
i walked into her sitting room,just in time to see her teenage son cuddling his pet four foot python,i quickly made excuses,and i havent seen her since.
HAVING SAID ALL THIS,I KNOW FULL WELL,IF MY DAUGHTERS LIVES WERE IN DANGER,BECAUSE OF A SNAKE,THEN I WOULD NOT HESITATE IN TAKING IT ON,its a funny old world lol...bryan

[nomorepanic]

Bryan

Yeah I agree - I think that we can overcome any fear when we REALLY have to - i.e. when we need to save ourselves or others. I would even get on a plane if it meant going to see someone that was ill (for e.g.)

I hate spiders too!!!

You are doing ok Bryan - u will get there mate :-)

Nicola

[uryjm]

I don't like heights either, but if I put my mind to it I can cope. I managed Sears Tower and the John Hancock Building in Chicago (although this was before Sept 11th). I found on both these instances the anxiety receeded the longer I stayed up there, hence my post on flooding. It just doesn't kill you, does it?

Jim

[Shelley]

I Hate heights, only coz I have that overwhelming desirse to throw myself off - I'm not overly keen on heights in buildings with nice secure windows if I have the occassional bad day, it does make me feel uneasy - I would personally kick the crap out of someone if they took me to the top of a very tall building and locked the door and left me up there, trust me it would the the first and last CBT they'd use on me!

Shell

[Laurie28]

I believe u as well shelley!!!

luv
lucky

[Waffle]

I think that it has a good chance of working for phobia's of "objects or things" such as spiders etc... Perhaps in this situation you could stick the person whith a spider phobia in a small room with a large amount of the biggest, hariest scariest spiders (non venomous of course lol) and leave them there for hours. Perhaps at the end of that they would no longer have a spider phobia. Its a bit like exposure therapy where you just continually re-visit a feared non dangerous situation until you "un-learn your fear response" and it becomes easy as you reaslise its not dangerous and your physical feelings of fear reduce.

I could however think of some drawbacks to "flooding" one being that the person you put into that situation (if you can actually get them in that situation, probably in a lot of situations you would not manage this. I mean with severe anxiety are we going to use physical force to get them there?) is that they are going to have a severely bad time in the short term and its a bit harsh. Secondly with more "complex" fears that aren't an object... (say agoraphobia) but a mix of several phobia's (I reckon agoraphobia is a mix of stuff such as possibly, travel, claustrophobia [spelling], social anxiety, fear of being out of control, fear of doing something stupid etc etc, mixed with an element of being far from home)can you think of a situation that would work well if you intended to use flooding? Stick someone on a very small plane to Australia, with a long social dinner in flight, with people commenting during the journey about how they can see they are panicking, and how they appear weird?

Perhaps this post is a bit weird hehe

[benoo5]

waffle on as much as you want lol,

you made some really good points,its rare to have a phobia,without being intermixed with other symptoms.

if flooding goes wrong,and it can,theres a tendency to drown,and this could exaserbate future healing.

but slowly putting the sufferer in situations that are known to cause anxiety,and panic,can only do good,specially if that person is a willing participant,and has already gone through relaxation teqniques such as breathing from the diaphram.

best wishes...bryan.

...YOU HAVE TO WALK THROUGH THE RAIN,BEFORE YOU GET TO THE RAINBOW...