fears

If someone reacts to a certain situation with a disproportionate feeling of fear, in this case it is said to be violations of the fear reaction.

Fear is an innate sensory reaction that occurs when experiencing dangerous life situations and is a necessary condition for the survival of the individual in particular and the species as a whole. The natural reaction of fear causes a large number of somatic and mental processes (for example, increased blood pressure, increased heart rate, muscle tension, increased caution, etc.)

When disturbed, a powerful feeling of fear arises, even if the intensity of the fear reaction cannot be explained by the stimulus that caused it. We distinguish between phobias (directed fears, for example, fear of closed spaces or fear of riding in an elevator = claustrophobia) and diffuse fears (pointless fears), for example, in panic disorders, a state of panic arises suddenly “out of nothing”.

Treatment

Behavioral therapy is the treatment of choice for treating fears. The patient discusses his personal "vicious circle" of fear: what physical and mental processes take place before the onset of an attack of fear? How does the patient behave as a result of this?

As a rule, each violation of the fear reaction proceeds in parallel with the reaction of suppression or avoidance (prevention of the onset of a situation that causes fear). Therefore, the next step in therapy is to give up this repression and directly confront the situation that causes fear. This achieves an understanding that fear decreases, while avoiding a critical situation increases it (in isolated cases, up to the development of "fear of fear").

If we are dealing with personality changes, which are often accompanied by unfounded and existential (existential) fears, then structural therapy is applied: the patient learns through self-observation and consultation with a psychotherapist to better assess situations that cause fear and better control them.

Art therapy supports the healing process through the use of creative means: all kinds of drawing, clay modeling and working with other materials.