Exposure Therapy for Phobia Treatment

Abstract

Exposure therapy is used to curb various phobias and boost a healthy mental state of uoa person. The objective of this research study was to analyze how exposure therapy helps to overcome phobia. From the research study, it was found that exposure therapy involves any treatment that motivates the external systematic confrontation of the feared stimuli: like situations, objects or internal like situations and thoughts. From various studies it is evident that prolonged exposure is a very effective way of elimination of phobias and traumas. Exposure therapy aims at reducing a person's reaction of the fear to the stimulus. Four following prolonged exposures (PE) components were analyzed that is vivo exposure, applied muscle tension, virtual reality exposure and systematic desensitization. The study was deeply supported by through the study of the prolonged exposure. The study was anchored with theories such as emotional processing theory habituation theory and extension theory. Extinction theory involves gradual weakening of response conditioned which results to change in behavior or disappearing stops eventually. Emotional processing theory associative networks activates fear and information concerning the feared stimulus or escape. When presented in extreme, four becomes problem and gets in the way off functioning. Habituation involves two processes that are independent which interact to result to a final outcome of behavior. Various clinical and Veteran Health Administrations have come up with the training programs of prolonged exposure to professionals who help the patients with the phobia. The study adopted descriptive research design during the process analyzing data and data collection. Data was also cleaned and coded, finally the study would recommend that further studies be carried out to find out if the same results would be obtained.