Phobias:
The Fear of escalators and Elevators
The clock strikes midnight. You think about the movie you just watched. “Is Mr. Hyde going to come for me?” you think. Your heart beats rapidly. Then the door creaks open. Numerous people have fears, but poor people have phobias. Phobias are even worse then your greatest fear. Fear is when you sense danger and your body reacts to it. These reactions include, sweaty palms, an increase in blood pressure, faster heartbeat and more. A long time ago, when someone or something tried to threaten us, we would react by fighting or running, and so now our body helps us to react. There is no official phobia name for the fear of elevators, except for elevator phobia, and Escalaphobia is the fear of Escalators.
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Some reasons that escalaphobia and the fear of elevators happened are, for instance, because of past experiences, or from the media. (TV, Radio, other people) There are ways to cure escalaphobia and the fear of elevators. For example, you can use the fear ladder, exposure therapy, deep breathing, use your senses and more. To put it another way, you can build up the fear ladder by exposing yourself to whatever you are scared of until you’re not scared of it. (Figure 1). You may also choose to face your fears by taking a deep breath before going up or down, then continue while on the elevator or escalator. In order to use your senses, move, look, hear, smell, taste and touch. Move your body by jumping or dancing, look at something positive, listen to something soothing, and smell something pleasant. Slowly munch on something delectable, and cuddle a pet or give yourself a massage. There are many causes of escalator and elevator phobia, and just as many …show more content…
“Fear of Escalators Phobia – Escalaphobia.” FearOf.net, 16 Sept. 2014, www.fearof.net/fear-of-escalators-phobia-escalaphobia/.
“The Difference between Fear and Phobia (and What You Can Do about It).” Hypnotherapy Directory, www.hypnotherapy-directory.org.uk/blog/2013/06/14/the-difference-between-fear-and-phobia-and-what-you-can-do-about-it/. singh, Neena, et al. “Fear of Small Spaces Phobia – Claustrophobia.” FearOf.net, 10 Jan. 2014, www.fearof.net/fear-of-small-spaces-phobia-claustrophobia/.
Fritscher| Reviewed by a board-certified physician, Lisa. “Understanding Your Fear of Elevators.” Verywell, www.verywell.com/what-is-the-fear-of-elevators-2671765.
“The Gary Craig Official EFT™ Training Centers.” A Very Easy Elevator Phobia Case | Elevators | Fears And Phobias, emofree.com/nl/fears-phobias/elevator/elevator-article.html?Itemid=0.
Grant, Linda. “Linda Grant on Curing Her Fear of Escalators.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 4 Dec. 2006, www.theguardian.com/world/2006/dec/04/transport.health.
"down and "ah" of "dark." Not only does the line tell us we are moving down,
Carl Friedrich Westphal is credited for coining the name “Agoraphobia” in 1871. His research was based upon several of his patients who exhibited fear of public spaces, such as markets or bridges. Agoraphobia translates to “fear of the market,” but Westphal talked about fear of spaces.
A phobic disorder is marked by a persistent and irrational fear of an object or situation that presents no realistic danger. Agoraphobia is an intense, irrational fear or anxiety occasioned by the prospect of having to enter certain outdoor locations or open spaces. For example, busy streets, busy stores, tunnels, bridges, public transportation and cars. Traditionally agoraphobia was solely classified as a phobic disorder. However, due to recent studies it is now also viewed as a panic disorder. Panic disorders are characterised by recurrent attacks of overwhelming anxiety that usually occur suddenly and unexpectedly (Weiten, 1998).
Characteristics of agoraphobia are a marked fear or anxiety about two or more of the following: "using public transportation" like cars, planes, trains, and buses; "being in open spaces" like a market, a parking lot, a bridge, or ship; "being in enclosed places" like a store, a theater, or an elevator; "standing in line or being in a crowd"; or "being outside of the home alone." (APA, 2013, pg 217) This fear differs from other phobias in that the fear is not the specific place or thing, but the person is afraid that they might not be able to leave or get help if they panic or are incapacitated or have embarrassing symptoms or situations. This might be because of other medical conditions such as vomiting or inflammatory bowel symptoms. Older adults might fear falling. Children might fe...
Simple phobias include irrational fears of things like animals such as dogs, cats, or the most common snakes. Specific phobias are centered around specific situations such as small spaces, claustrophobia, or heights, acrophobia. Social phobias are irrational fears of interactions with other people. For example, a person might have a social phobia of public speaking or fear of embarrassment. Another form of social phobia is agoraphobia which restraints a person from being in unfamiliar, open or closed spaces, typically resulting in panic attacks. These different types of phobias have two things in common; they are irrational, and they are treated in similar
According to Klasco (2011), psychological disorders "are abnormalities of the mind that result in persistent behavior patterns" that can have an impact on daily tasks and life in general. There are many different groups of psychological disorders, one of those being anxiety disorders, which King (2013) states features "motor tension, hyperactivity, and apprehensive expectations and thoughts" (p. 448). There are also many subgroups of anxiety disorders, including phobic disorders, in which agoraphobia is included in. Agoraphobia is considered a panic disorder because its’ ability to limit people from doing their daily activities.
In confronting any type of learned fear, you must reprogram your inappropriate fight or flight response. This means you must purposely do things that frighten you. When you are scared, an automatic reaction of resistance and anxiety occur. You don’t even have to consciously think about the feeling; it just happens. Your body reacts with an increased heart rate, breathing and muscle tension so you know to defend yourself. This built-in survival mechanism called the “flight or fight” response is hardwired into our DNA. This is why your reaction can occur without you even consciously thinking about.
Introduce Topic: A phobia as defined by medicalnewstoday.com, “is an irrational fear, a kind of anxiety disorder in which the sufferer has a relentless dread of a situation, living creature, place or thing.”
This is for instance the case when one develops a panic attack simply because they find themselves in an elevator or other enclosed space especially if they have a fear of heights or are claustrophobic. For the former, if an individual is in an elevator and realizes that they are in the fiftieth floor of a building, then they can easily get terrified and even develop panic attacks fearing that the building might just collapse leading to their demise. In such a case, one can begin trembling and holding on to solid items in the room in a bid to ensure that a solid structure is protecting them, and not simply the glass on the walls. Another symptom is the use of all efforts to ensure that one does not encounter the item or situation that causes phobia (American Psychiatric Association, 2015). This can for instance be in the form of avoiding an airport at all costs where an individual suffers from aviophobia. Where one suffers from agrizoophobia, then they will try as much as they can to avoid contact with an environment that has animals. Such an individual will always come up with strong excuses on the reasons why it is a hundred times better to go swimming in a pool as opposed to visiting a zoo. This is all in a bid to ensure that one is as far away as
In this world, there are many psychological problems and issues that people are dealing with. One of the main issues that they deal with is their fears. In this case, severe fears which are called phobias. There are over five hundred (500) types of phobias with a specific name, classification and description of that phobia. Phobias can become very extreme and hard to deal with if not treated after a certain amount of time. From understanding what a phobia is, the history, statistical facts, signs/symptoms and different types of treatment one can learn and understand that phobias are a serious matter and can be treated for. As long as a person understands what phobia they have, commit to finding a treatment and have a strong enough mind, they can see that they can do anything and be rid of their fears because you are only as strong as your weakest fear.
Does Claustrophobia cause people to deviate from confined areas? The independent variable is claustrophobia, and the dependent variable is the confined areas. Our hypothesis to this question is yes claustrophobia can be cured and reduced by cognitive behavioral therapy. The issue of claustrophobia is very important due to its impact on an individuals everyday life, since it affects a number of individuals throughout the world. A phobia is an anxiety disorder that is shown by an irrational fear of confined spaces. This phobia can cause a person to stay away form confined spaces such as a crowded store, sporting and social events, as well as elevators that could bring on this irrational fear. In society this can cause a person not to take part in certain events. This phobia can also lead to the interference with riding on public transportation such as a plane, train, bus or subway. In this our findings will be evident by the research provided. Each of these specific statements below, will help draw a conclusion about claustrophobia: 1) Fear of Restriction and Suffocation 2) The Reduction of Claustrophobia(Part 1) 3) The Reduction of Claustrophobia (Part 2) 4) Virtual Reality Treatment of Claustrophobia Claustrophobia 2 Fear of Restriction and Suffocation Claustrophobic fear is a combination of the fear of suffocation and the fear of confinement. The view on this topic is supported from the responses from a questionnaire done before, during, and after a MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scan was performed. Patients who successfully completed a MRI scan found they experienced fear of confinement not suffocation. These MRI scans were done in long narrow cylindrical chambers, which are dark and restrictive as well as noisy. Although you are not in a sealed chamber, you can literally see the light at the end of the tunnel. Some other chambers that were used in other experiments were enclosed, and restrictive which leads the patient to believe that there is the possibility of suffocation. This study was performed over a three-week period on an outpatient basis at two teaching hospitals. There were seventy-eight people involved in this study, twenty-three males, mean average 51.61 years (S.D.=20.0), as well as fifty-five females, mean age 45.67 years (S.D.=15.3). They collected research data on three different occasions using the F.S.S. (fear survey ...
The Hard Life of a Once Spoiled Girl When Nancy Graham was a little girl she was spoiled by her parents. They would buy her everything she wanted. When she asked for a barbie or shoes they would rush out at that moment to get them for her. When she was old enough to get a job, her parents told her she didn’t have to get one. They said they would buy her what she needed, while she was in school.
I have this fear that causes my body to shake. When I think about it, my skin becomes pale and cold. It’s death speeding through my mind. Once I have seen these monstrous roller coasters, the only thing in my mind was fear. Knowing that I’m afraid to go on these rides, I didn’t want to look like a fool in front of my friends. My mind is thinking of deadly thoughts. My palms were sweaty and I was twitching like a fish. I was petrified of heights.
Phobias are irrational fear to a person, place or object and they are classified as an anxiety disorder. There is a term for every phobia imaginable. Phobias affect approximately nineteen million individuals, with the fears ranging from blood to women and every thing in between. The symptoms one experiences when suffering with a phobia include profuse sweating, headaches, extreme nausea and a variety of other physical symptoms.
There are three kinds of phobias: simple phobia, social phobia, and panic attacks. Simple phobias, also called specific phobias, are fears of a specific thing, such as spiders or being in a closed place. Most simple phobias develop during childhood and eventually disappear. Specific phobia is a marked fear of a specific object or situation. It is a category for any phobias other than agoraphobia and social phobia. The categories of specific phobias are 1. situational phobias such as: fear of elevators, airplanes, enclosed places, public transportation, tunnels, or bridges; 2. fear of the natural environment such as: storms, water, or heights; 3. animal phobias such as: fear of dogs, snakes, insects, or mice; 4. blood-injection-injury phobia such as: fear of seeing blood or an injury, or of receiving an injection. (Wood 520).