ASMR Arachnophobia Hypnosis Therapy

Doctor Andrew Michaels attempts to help a person get over their phobia of spiders. Phobias can paralyze a person and limit their ability to operate in certain situation. Arachnophobia or arachnephobia , is a specific phobia, the fear of spiders and other arachnids such as scorpions. People with arachnophobia tend to feel uneasy in any area they believe could harbor spiders or that has visible signs of their presence, such as webs. If arachnophobics see a spider, they may not enter the general vicinity until they have overcome the panic attack that is often associated with their phobia. Some people scream, cry, jump from moving cars, experience trouble breathing, sweating or even heart palpitations when they come in contact with an area near spiders or their webs. In some extreme cases, even a picture or a realistic drawing of a spider can also trigger fear. The fear of spiders can be treated by any of the general techniques suggested for specific phobias. The first line of treatment is systematic desensitization – also known as exposure therapy – which was first described by South African psychiatrist Joseph Wolpe. In addition, beta blockers, serotonin reuptake inhibitors and sedatives are used in the treatment of phobias. Before engaging in systematic desensitization it is common to train the individual with arachnophobia in relaxation techniques, which will help keep the patient calm. Systematic desensitization can be done in vivo (with live spiders) or by getting the individual to imagine situations involving spiders, then modelling interaction with spiders for the person affected and eventually interacting with real spiders. This technique can be effective in just one session. The discovery of the implication of N-methyl-D-aspartate in fear and fear extinction has led to the use of D-cycloserine—originally developed as an antibiotic—to augment the results of therapy. Recent advances in technology have enabled the use of virtual or augmented reality spiders for use in therapy. These techniques have proven to be effective.