How to Fight Fear

楊燕

人的一生當中會有這樣或那樣的恐懼，如果這些恐懼真的發(fā)生在我們身上，我們應該如何去應對呢？下面這篇文章將會給我們一些啟示……

What are you afraid of？ Elevators？ Dogs？ Snakes？ Cars？ Airplanes？

If you have fears， you are not alone. Most of us are afraid of something - at least once in our lives. And not all fears are bad.

Some fears protect us. For example， you might run indoors or climb a tree if a dog were chasing you. Fear of drowning will keep a swimmer from swimming in the ocean if there is no lifeguard around.

However， there are certain other fears that may not protect you but may， instead， very much limit your lifestyle. If this is happening to you， you may have what is called a phobia1 - an overwhelming2 fear of some thing or situation. Such fear is often so all-consuming3 that you spend a great deal of your time and energy avoiding the thing that frightens you.

For instance， are you so afraid of dogs or cats that you shake at the sight of one？ Does the thought of going somewhere on an airplane make you feel ill？ Are you unable to visit a friend who lives on a high floor of an apartment house because you would have to take the elevator？

People who have phobias are usually so frightened of the feared object or situation that they try to completely avoid whatever it is that frightens them. And neither friends nor family can convince phobic people that most animals are harmless， that thousands of travelers fly safely every day， and millions of people ride safely in elevators several times each day.

So， what can you do to try to get rid of phobias？ There are specialists who have been trained to deal with phobic patients. Such specialists know how to help phobic people become less afraid. They teach phobic people how to deal with their fears and， eventually， overcome them.

For instance， suppose you're afraid of flying. Find out if a nearby airport has special seminars4 for people who are afraid to fly. Many airports do. How would such a program work？

First， a specialist will take your group to the airport to watch the planes take off and land. A representative from one of the airlines will explain how an airplane flies. Then your group will sit in an airplane that stays on the ground.

At a later time， you will go up in a plane for a very short flight， and then land. Over a number of sessions the time you spend in the air will gradually increase. And， eventually， when you're all prepared for it， the group will take a trip to another city.

Or suppose you are afraid of elevators， and you want help. A specialist will take a group of you to a high-rise5 office building. There， a technician will explain how an elevator works and will explain the many safety features elevators have. After first standing in an elevator on the ground floor， you will go up and down just one floor. Gradually， your elevator trips will be longer， until you can go all the way to the top and back without fear.

Such sessions teach the phobic person slowly that he or she can learn to control his or her fears， and even overcome them.

If you have phobias and want help， or know a phobic person who wants help， ask your doctor for help in finding a specialist.

你害怕什么？電梯？狗？蛇？車還是飛機？

如果你有恐懼感，說明你并不孤單，因為我們大部分人都害怕過某些事物——一生中至少害怕過一次。而且并非所有的恐懼都是有害的。

有些恐懼可以保護我們。例如，有一只狗在你身后追時，你會跑進屋里或爬上樹。因為害怕溺水，游泳者在身邊無救生員的情況下不會去海洋里游泳。

然而，也有一些恐懼非但不能保護你，反而會大大限制你的生活方式。如果這種情況正發(fā)生在你身上，那你可能已患上了恐懼癥——一種對某事物或某種情形強烈的恐懼感。這種恐懼是相當勞神的，以至于你得花費大量的時間和精力來避免此類事情的發(fā)生。

舉例來說，你是否很害怕狗或貓，一看到它們就會渾身發(fā)抖？是不是一想到乘飛機出行就讓你感到不安？如果你的朋友住在公寓的高層，你是不是就打消了去拜訪的念頭，因為你得乘電梯上樓。

恐懼癥患者通常很懼怕這些讓他們心驚膽戰(zhàn)的東西或場景，所以，無論是何種恐懼，他們都盡量避免其發(fā)生。而且，無論是朋友還是家人也難以讓他們相信，其實大部分的動物是無害的，每天都有成千上萬的人安全乘坐飛機，每天還有上百萬的人安全乘電梯數(shù)次。

那么，想要消除這種恐懼癥，你又能做些什么呢？受過特訓的專家能夠幫助有恐懼癥的病人。這些專家知道如何幫助患者減少恐慌。他們教這些恐懼癥患者如何來應對他們的恐懼并最終克服它們。

舉例來說，假設(shè)你害怕坐飛機，那就看一下附近的機場是否對飛行恐懼的人開設(shè)有專門的訓練。許多機場都有這樣的服務。這種課程是怎樣開展的呢？

首先，一個專家會帶領(lǐng)你們這個團隊到飛機場去看飛機的起飛和降落。航空公司的代表將會給你們講解飛機的飛行原理。然后，你們小組成員將坐上一架停在地面上的飛機進行體驗。

這之后不久，你們會乘機進行一次短途飛行，然后著陸。經(jīng)過反復體驗，你們在空中的飛行時間也會逐漸加長。最后，當你們作好充分準備時，小組成員將乘坐飛機飛往另一個城市。

假設(shè)你因害怕乘坐電梯而需要幫助時，一個專家會帶你們?nèi)ヒ粋€高層辦公樓。在那兒，技術(shù)人員會向你講解電梯的工作原理，以及電梯的諸多安全性能。第一次站在一樓電梯里，你們只會上下一層樓。隨后，電梯之旅會逐漸加長，直至你們能毫無恐懼地乘電梯到頂樓，再從頂樓返回一樓。

這樣的短期學習課程能逐步教會恐懼癥患者如何控制住內(nèi)心的恐懼，直至戰(zhàn)勝他們。

如果你是這樣的患者或認識這樣的患者，并且需要幫助的話，你可以請你的醫(yī)生幫忙找一個這方面的專家。