A passenger elevator is an extremely useful and necessary device, and in our age of high-rise buildings and skyscrapers, it can be said to be irreplaceable. Nevertheless, its design and operating features inspire outright fear in some people. Can this be called a phobia? However, you will not find a separate diagnosis in medical reference books. Among people and doctors, the phobia is simply called elevator phobia.
What kind of phobia is this?
Fear of elevators significantly complicates the life of a person living on the upper floors or working in a high office. Any phobia is characterized by avoidance behavior, and in this case it would be a choice in favor of walking on stairs. On the one hand, it is a very useful choice, but on the other hand, it is a colossal waste of time and effort when it comes to serious heights.
Sometimes it's simply impossible to avoid an elevator ride. Fear is accompanied by strong negative emotions, and suppressing it is not recommended for mental health. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the reasons for your phobia and work to overcome it.
How to get rid of the fear of elevators
Fear of elevators, like claustrophobia, is often characterized by panic attacks. Having learned with, you will learn to get rid of fear. Use deep, even breathing techniques. When horror comes over you, smile - even if you do it purely mechanically, the brain will decipher the signal, and the panic will slowly begin to recede. Do this every time before riding in an elevator.
If there are friends nearby, you can talk to them - this is a good distraction. Another option is to call someone and engage in a short conversation.
Once you've mastered the technique for quickly dealing with panic, get into the habit of taking the elevator one floor and then taking the stairs two floors. When this becomes easier, increase the time you spend in the elevator. Take your time, don’t push yourself – to achieve results, you need to act consistently
When you feel fear again, imagine your inner child and talk to him the way adults talk to kids. Think of short, calming phrases that you would actually say to your child. Repeat them to yourself to calm yourself before riding the elevator, and you will notice that the fear begins to gradually subside.
Fear is different from fear. Panic at the sight of mice is unlikely to complicate your life. But fear of people
can make it unbearable: after all, it is impossible to exist normally without communicating, without contact with others. You need to understand what caused your fear of people to develop and begin to overcome it.
Very often, the reason for such fear comes from childhood: if you were offended by your peers at school, teased in the yard, then you had to withdraw into yourself, protect yourself from communication. And still you expect from people
catch, trouble. Also, many are afraid of criticism and misunderstanding - this is due to low self-esteem and lack of self-confidence. Having withdrawn, having closed himself off from everyone in his own shell, a person loses communication skills and does not know how to behave in society. These problems only increase fear, a vicious circle arises that can be broken by forcing yourself to plunge into communication, like Baron Munchausen, pulling yourself out of the swamp of loneliness. Start your path to people with simple but very effective exercises. In any store, contact a consultant with a question about any product. Talk about the pros and cons of the product, discuss it from all sides, and then refuse to buy it. This way you will not only practice communication, but also learn to express your opinion and insist on your choice. You can use your phone as an assistant: call any possible places, find out about the prices of theater and cinema tickets, train schedules, conditions for employment. If it doesn’t turn out smooth and slender right away, don’t worry. After all, you can always end the conversation by hanging up. It’s important here that you don’t think about how you look, don’t watch your facial expressions, gestures - for starters, it’s easier to communicate this way. On the street, ask passers-by what time it is, how to get somewhere or get there. Ask in detail, clarify details. Strangers will only be pleased to do you a small favor, and you will acquire everyday conversation skills and gradually feel that communication can be positive and bring joy. It is important to realize that people first of all think about themselves, about how they look from the outside, and not at all about your precious person; they often experience uncertainty and shyness - just like you. Try to come to their aid, conduct the conversation kindly, openly, interestedly - only, if possible, not feignedly, but from the heart. And the fear will gradually pass, new opportunities will open up in your personal life and professional sphere. If you feel that you cannot overcome your fear of people alone, contact a specialist: a psychologist, a psychotherapist. He will help you understand the problem, find its causes and eliminate them.
Video on the topic
Almost every person sooner or later has to experience fear to one degree or another. This could be a fear of dogs, going to the dentist, taking exams at an institute or driving school, fear of heights, confined spaces, darkness and much, much more. In short, there are plenty of different phobias. There is only one question: how to deal with them? In fact, it is possible to overcome fear (and moreover, it is necessary!).
Instructions
Try to draw your fear. Psychologists believe that in the fight against a wide variety of phobias, art therapy can be one of the best helpers. After all, drawing allows you to cleanse, throw out emotions and fears on paper. So, take a big blank sheet of paper, imagine your fear and try to draw what it is.
Learn to switch from your fear to good, positive emotions. As soon as you feel that the phobia is making itself felt, think about the best that can happen. For example, you are afraid of closed spaces, but you are stuck in an elevator. Under no circumstances should you think about the darkness and cramped space in the booth!
Remember the most positive emotions for today, week, month. Think about your upcoming vacation, an exciting trip. Imagine yourself having a pleasant shopping experience. Believe me, negative emotions will gradually fade into the background, the main thing is not to concentrate your attention on them.
Use special breathing exercises. Are you afraid that you won't be able to perform at a presentation or exam? Straighten your back, exhale all the air from your lungs and take a deep breath. Imagine that as you exhale, you release your fear, and as you inhale, you gain courage. And most importantly, don’t be afraid, you will succeed!
Video on the topic
Some people may have a fear of heights, and this doesn't just apply to being on skyscrapers and airplanes. Such fear can arise even from ordinary descent, for example, from the stairs.
Instructions
Become aware of the fact that fear of heights
- this is an acquired experience of the brain; a person is not born with it.
A child encounters it between the ages of six months and a year, when he learns to walk and begins to fall and hurt himself painfully. Many people live quietly with this fear throughout their lives, overcoming it as needed. But there are times when the nervous system fails. Then a normal, healthy fear of heights
, which is associated with self-preservation, turns into a painful phobia.
To get rid of this fear, you need to determine its nature. Concentrate on your worst fantasy. What do you feel or see with your inner vision? This may be a return to childhood memories in gaining the experience of the first steps. You can see pictures of falls, injuries. You may also experience feelings of panic, terror and fear when under stress, depression, etc.
Don't ignore evidence that you are afraid of injury or are stressed. The fact is that the brain can simply block your possible wrong actions associated with climbing to any height with fear. And in a state of stress, all possible attempts to translate your subconscious self-aggression into real actions, which are often associated with falling from a height,
.
If a person tries to escape from solving a problem that makes him depressed, a combination of fear of enclosed spaces (claustrophobia) and fear of heights
(acrophobia) often occurs. A person begins to be terrified of elevators, subways, trains, airplanes, etc.
Do not delay consultation with a specialist. Depending on the cause of such fear, he will offer you the necessary training and recommendations. Currently, there are various methods of dealing with fear. There are even techniques for combating fear of heights.
directly on the plane, where an experienced psychologist helps overcome this complex.
Relaxing music, reading, meditation, physical activity, rest, etc. help to get rid of any stress and fear. Return to that childhood state when you were not afraid of heights
. Take your time, become aware of this feeling in real time, remember it. You can give this experience your own image or color. Take advantage of every opportunity for training. Finding yourself at a height that may not be more than 30 cm, experiencing a rush of adrenaline, remember your inner state during relaxing activities, the image or color with which you indicated your state without fear.
Fear of communication
– the problem is quite common. Many people feel embarrassed in situations where they need to approach a stranger and start a conversation. This condition can only be overcome experimentally – through daily training and experimentation.
Instructions
First of all, cultivate in your mind the idea that fear of communication
– this is a complex that must definitely be gotten rid of. All arguments about modesty have no basis in practical usefulness. More precisely, you should not confuse modesty with shyness. It is the latter that prevents a person from achieving a lot in life.
Self-doubt is a constant companion of fear of communication
. Fighting two problems at the same time is unlikely to be successful, so just forget about the fact that you are imperfect for a while. Never try to read the thoughts and emotions of your interlocutor, do not scroll through your head with ideas about how poorly he thinks of you now. Forget about how you look, what you are wearing - go deeper into the topic of conversation.
Radical methods of dealing with fear of communication
Not suitable for everyone. But you can try, where you have to communicate a lot and for a long time with different people. Sign up for a foreign language course, dance class, or a sports club - you will just have to communicate with new people, and in such conditions you will soon forget about your fears.
Increase your sociability. Many people do not have enough time for meaningful communication
– family, work, study, children. Take every chance to talk - chat with someone in an elevator, consult with a salesperson (even if you don't need advice). At the same time, you'll get the workout you need and have a little fun.
Never make a communication
to the level of a universal catastrophe. In fact, you won't lose your capital, job or professional skills, so don't pay too much attention to the little things. Get rid of isolation gradually, playfully - start making acquaintances on public transport, contact people asking for help, etc. Gradually, you will notice that communicating is not so scary, and the process proceeds naturally and unnoticed. When approaching someone with the aim of starting a conversation, remember that the interlocutor is the same person with his own weaknesses and fears, so there is no need to be afraid of him.
Feelings of anxiety, like fear, are a completely normal state of the body that helps the nervous system prepare for danger. The problem is that often such an unpleasant feeling occurs in situations in which there is no danger or it is far-fetched. Like any feeling, anxiety
It can be overcome, you just need to master a few techniques.
Instructions
Take a break, think about something extraneous, for example, about plans for tomorrow, remember a couple of funny stories or anecdotes, etc.
Video on the topic
Fear is the body's natural reaction to possible danger. The feeling of fear is based on the belief that a person cannot cope with certain life circumstances. In order to achieve success in life, you will have to learn to overcome this feeling within yourself.
In modern society, the emergence of irrational fears, in other words, phobias, is increasingly observed. Such a disease can be caused by absolutely ordinary things and phenomena. One of the most common is the fear of riding in an elevator. At first glance, it seems that panic attacks can be avoided without using the subject of your fears. Indeed, walking up the stairs has a positive effect on health. By not paying enough attention to your fears, you risk developing even more mental disorders.
What is behind fear? Causes
Panic fear of the elevator can be based on completely different factors. Most often it is associated with claustrophobia. The elevator car is exactly the kind of enclosed space in which claustrophobia often debuts. However, there are often cases when a person does not experience discomfort while being locked in a closet of the same size.
There are many reasons to be afraid of the elevator. For example, many sufferers of this phobia are afraid of getting stuck in an elevator. This can usually be associated with having experienced such an event in the past. To fall into a trap, to feel trapped, to find yourself alone in the dark. At such moments, the deep fear of loneliness makes itself felt.
In contrast, it is worth noting that some people are afraid of the exact opposite - being in the dark, in a stopped elevator with someone. Anxious and suspicious people prone to social phobia are frightened by traveling with strangers, even without the prospect of getting stuck. This is especially true for girls who are obsessively afraid of sexual harassment.
The next common reason is the fear of breaking the cables on which the cabin is raised and lowered. In fact, this is not a very common cause of injury, much less death, it is much more dangerous to ride in a car or even cross the street incorrectly as a pedestrian, however, the fear of falling in a car with people is for some the reason for refusing to use the elevator.
For this it is worth saying thanks to Arthur Haley, who in the final part of his novel “Hotel” colorfully describes such a tragedy. And also to a considerable number of films in which similar scenes are present.
Causes
The manifestation of elevator phobia can develop for completely different reasons. The main thing is to find out in time what exactly makes a person afraid and leads to a panic attack:
How to overcome the fear of riding in an elevator
To successfully overcome a phobia, first of all, it is important to understand what exactly scares you. If the fear is associated with a negative experience that you would not tolerate repeating, then it is extremely useful to contact a cognitive behavioral therapist. His techniques will help you cope with your condition, gradually realizing that there is no real danger in the situation and changing your behavior accordingly.
Therapy often brings rapid results, which is why it is popular.
However, it happens when the reason for your fear does not lie on the surface. In this case, it is recommended to seek help from a hypnotherapist or analyst. By delving into your subconscious, a specialist often helps to extract useful information for thought, by rethinking which you can overcome your fear of riding in an elevator.
It is worth noting that the severity of your fear may not be strong enough to contact professionals. Sometimes it’s enough to try to figure out what exactly scares you on your own.
Perhaps you just have a stressful situation in your life right now, for some reason you are afraid for your life, and refusing to ride in the elevator is just a modest attempt to control inexplicable anxiety? Look at your lifestyle, do you eat well, do you get enough fresh air? A phobia can be a consequence of chronic stress or, conversely, an acute conflict situation.
Causes of fear and methods of dealing with it
The most important thing a person who is afraid to use elevators needs to do is to understand why he has such negative emotions and what exactly he is afraid of. The choice of treatment method will depend on this.
Sometimes a person cannot figure out the reasons for his fear himself, since they lie in long-forgotten events. In this case, it is better to contact an experienced psychologist who can use hypnosis to find answers.
If you've ever been stuck in an elevator and don't want to relive the unpleasant moments associated with that incident, think about what scared you the most. Write down the problems you encountered and then provide a solution for each one. For example, you can remind yourself that you have a mobile phone with you, which means calling for help will not be difficult. If you are afraid that the lights will go out in the elevator, keep a small flashlight with you or buy a phone with this function.
People who are afraid of being attacked in an elevator should travel either alone or in the company of 3-4 people who clearly do not know each other. In this case, the risk of becoming a victim of an attack is very low.
What to do if you suddenly discover you have a phobia
Firstly, you don’t need to immediately diagnose yourself and panic. Secondly, make sure that this is not a one-time incident. Then follow all the recommendations described above. Analyze what exactly scares you. Could this be the result of the thriller I watched yesterday?
Do not use sedatives just like that, if you really do not feel the strength to overcome your fear, consult a psychologist. A competent specialist will definitely understand your problem, help you overcome your fear, and teach you relaxation techniques.
conclusions
Global urbanization leads to the emergence of more and more new phobias, completely unusual for people living in villages. The fear of riding in elevators is another example of this. Fear is inherent in a considerable number of people, although often in a mild form, when a person can cope with it on his own. Some people completely refuse to use the elevator, but these are rather exceptions to the rule. For them, therapeutic groups are recommended, which include people suffering from various phobias, and individual sessions with a psychologist.
