How to overcome fear of heights. Fear of heights is scientifically called acrophobia, and the disease affects about 7% of people worldwide. Of course, every person will be nervous before skydiving. However, a certain category of people in such situations experiences enormous fear, which is very exhausting. This feature prevents you from leading a full life and enjoying adrenaline. To cope with the problem, you need to look for the root of acrophobia, and then direct all your strength to the fight. Let's consider the main aspects in order.
Causes of fear
There are different reasons for the fear of heights, and psychologists have their own arguments about this. Many people think that this is how the instinct of self-preservation of the individual is expressed. Others believe that a person acquired this fear throughout his life, and it is connected only with his mental state. There are different causes of acrophobia.
- An innate phobia associated with a sense of self-preservation.
- Fear acquired throughout life. If a child falls from a tree, he will have impressions for the rest of his life. He will be afraid of heights and falls.
- The psychological state of a person is disturbed. He is very impressionable and suspicious. Just the thought of heights causes intense fear and a storm of emotions.
- Disorders of orientation in space, that is, poor vestibular apparatus. Often such people experience dizziness and nausea at elevated levels.
There is no need to make fun of people who are afraid. Regardless of the cause, psychological or medication assistance is needed.
Acrophobia can occur as a result of falling from a height
The effect of altitude on the human body
Prolonged stay at high altitude can cause negative changes in health. It is believed that living on a floor above 7 negatively affects the functioning of the nervous, cardiovascular, and immune systems. This is caused by the influence of the earth's magnetic field. In large cities, toxic substances and poisonous gases accumulate at a distance above 30 m from the soil. Higher on the upper floors there is also electromagnetic radiation, due to the constant movement of traffic, vibration is possible, which causes a feeling of anxiety, causeless restlessness.
It is dangerous to stay too high and in mountainous areas. Atmospheric pressure decreases. Up to 500 m above sea level the changes are insignificant. Afterwards they affect the state of the body. Humidity and temperature also become lower, and the level of solar radiation increases.
The impact will be especially negative on people suffering from phobias: they will experience increased panic symptoms. It should be borne in mind that acrophobia is a fear that is uncontrollable and characterized by severe symptoms. Simple fear and anxiety do not pose a big threat.
The difference between acrophobia and ordinary fear
which is associated with heights - a natural feeling of fear, mobilization, composure, caution, activity, a sober assessment of the situation to ensure safety. It is easy for a healthy person to overcome his fear of heights. A person with acrophobia is disarmed by an identical situation; he is weak, passive, and lacks self-control. This is a pathological reaction of the body that cannot be left uncontrolled; it is important to promptly seek the help of psychiatrists. Experts warn about the seriousness of this disease, about complete and timely treatment, in the absence of which the consequences can be tragic.
Symptoms of acrophobia
terrible pictures of falls, injuries, death of oneself and loved ones.
According to psychiatrists, in the case of acrophobia, as a serious mental disorder, manifestations of fear are associated with disruption of the self-preservation system. It can be turned on at a time when there are no objective reasons for danger. Sick people, being at a height, experience a double feeling - some do not know how to overcome fear and are not able to control themselves, while others have a desire to jump down, although they have not made suicidal attempts before.
How to overcome this unpleasant condition?
It is possible to get rid of the inadequate fear of falling from heights both with the help of psychotherapy and on your own. It all depends on the severity of the disorder, and, of course, on your motivation.
In popular psychology you can find advice and recommendations that turn out to be unworkable when tested.
Why is this happening? The whole point is that you won’t be able to overcome fear with just conversations and beliefs: “Everything will be fine” or “Just go towards the fear, and everything will pass.”
It is necessary to work with the cause of the problem, and it is different for everyone.
At the first diagnostic stage of work, it is necessary to determine the severity of the phobia. You can overcome the disease on your own if any of the above symptoms include dizziness, increased heart rate, palpitations, and mild nausea.
If you or your loved ones have most of the symptoms indicated in the previous section, then you cannot do without the help of a psychotherapist.
Now let's look at seven ways to cope with the fear of heights, which have shown their effectiveness in practice.
1) Psychotherapy and drug therapy
If fear has reached the level of disorder, then treatment of acrophobia begins with drug therapy and psychotherapy sessions. Taking light sedatives, tablets prescribed by a doctor, helps to relax the nervous system, making the patient calmer and more receptive to the influence of the psychotherapist.
Psychotherapeutic sessions must be held regularly. In them, with the help of a psychologist or psychotherapist, the client accurately recreates the situations that cause panic and learns to concentrate on external components, rather than giving in to his feelings and emotions.
During therapy, it is always recommended to support the body with vitamins and mineral complexes, saturate everyday life with positive emotions, and physical activity.
It is possible to independently work with blocking your own fear with the help of techniques that give control over physical processes. The simplest of them to use independently are breathing techniques.
2) Breath holding
One of them is breathing with short delays (1-3 seconds). In order for the effect to occur immediately and be long-lasting, you need to start using it in the first seconds of an attack of fear.
When using this technique, the level of carbon dioxide in the blood increases, and the oxygen content, on the contrary, decreases. This leads to a decrease in heart rate, stopping the production of stress hormones.
Conscious slowing of breathing movements also leads to a similar effect.
3) Muscle relaxation
Alternate conscious tension and relaxation of muscles gives the effect of “dropping” negativity.
After its use, pleasant fatigue appears in the muscles, and a feeling of warmth is created throughout the body. This promotes calm.
As with breathing techniques, using it in the first seconds of anxiety can effectively relieve an attack of fear.
4) Concentration on one point
When a fear of heights manifests itself, it is recommended to “catch” your gaze on some object and “not let go” of it. Rotating and shaking the head intensifies an attack of acrophobia.
But a static position of the body and gaze significantly reduces anxiety and fear even at high altitude.
6) Changing body position “closer to the ground”
If panic tendencies appear, in order to avoid hysteria, it is recommended to sit down, get down on all fours, or even lie down. If this is not possible, you can take on, for example, any static object.
The feeling of “hardness” under our feet, hands and other parts of the body, as it were, tells our body “everything is okay”, “you won’t fall”.
In addition, this technique allows you to “ground” a strong feeling of fear and turn it into something “tolerable” that can be endured.
6) Getting used to the height
A method that effectively helps, but, unfortunately, not for everyone. However, there are enough reviews that it really helped some people overcome their fear of heights.
The method consists of gradually “getting used to” the height. It is recommended to carry it out under the guidance of a specialist or a loved one who can quickly recognize the onset of an attack and take action if something goes wrong.
The essence of the method is that gradually, step by step, a person rises to a height and observes the mental phenomena that arise in him. Monitors heart rate, thoughts accompanying the entire process, transforms negative emotions (“I’m scared”) into positive ones (“I succeeded”).
This method can only be used by an adult, independent person who does not have suicidal tendencies and suffers only from mild attacks of fear of heights.
Fear of airplanes
It often happens that a person suffering from acrophobia is also susceptible to aerophobia. The fear of flying in an airplane is due to the fear of a crash, not the fear of heights. Fantasy paints eerie pictures of a possible crash, and the effect is enhanced by the wild altitude at which the airliner usually flies. Therefore, some people come to mind that fear of heights is a mild phobia compared to fear of flying.
If the feeling of height affects your mental state, you listen to every sound the plane makes, you cannot relax, then you are overcome by fear generated by your imagination.
You need to relax, close the window curtains, try to sleep or read. Try to create a relaxed atmosphere around yourself that will show your body that nothing threatens it.
Aerophobia is explained by the fear of crashing
Treatment
Psychologists recommend techniques to overcome the fear of heights. They assume a certain sequence, their effectiveness depends on the patient’s desire to get rid of fear (not from a severe form of phobia):
- Awareness of the problem. The patient should analyze the feeling of fear of heights. If the height is only a few meters, is there any need to be afraid of the consequences of a fall? Dislocations and bruises can be caused by moving even on a flat surface; Standing on a stepladder with shaky knees increases the risk of falling. Analysis of the situation helps to overcome the fear of heights.
- Gradual action. To get rid of fear, there is no need to climb onto the roof of a multi-story building and force yourself to overcome panic horror. First you need to rise to a small height, where you can calm yourself down with thoughts of complete safety. It is good if the patient is supported by loved ones. When the fear of heights passes at a slight elevation, you can continue training. Increase the elevation slightly and repeat the exercise. The technique requires patience and can take weeks. There is no need to rush; you should definitely praise yourself for all the successes achieved. Psychologists recommend keeping a special diary to record your achievements.
- Visualization. This method has long been used in psychology. You need to close your eyes and imagine yourself on the edge of a cliff, while feeling courage, fearlessness, and confidence. Regularly performing such exercises helps get rid of a mild form of acrophobia.
- Relaxation. You need to learn to suppress attacks of uncontrollable panic with the help of breathing exercises, listening to your favorite music, self-hypnosis, or any other method that will effectively help relieve nervous tension.
Definition of acrophobia
Acrophobia is the fear of heights. The word comes from the Greek language. Akros means upper, and phobos means fear. Doctors do not consider this condition a serious illness because, in their opinion, it does not affect a person’s quality of life. Other phobias, such as fear of open areas and crowds of people, are considered more dangerous. Because of them, people find themselves imprisoned in their own home. They are unable to work normally or perform simple activities, such as going to the store for purchases.
With acrophobia the situation is simpler. Skydiving or climbing mountains are not vital activities. Fear of heights deprives a person of only some entertainment. These include hot air balloon rides, rides on cable cars, slides in a water park, etc. In addition, he will not be able to live on the upper floors.
Despite all this, fear of heights is much more serious than it seems. This is evidence that a person’s nervous system is impaired and there is also a risk of developing mental disorders.
Interesting! About 5% of the world's population suffers from acrophobia.
History of acrophobia
Acrophobia (Greek acros - upper; phobos - fear) appears in people, causing serious worries. According to the theory of evolution, phobia is necessary for humanity to develop internal resources in extreme conditions.
Primitive people, when in danger, ran away or attacked. Fear is a natural reaction to danger: adrenaline is produced, accompanied by increased heart rate, increased blood clotting, and increased blood glucose levels.
People discover internal resources of endurance. As evolution progressed, physical threats became fewer. People learned to control fire, weapons, and make tools. But some primitive phobias remained. One of them is acrophobia - an internal conflict in front of heights. Fear of heights is holding me back. Small elevations are difficult.
A famous Athenian spoke of the appearance of symptoms of fear of heights when crossing a bridge. Anxiety, increased heart rate and muscle pain. The same descriptions exist in ancient Chinese texts and ancient Roman mythology. Fear of heights has been around for a long time. Originally from the ancient world.
How to become aware of your fear
Since the natural fear of heights, inherent in nature, is present in everyone and forces us to be careful in dangerous situations, it is quite difficult to determine the fine line separating it from a phobia.
If your fear of heights is difficult to cope with on your own, take a short test and answer questions to find out how much fear affects your life:
- Have you turned down a lucrative job if the company's office was on the top floors of a skyscraper or if the job required air travel?
- Have you canceled an important meeting if it was to take place at a very high place?
Sit down at the table, take a piece of paper and write down all the situations when a fear of heights prevented you from living a normal life. If the answers to the questions are positive and the list is very large, you may need to consult a specialist.
Symptoms of acrophobia
Panic attacks of fear of heights occur in a large number of people, but only a few of them seek medical help. The symptoms of acrophobia have a clear external expression . This is the body's signal for emergency help:
- a strong desire to have support or to cling to something;
- inadequate assessment of reality for unexplained reasons;
- dizziness;
- dyspnea;
- paleness or redness of the skin, appearance of spots;
- trembling in the arms and legs, strange body movements;
- “cold” sweat appears;
- nausea, in some cases vomiting, diarrhea;
- dry mouth or excessive salivation.
Acrophobia manifests itself not only in situations where a person is at high altitude. The same reactions appear even when remembering her. Fear of heights also exists during night sleep.
Causes
It is impossible to say unequivocally what provokes the development of acrophobia. Psychiatrists and psychologists have not yet reached a consensus on this issue. But several reasons were still identified.
Innate fear
Scientists have proven that fear of heights is genetic. To do this, they conducted an interesting study. The floor surface was divided into two parts. The first one was made transparent. The second one was no different from the usual sex. They created the illusion of emptiness from below. Not a single child participating in the experiment wanted to stand on a transparent surface, even in cases where his parents persuaded him to do so.
Brain disorders
They occur after a person has had a viral or infectious disease. Risk factors also include excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages, narcotic and psychotropic substances.
Special personality constitution
There are people with increased sensitivity to everything that happens around them. They react sharply to any event, experience discomfort in bright lights, loud sounds, or the need to be near other people for a long time. They don't watch scenes of violence in films and are afraid of blood. There are about 10% of these on the planet.
A highly sensitive nervous system is one of the reasons for the development of acrophobia.
Traumatic situations from the past
Perhaps someone experienced stress associated with heights in early childhood. Often a person no longer remembers under what circumstances everything happened. But this information is imprinted in his subconscious.
Balance problems
The last reason that provokes the development of acrophobia is disturbances in the functioning of the vestibular apparatus.
