'Where Does My Claustrophobia Come From?'
Claustrophobia often develops from an early childhood experience of being trapped in an enclosed space. For some, the phobia begins later in life when they find themselves trapped in a confined space such an elevator that becomes stuck between floors, or a tube, or underground train that has stopped between stations. They become scared because they can't 'escape' triggering a large release of adrenalin into the bloodstream, and, unfortunately for them, their brain 'learns' to do this, subsequently creating further adrenalin releases in similar circumstances, or even the idea of being in similar circumstances, and a conditioned response is born…
The Fear Of Being Trapped In Enclosed Places
The bad feelings that people get as a result of claustrophobia range from discomfort through to full blown anxiety or panic attacks when faced with the possibility of having to be in an enclosed space (or even just thinking of being in one). It becomes yet another example of the 'fear of the fear'; the person anticipates being terrified in such an environment thereby unwittingly continuing to 'program' themselves to continue to be scared into the future.
Typical problem areas for those who are claustrophobic include:
Elevators (lifts) – those suffering from this phobia have to climb a lot of stairs…
- Trains and Planes – they can't get on one because they worry about having an anxiety attack
- Cars (traffic jams can be a nightmare for them)
- Certain hospital procedures such as MRI scanners
Obviously this fear can have a dramatically negative effect on someone's lifestyle (and possibly health). Apart from the obvious avoidance behaviours, those with this phobia will often be continually checking to see that they can 'escape' or get out of a situation, just in case the fear comes on, checking for exits in rooms, positioning themselves in such a way as they can easily 'get out' etc etc.
'How Are You Going To Cure My Claustrophobia?'
Well, most the techniques that are effective in treating someone suffering from this problem are direct and to the point. Powerful reconditioning techniques such as the NLP Fast Phobia Cure and others usually produce positive results quickly
