Height phobia
Becoming more aware
Keep a diary - It is a good idea to keep a diary of height-related situations you find difficult or scary. It will help you understand the things that are happening to you. Then you can fight the phobia. You can watch your own progress and notice what you are doing well. Sometimes when we are stressed we only remember the bad days and not the good ones. Make a diary like the one below. The first line has been filled in as an example (1 = not at all frightening, 10 = very frightening). As you progress you will see your anxiety rating for difficult situations go down.
| Date | Doing what? Where? | How did you feel? | Anxiety rating (1-10) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 March | Driving over the Kingston Bridge | Terrible panic | 9 |
Break down the challenges
The next step is to make a list of difficult height-related things. Each thing will have a different rating (1 = no anxiety, 5 = fairly anxious, 10 = very anxious). Put the most difficult thing at the top, then the next most difficult one, and so on, all the way to the bottom - just like the example below:
| Situation | Rating |
|---|---|
| Cliff Top | 9 |
| Top floor of high rise flat | 8 |
| Bridge | 7 |
| Ladder | 5 |
| Top deck of double decker bus | 5 |
| Top floor of tenement flat | 3 |
| Step ladder | 3 |
Create your own challenge sheet like the one above to make your list.
Face the situation
The best way to fight a height phobia is to go back to the difficult situations - slowly.
Go back to your challenge list of situations or places you find scary. Start with the easiest at the bottom of the list. Practise going into this situation until you may feel able to cope with it and you notice your anxiety rating drop. Choose a more difficult thing and practice this. Do not be tempted to try any scary difficult things until you find the easier ones less scary.
Be prepared
We need to think about how you can prepare for going into the difficult situations on your list. There are 2 things you can do to help with this:
Relaxation
You might start to feel anxious about going into difficult situations. You need to notice when you first start to feel panic. Go to the panic section of the stress wheel and find out how to control your panic.
Positive thinking
When we are anxious and panicky our thinking can go out of control. Scary thoughts like "I am going to jump", "I am going to fall over the edge" and "I might faint" feed our anxiety and make it worse. They are not true but it is difficult not to think like this when you are in a scary situation. The most common scary thought is to think that the worst thing is going to happen. You end up in a vicious circle:
- Notice panic feelings and body sensations like feeling hot and sweaty, heart racing
- Think negative thoughts about the worst thing that can happen
- Makes things worse and increases the panic feelings and body sensations
Come up with a 'Big Challenge Thought'
A big challenge thought is one that you can use to fight the negative thoughts. Uses this thought along with breathing exercises whenever you are in a difficult situation.
| Write down your worrying thoughts | How much do I believe it? |
|---|---|
| If I see a bridge approaching on the motorway I think 'I can't cope'. | 10 |
Challenge the thought :
| Try and find a more balanced thought | Ask yourself what reasons you have for the thought | Ask yourself what reasons you have against the thought |
|---|---|---|
It might help if you think of:
| If I had an accident on that bridge, I'd end up over the barrier in the water. I'd be a dead man. | I'm a careful driver and have never had a serious accident before. The chances of this happening on the bridge are low. I've not heard of any cars coming off the Kingston bridge before. |
Come up with another way of looking at it :
| Big Challenge Thought | New rating of worry (1 - 10) |
|---|---|
| I can learn to deal with this | 3 |
Some tips on fighting you fear
- You will have good days, and you will have your bad days. Don't let a bad day set you right back
- Try to think positively if you can
- Take things a step at a time
- Don't try too much on a bad day
- Give yourself credit when you do something you are proud of, give yourself a treat
- Don't pick difficult situations that are too scary
