How does exposure therapy work?
The type of exposure therapy by used your therapist will depend on the condition being targeted. Here are some general things you may experience:
- The first step is to identify the cause of your fear or anxiety. After which your therapist or psychologist will start the process of exposing you to the feared stimulus.
- Your therapist will mostly use a graded approach, where they first expose you to a mildly feared stimulus and allow you to overcome that before moving to a more serious stimulus.
- Your therapist will arrange regular schedules where they can constantly expose you to this feared stimulus in a safe environment.
- The number or how long your sessions will be will depend on your progress.
For example, if you are afraid of cockroaches, the therapist will start by showing you pictures of cockroaches during your first session and might progress to bringing live cockroaches in your next session, then eventually have you hold a cockroach.