Fear of heights

Fear of heights, of course, everyone has as component of the instinct of self-preservation. Here only at many fear of height develops ina phobia. Acrophobia occurs in almost 5% of the world's population. Many people can not even guess for years that they have a fear of heights, but it's worth it for a person to be on the roof of a high-rise building or climb a high mountain, and then the phobia makes itself felt.

Often acrophobia goes hand in hand with aerophobia, that is, fear of flying, when a personis experiencing severe discomfort while on board an airplane or helicopter. But not necessarily. A person can quite normally feel in an airplane at an altitude of several thousand meters and at the same time experience panic fear while standing on a stool.

Symptoms of acrophobia are: dyspnoea, sweating, dizziness, dry mouth or vice versa, increased salivation, accelerated heartbeat, lower body temperature, resulting in cold limbs, in addition, a person can not speak and think logically. The first reaction is to grab for something with a dead grip.

Psychologists share the fear of heights on two subspecies: fear of losing control and jumping from the height and fear of losing balance and falling.

Acrophobia can occur in humans even when he stands absolutely on the ground. At the same time it is enough for him to look at someone,who is at a significant height, whether it's an electrician on a high-voltage pole or kiddies on the roof of a house. A person suffering from acrophobia subconsciously associates himself with that whom he sees, and this already causes him an attack of severe discomfort.

There are several causes of acrophobia. First of all, it is a weak vestibular apparatus. It becomes difficult for a person to move at altitude, because the balance of the body changes, the distance estimate is distorted. In addition, the fear of heights was inherited from our ancestors as an instinct of self-preservation. And the last thing that is most often the cause of acrophobia is a traumatic injury associated with height. A person may not even remember this, especially if the fall from height occurred in early childhood. For many people to develop fear of heights, it was enough to fall out of the crib in infancy or fall from the tree in the kindergarten. The memory that the height always follows the pain develops into an obsessive phobia.

What to do to those who showed fear of heights? You can not all your life hide from your fear, avoiding the many joys in life associated with the height.

Psychologists say that, like any phobia, fear of heights can be treated. There are many techniques related to howto overcome acrophobia, even specialized clinics are opened that are engaged in helping people get rid of this disorder. But, having the strength of will and great desire, you can fight this problem yourself. First of all, it is necessary to understand that it is necessary for you, and not for someone.

The easiest way to get rid of fear - to face him face to face. To begin with, conduct a mental experiment: imagine that you jump with a parachute, climb to the top or you leave on the balcony of a skyscraper. Mentally step over your fear and try to bring it to the end.

The next step is action. The main condition for such therapy is safety. Do not climb on the rock without insurance or immediatelyjump with a parachute without an instructor. Start small, try to think positively and assure yourself that nothing threatens you at all. Gradually increase the height to which you can climb.

A very important role in the treatment of acrophobia is played by psychological support. If someone else is near you, you will feel more confident and calm. Will play its role and the desire to prove not only to yourself that you can do anything.

If independent attempts to overcome the fear of heights do not bring the desired result, most likely, the cause of fear lies in your childhood. Something that triggered developmentacrophobia. In this case, it is best to contact a psychologist. The expert will help to find out the reason of fear, and, knowing the reason, it will be easier to cope with the phobia itself.