This episode of DNews is brought to you by the U.S. Air Force.
The best way to get over your fear of spiders is to pick up a spider.
YEAH, THIS WILL GO FINE.
Self-preservation instinct exists in every type of life form, even single-celled organisms.
As our brains advance we began to grasp logic and reason, and understand complex emotions
like sympathy, but the limbic system, which controls fear, is still deep in there.
Fear is a powerful thing and overcoming it can be even more difficult.
The amygdala is ready to hit the panic button in a second, and it's always there...
deep in your brain...
Evolution has built us to avoid fear, and it's so strong people who are paralyzed by
trauma may change their entire social structure to avoid triggering their amygdala.
One way to get over a fear is called, "Exposure Therapy," where psychotherapists use relaxation
techniques combined with desensitization to help people curb and control their fears.
It's a tricky business, specialists have to balance the exposure with the relaxation techniques,
using classical conditioning to retrain the patient's limbic system.
Sort of like Pavlov training dogs to salivate when they hear a bell, exposure therapy retrains
the amygdala so fear responses are desensitized.
They don't want to overwhelm the amygdala, or they'll risk re-traumatizing the person,
so exposure therapy can take a while.
Instead, specialists will work to explore the fear and desensitize one little bit at
a time.
So, if someone suffers from panic attacks, psychologists might ask a patient run to get
their heart rate up, so they don't fear the pounding in their chest.
It's pretty intense stuff!
Of course, fear of spiders, heights, and like… sitting down (kathisophobia) are all pretty
easy to practice with exposure therapy.
Over time, when paired with relaxation training, your amygdala will tone down the panic, and
patients are able to actually overcome the fear!
For things where the patient CAN'T go back, like abuse or military PTSD, psychotherapists
are turning to technology.
Virtual Reality Exposure, can put people in controlled situations that help desensitize
bits of a bad experience in a safe environment.
Rather than putting someone who is afraid of flying on an airplane, they could be put
in a VR headset!
The University of Southern California has been using VR exposure therapy since 2005
to work with veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan.
Using a VR headset and an XBox game, military personnel can experience virtual reality,
3D audio, vibrations and even smells -- helping to selectively expose parts and desensitize
PTSD sufferers!
Technology to the rescue!
According to an NIH study in Journal of Clinical Psychology, even after six sessions, patients
reported decreased feelings of psychological distress and PTSD symptoms!
In another study in the Journal of Trauma and Stress, VR therapy significantly reduced
symptoms in 62 percent of patients.
The limbic system evolved in a time when we could be killed at any moment, and the fear
response was a way to keep us safe and alive.
Today, it would make sense to be able to shut off this fear-based, ancient brain, but we're
not there yet.
Instead, we have to learn to overcome our fears and live courageously.
Luckily, science is working on it!
You know who’s good at overcoming fear?
The brave men and women in the United States Air Force!
Whether it’s overcoming poverty to become a nurse and officer or becoming the first
female Thunderbird pilot, these Airmen are doing what others once thought was impossible.
So, a big shout out to the U.S. Air Force for making this episode possible!
What are you afraid of?