Fear of Height, Acrophobic
A phobia is an irrational fear resulting in a conscious avoidance of a specific feared object, activity or a situation. The individual knows that his fear and behavior are irrational and foolish, but cannot help it.
Acrophobia is fear of heights. It is one of the most common forms of phobias. A person suffering from this phobia tries to avoid heights, it can be walking on a terrace, looking down a hill or as small as looking down a ladder. If he is put under such a situation he will react with symptoms of acrophobia which we will discuss below.
It is normal for a person to react when he looks down from a height or a hill, but when the reaction is far more than normal, the person is referred to be acrophobic.
Signs of Acrophobia
- Panic attack
- Fast breathing
- Palpitation.
- Sweating out of proportion.
- Dizziness
- Trembling
- Raised blood pressure.
- Shaking
- Person may faint.
Fear of Height Causes
According to the psychoanalysis school, acrophobia results of a traumatic experience in the past or in the childhood or a fear of height which gets an imprint in his subconscious mind. If the fear reaches an extreme stage, the subconscious mind wards of this anxiety.
Treatment for Acrophobia
- Relaxation exercises for anxiety and phobias.
- Behavior therapy such as desensitization involving increased exposure to real or imaginary acrophobic situation.
- Pharmacological therapy using various anti depressant drugs.
- Homeopathic drugs such as cocculus indicus, gelsemium, and lobelia inflata are helpful in symptoms of dizziness, sweating, nausea which are present with panic attacks.