Basics of Exposure
This therapy involves gradual practice of facing feared thoughts, feelings, or situations to reduce avoidance.
What is exposure therapy?
This is when you practice facing fears in real life, like actually driving or going to the store.
What is in-real-life (in vivo) exposure?
This is a list of fears from “easy” to “hard” that helps you take steps without overwhelming yourself.
What is a fear hierarchy?
This reaction happens when anxiety makes you feel angry, snappy, or tense.
What is fight?
Avoidance brings this feeling right away — but it makes anxiety stronger in the long run.
What is temporary relief?
Exposure therapy teaches the brain and body a new response to this intense emotion.
What is fear (or anxiety)?
This type of exposure has you imagine a scary situation in your mind so you can work through it safely.
What is imaginal exposure?
When making a hierarchy, you rank fears from the ones that are the least scary to the ones that are the ___.
What is most scary?
This reaction makes you want to get away or leave the situation as fast as possible.
What is flight?
Self-compassion helps replace harsh self-talk with this kind of inner voice.
What is a kind, encouraging voice?
Exposure therapy’s main aim is to reduce avoidance and build this, so clients can handle discomfort.
What is tolerance (or distress tolerance)?
This type of exposure helps you get used to physical sensations—like a fast heartbeat—so they don’t feel scary.
What is body-sensations exposure (interoceptive)?
The best way to work through a fear hierarchy is to move at this pace.
What is one step at a time?
This reaction makes you feel stuck, frozen, or unable to think clearly.
What is freeze?
Name one worry people often have before trying exposure therapy.
What is “What if it doesn’t work?” or “What if it feels too hard?”
When you repeat exposures, your anxiety naturally goes down. This process is called what?
What is getting used to it (habituation)?
This uses technology like headsets to let you practice facing fears in a safe, digital environment.
What is virtual reality (VR) exposure?
In a driving fear hierarchy, the hardest step might be doing this.
What is driving on a busy road or highway?
This reaction shows up as people-pleasing, apologizing a lot, or trying to keep others happy.
What is fawn?
Before moving up your fear hierarchy, you repeat each step until this naturally happens.
What is your anxiety goes down?
Exposure therapy helps calm the part of our brain that sets off the “danger alarm.”
What is the amygdala?
Body-sensation exposure helps teach this part of your brain that normal body feelings aren’t dangerous.
What is the part of the brain that reads body signals (the insula)?
Name one benefit of using a hierarchy — something it helps you with.
What is staying organized, feeling more in control, or making steady progress?
Name one grounding skill you can use when you feel frozen.
What is naming what you see/hear/feel (5-4-3-2-1), or wiggling fingers/toes?
Name one strategy you can use when you feel the urge to run away (the flight response).
What is slow breathing or saying “I am safe, I can stay here”?