Book 10, Question 98
Why Do Small Brave Steps Help with Mild Fears?
Small brave steps help with mild fears because they teach your alarm system that you are safe. Your body has a built-in alarm that protects you, but sometimes it rings when there is no real danger. Gentle practice, with a trusted adult, can turn the volume down.
More fun facts
- A phobia is a fear of a specific thing or situation that is much stronger and longer lasting than usual, so people avoid it or face it with great fear.
- Specific phobias are among the most common kinds of anxiety problems.
- About 5 percent of children have a phobia strong enough to cause real problems in daily life.
- Doctors sort phobias into five groups, including animals, nature, blood and needles, situations, and other fears such as loud noises or costumed characters.
- A treatment called one session treatment uses a single 3 hour session in which kids face their fear step by step, with support, and challenge their scary thoughts.
- In a study of 97 young people aged 6 to 15, about half were free of their phobia diagnosis right after this short treatment.
- In an earlier trial, about 73 percent of children who got this treatment no longer had their phobia diagnosis a year later.
Sources: National Institutes of Health
Questions kids ask
What is a small brave step?
It is a tiny piece of a bigger challenge, like looking at a picture of a dog before standing near a calm, friendly one.