Originally Posted by skeg
If you have a fear of snakes or heights and come face with them and think about them all the time what happens? Apparently distraction and correct breathing is the key, but more complex. You have to unlearn the habbit or reaction you have learnt. Its not an illness as such.
True but you can never get rid of the fear 100% IMO. Especially if it has a bad memory attached to it. Irrational fears are a bit easier to deal with. I'm afraid of hieghts but I have become comfortabel with the fear through repeated exposure. I couldn't go onto roofs of big buildings without being in constant fear of falling. Standing near the edge made me feel ill and my knees used to go weak.
My solution was to buy abseilling gear and start doing that. I started by building confidence doing it indoors down the middle of the building stair well (strangely hieghts indoors wern't a problem!). Then moving outdoors and abseiling from the roof. Took me a good hour just to get over the edge. I just kept doing it and now I can do it without feeling afraid. Yes my heart still races when I'm near an edge or as i go over, but there's no thoughts attached to it now. I've even done a charity abseil and bungy jumped off a crane. I intedn to do parachuting when I get the opportunity at some time, although I still reackon you might have to push me out the door!!!