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Breaking free of childhood fears

Single session treatment for children's fears has produced effective and beneficial results

BEATING FEAR Children's phobias can be easily treated

Eleven-year-old Dylan George loved to play badminton. He did it with a professional sleight of hand, intense absorption and praise-worthy excellence. But since a month, if just a bee flew into the court, leave alone animals like dogs or cats, Dylan would stop playing and rush into the house. He would not go back to play until the next day. This was what Dylan's mother reported to the therapist with the ardent desire to get her son freed from his problems within the shortest time.

Dylan's mother could not pinpoint when or how her son's fears started or the precipitating factor, which triggered his problem. But his mother had vague ideas how such afflictions could be ended. She had seen many phobic children emerging from the kindergarten able to face their fears with all self-confidence and courage. She had seen a small girl of six years leading a big dog on a leash to its cage, just after three hours of treatment. Previously, the child was not able to tolerate even seeing the animal (Zoophobia) in her room. Dylan's mother had also observed another child, who previously had the fear of high places (Acrophibia), climbing up a ladder with all motivation, courage and self-confidence.

These experiences were the main reasons which made Dylan's mother bring her son for treatment in the Department of Clinical Psychology of the hospital, where time-saving single session treatment of children's phobias were also done bringing across effective, fruitful and beneficial results. For this, the clinical psychologist collaborated with the child to construct a fear-hierarchy, a list of anxiety-provoking situations from least to worst. To illustrate, if it were the fear of an animal, the child had to look at a small dog through a glass window, which might anchor at the low end of the hierarchy, while petting and feeding a big dog topped the list. In the middle of the hierarchy were packed up such activities as standing in the same room with the dog, touching the animal, giving a biscuit in its mouth etc. The clinical psychologist thus led the child through the items on the hierarchy. At the end of the session, the child faced his worst fear, petting the dog and leading it on a leash to its cage. In Dylan's case also this was the model of treatment adopted with mild variations, and was called Systematic Dsensitization Tecnique (SDT)

Fear is a defence mechanism of the child to ward off the impending threat to his ego. It is to prevent the arousal of intolerable emotions, to maintain sense of security and personal adequacy. It develops in persons with deep-seated anxiety and guilt. Insecure children develop phobic reactions easily. Psycho-pathologically often over protective, anxious, indecisive parents, expressing their worries, creating an atmosphere of tension and apprehension at home, directly condition the child to be afraid by being negative in image, attitude, thinking and goal perceptions. Among the childhood phobias observed in these children are often the fear of being alone or fear of solitude (Monophobia), fear of going to school and fear of open spaces (Agoraphobia).

Nowadays, the therapist asks parents to encourage their children to continue to face the fears (positive reinforcement). With parental training also added to the mix, success rate swells up to 80 to 90 per cent and the main traits of the affected individuals become positive, constructive and enthusiastic per se enjoying life.

DR. C. P. SOMASUNDARAM

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