The Panic Doctor - Richard C. Raynard, Ph.D., Clinical Psychologist

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

  

 

Phobic Situations

We avoid panic situations to escape the shocking feelings of panic. Since avoiding works so well in the short run, we hold on tightly to our avoiding tactics. We get so good at using them, others, and even ourselves, hardly notice them even while we build a huge array of escapes. In the long term, avoiding unravels our progress and sabotages success.

 

The immediate effect of avoiding is relief; a powerful, instant reward. The thought is, "I don't have to go through panic."  The darker effect is that avoiding keeps you ignorant about what may work better. The moment you avoid the source of panic, you stop the search for a better way. Avoiding makes you increasingly helpless. In time, a broader effect sets in: an attitude towards yourself that you could not handle it any other way (see Sensitivities for more information on how your beliefs affect you).

(This section contains excerpts from the book Panic Free by Dr. Richard Raynard, Trafford Publishing, 2006, 311 pp)

 

There are many types of situations people commonly link their panic to.  Dr. Raynard's own Phobic Situation Scale is a useful tool and is one of the cornerstones to your recovery. Here are some of the common situations:  

 

 

(Note:  If you are highly sensitive and panic easily, consider skipping the visual items below and proceed to the printed version of the Phobic Situation Scale by e-mailing richard@panicdoctor.com .)

 

 

Agoraphobia

The consequences of prolonged avoidance and giving up more and more of life makes for a condition many call a prison. This prison is called agoraphobia - an active avoidance of many situations which can lead to some phobics becoming reclusive and home-bound.  

 

Agoraphobia     

    Agoraphobia             

 

Situations which frequently appear on the Phobic Situation Scale and can be a sole phobia or part of an agoraphobic condition are:

 

  Fear of Being Alone in a Crowd, panic while being alone in a crowd      Fear of elevators, panic in elevators, anxious in elevators     Fear of Enclosed Spaces, panic in enclosed spaces, phobia of enclosed spaces, Fear of Enclosed Places, panic in enclosed places, phobic of enclosed places     Fear of Emergency Rooms, panic in emergency rooms, phobic of emergency rooms    Fear of escalators, panic in escalators, phobic of escalators

   Alone in a Crowd                  Elevator                    Enclosed Places            Emergency Room                Escalators

 

Fear of flying, panic while flying in an airplane, phobic of flying in an airplane, white-knuckle flying     Fear of hospitals, panic in hospitals, phobic of hospitals            Fear of heights, panic in high places, phobic of high places             Fear of medical tests, fear of test results, panic during medical tests, phobic of medical tests          Fear of CAT Scans, panic during CAT Scan, phobic of CAT scans

   Flying in airplane                 Hospitals                         Heights                        Test Results                      Cat Scans

 

    Fear of EKG's, panic during EKG, phobic of EKG's         Fear of sitting in a theater, panic while sitting in a theater, phobic of sitting in a theater, panic while trapped in a seat far from an exit       Fear of public transportation, panic while taking public transportation, phobic of public transportation, fear of trains, fear of buses, fear of subway, fear of cabs, fear of taxis, public transportation phobias      School phobia, fear of school, panic in school, phobia of school, fear of classrooms, fear of teachers, panic at school     Fear of shopping, Fear of Malls, Fear of Stores, panic at shopping malls, panic in stores, phobic of stores, phobic of malls, shopping fears

        EKG, etc.                    In a Theatre               Public Transportation          School Phobia             Shopping / Malls

 

        Fear of dentist, panic at dentist, phobic of dentist, dental fears, orthodontic fears, root canal fears, fear of dental procedures, dental phobia, dentist phobia                    Fear of doctors, fear of physicians, panic at doctor office, phobic of doctors, phobic of physicians, fear of MD                      Fear of open spaces, panic in open spaces, phobic of open spaces                         Fear of supermarket, panic at supermarket, phobic of supermarkets, fear of grocery store, panic at grocery store, phobic of grocery store                 Fear of being stared at, panic while being stared at, phobic of being stared at, fear of being watched, panic while being watched, phobic of being watched

         Dentist                            Doctor                    Wide Open Spaces               Supermarket                 Being Stared At

 

Fear of unfamiliar places, panic in unfamiliar places, phobic of unfamiliar places, fear of unknown places, panic in unknown places, phobic of unknown places              Fear of being alone, panic when alone, phobic of being alone                         Fear of a sudden unexpected meeting or event, fear of meeting someone unexpectedly, panic at a sudden unexpected meeting or event, phobic of sudden unexpected meeting or event                Fear of being abandoned, panic when abandoned, phobic of being abandoned, feelings of abandonment, being left on own       Fear of intimacy or intimate contact, fear of close contact, panic during intimacy or close contact, phobic of intimacy or close contact

   Unfamiliar Place              Being Alone                Sudden Meeting             Being Abandoned            Intimacy/Contact

 

See Dr. Raynard's book, Panic Free, chapter 3, Panic, for basic information and reassurances about panic,

and pages 153 to 281for action plans on how  to overcome  these and other specific situations.

 

 

 

Simple Phobias

 

Simple phobic, fear of spiders, panic seeing spiders, phobic of spiders, fear of insects, fear of bugs, spider phobia, bug phobia, insect phobia             simple phobia, fear of dogs, fear of canines, panic seeing dog, phobic of dogs, phobic of canines, dog phobia, canine phobia              

       Spider                               Dogs                 Other situations can include balloons, thunder, darkness, etc.

 

 

 

Social Phobias

 

Social phobias can develop when you actively avoid situations such as:

 

Fear of asking for help, anxiety when asking for help, panic when asking for help, fear of asking for assistance, fear when asking for assistance, social phobia     Fear of crowds, fear of too many people, panic in crowds, panic when with too many people, crowd phobia, social phobia     fear of family gatherings, fear of family events, panic at family gatherings, panic at family events, family gathering phobia, family event phobia, phobic of family events, phobic of family gatherings, social phobia     Fear of standing close to others, feeling trapped, being closed in, panic standing close to others, panic standing in crowd, crowd phobia, social phobia    Fear of parties, fear of social events, panic at parties, panic at social events, phobic of parties, phobic of social events, party phobia, social phobia, social event phobia

   Asking for help                     Crowds                    Family Gatherings       Standing close to others            Parties

 

Fear of public speaking, public speaking anxieties, public speaking phobia, social phobia, presentation fears, fear of presenting, fear of speaking to group, fear of making presentation, panic while public speaking, public speaking phobia, social phobia, anxiety while speaking, embarrassment      Fear of standing in line, fear while standing in line, panic while standing in line, phobic of standing in lines, social phobias        fear of writing checks in public, panic while writing checks in public, phobic of writing checks in public, social phobias          fear of being criticized, panic while being criticized, phobic of criticism, social phobias             Fear of being waited on, fear of being assisted, panic while being waited on, panic while receiving assistance, social phobias

   Public Speaking            Standing in Line       Writing Checks in Public         Being Criticized            Being Waited On

 

For a more complete list, see the Phobic Situation Scale in chapter 8 of Dr. Raynard's book, Panic Free.

 

 

Driving Phobias

 

Driving is the most frequently checked item in the 52-item Phobic Situation Scale, a scale developed over 25 years ago by Dr. Raynard to help identify panic situations.  No matter how a phobia began - in a crowd, store or classroom - it often spreads to driving.

 

Driving phobia, panic driving on winding road, fear of driving on winding road, fear of driving, driving phobia, phobic of driving     Driving phobia, fear of driving in heavy traffic, panic while driving in heavy traffic, phobic of driving     Driving phobia, fear of driving on highway, panic while driving on highway, phobic of driving on highway     Driving phobia, fear of driving in snow or ice, panic while driving on snow or ice, phobic of driving on snow or ice, fear of snow, fear of ice    Driving phobia, fear of driving at night, panic while driving at night, phobic of driving at night

   Winding Roads                 Heavy Traffic                Highway Driving           Icy, Slippery Roads           Night Driving

 

Driving phobia, fear of driving next to big trucks, panic while driving next to big trucks, phobic of driving next to big trucks          Driving phobia, fear of driving at rotary or roundabout, panic while driving at rotary or roundabout, rotary phobia, roundabout phobia       Driving phobia, fear of tunnels, fear of enclosed spaces, panic while driving in tunnels, phobic of tunnels              Driving phobia, fear of bridges, fear of high places, fear of heights, panic driving over bridges, phobic of bridges, phobic of high places, height phobia, bridge phobia                          Driving phobia, fear of railroad crossing, fear of trains, panic at railroad crossing, phobic of railroad crossing, train phobia, railroad crossing phobia     

 Next to big trucks          Rotaries, roundabouts            Tunnels                            Bridges                     Railroad Crossing   

 

        Driving phobia, fear of having an accident while driving, panic at driving accident, phobic of driving, accident scene anxieties                         Driving phobia, fear of stopping at a red light, fear of being stopped at a red light, panic while stopped at a red light, panic stopping at a red light, red light phobia                       Driving phobia, fear of parking lots, fear of parking in a parking lot, panic while parking in parking lot, phobic of parking lots, parking lot phobia

Being in Accident              At a Stop Light               Parking Lot

 

These are the more common of the Driving Phobias.  Situations can often be as specific as:

  • Being in car while in driveway

  • Being a passenger on 2-lane road

  • Entering a 4-way stop

  • Driving 2+ miles from home

  • Driving in downtown traffic

  • Merging onto highway

  • Changing lanes

  • Driving around the block

(For more information on overcoming a Driving Phobia, see chapter 13, Driving, in Panic Free. The Driving Phobia Scale (pg 154) is a useful tool to identify which specific sensitivities you have.):

 

 

 

Success: relief, recovery & renewal  How can you put an end to this?

 

My goal in designing this website is to provide you with the basic information to help you identify your anxiety or panic and provide you with alternatives in seeking help. Effective treatment, whether self-help or through the help of a qualified professional, can put an end to your panic.    

 

How do you find effective help?  See Treatments for details in finding the most effective help for your panic, as well as specific questions to ask when seeking a qualified professional.  If you would like information about Dr. Raynard - The Panic Doctor - visit the Credentials page.  

 

 

 

To be panic free is a reasonable hope,

no matter how long or severe your attacks have been.

 

The Panic Doctor offers you help for panic and phobia with his book Panic Free


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The Panic Doctor

Richard C. Raynard, Ph.D., Clinical Psychologist

www.panicdoctor.com   w   505-231-8625  w  Santa Fe, New Mexico

e-mail:  richard@panicdoctor.com

 

 

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