The nyctophobia (fear of the dark) is an anxiety disorder, specifically a specific type of phobia in which the night or the dark is feared. Phobia is a disorder characterized by the presence of clinically significant anxiety in response to exposure to specific situations or objects..
Nyctophobia is a disorder characterized by the presence of clinically significant anxiety that is produced by situations in which it is night, it is dark or there is not enough lighting.
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The fear or anxiety that occurs in these situations is disproportionate, maladaptive and the person suffering from nyctophobia is not able to explain their fear rationally.
In addition, this problem is usually very disabling since anxiety usually causes an automatic avoidance of the feared situation. If a person with nyctophobia is exposed to the feared situation without avoiding it, they will immediately present a response of anxiety, fear or panic attack.
Therefore, you will systematically avoid situations in which there is no light or it is very dark so as not to present anxiety. However, as soon as darkness falls and situations in which there is no light are practically unavoidable, so a person with nyctophobia will often present states of anxiety..
This anxiety will cause you a lot of discomfort and will prevent you from living in a calm and satisfactory way. But don't worry! Nyctophobia is a problem that can be managed and can be overcome if the appropriate actions are taken and effort is invested in achieving it..
The first step to be able to overcome the fear of the dark is to realize that it is not rational and that it does not make any sense to continue with it. It is very likely that you already know perfectly well that your fear is irrational and disproportionate but it is not about knowing it but about convincing yourself.
You may think very often that your fear does not make any sense, that it does not happen to others and that it would be normal not to have it, but still you are unable to control your phobia when the light disappears ...
Well, we are going to work so that your rational brain, which works perfectly and detects the fear of the dark as disproportionate, wins the game over your emotional brain that invades your body with anxiety every time you are in the dark.
The goal is for you to be able to control your emotions when fear takes over. To do this, what you have to do is constantly test the idea you have about the dark.
Make a list of all the evidence you have against the phobia, for example:
Ask yourself questions like these to gradually acquire rational ideas about the dark that are incompatible with your phobia. The goal is for you to make as long a list as you can that helps you think rationally about the dark..
Once you are clear that your fear of the dark is irrational and that you must change it, it is convenient that you look for those people closest to you that you want to help you overcome nyctophobia.
If you have people by your side who help you calm down when you are in the dark, collaborate with you to identify the phobia as irrational, and give you a cable to complete the 10 steps that you will have to follow, everything will be easier.
It is recommended that the people who are going to help also document what is nyctophobia and how it can be treated.
If they do, they will be able to help you in a more adequate way, they will know better how to refute your idea of fear about the dark and they will better understand the reason for your fears..
Another thing you have to do for your well-being and to be in a better situation to combat your nyctophobia is to give your body rest.
People who are afraid of the dark and are used to sleeping with light to avoid the dreaded situation, tend to feel tired and exhausted since their rest, lacking darkness, is much less restorative..
Sleeping in the dark and resting properly is vitally important to our well-being. In order to give you the rest you need and eliminate the light while you sleep, you can introduce a type of light in your bedroom that allows you to adjust its intensity, so that when you sleep you reduce it as much as possible..
Likewise, the previous exercise should also help you get used to the dark gradually. To do this, the most practical thing is to gradually eliminate the luminosity of your house. For example, reducing the intensity of light in hallways and rooms.
The most useful thing about this technique is that it allows you to gradually expose yourself to the dark without feeling any discomfort. If right now you lock yourself in a room that is totally dark, your anxiety will appear suddenly, fear will take hold of you, and you will surely run out of it since the discomfort you will feel will be unbearable for you.
However, if this afternoon when you return from work the light bulbs in your house are of a slightly lower intensity than usual, you may not even realize it and you will be able to bear it without problem.
Maintain this lighting and after a few days lower the lighting slightly again. You see doing this exercise periodically so that your habituation to the dark is gradual.
It is recommended that the change in lighting intensity be done by your family members since in this way you will be less aware of the new situation and you will get used to it more easily..
The next step you will have to do is expose yourself to the dark but not directly, but with your imagination. By doing it this way, the anxiety you will feel will be less intense and you can control it more easily..
To do this, lie down in bed or somewhere where you are comfortable and relaxed, close your eyes and begin to imagine dark situations.
Feel how you begin to notice that anxiety appears but at the same time you see remembering the thoughts about the irrationality of that fear in order to manage it. Do this exercise whenever you can to get closer to the dark and overcome your fear.
Once you are able to adequately expose yourself to darkness through your imagination, you will be ready to expose yourself live. In this case it is that through controlled situations, you stay in dark places and try to control your anxiety.
To do this, choose a place known to you and that transmits security to you, such as a room in your house. Close the blinds and lights so that the darkness is total or almost total, and try to stay in that situation as long as possible.
When you enter the dark space, anxiety will begin to manifest itself, but your goal is to try to control it by repeating words that give you peace of mind and that reinforce the idea that your fear is irrational, for example:
As the main symptom of your problem is anxiety, it is essential that you know how to relax.
Perform relaxation exercises daily and especially before exposure practices so that, when you are in dark situations, you are more relaxed and your anxiety does not appear so easily.
A very useful exercise that you can do is the following.
Do this exercise for about 10-15 minutes.
To strengthen the previous steps, it is very useful to make a behavioral contract. The behavioral contract, as its name suggests, is a contract that will specify your behavior regarding nyctophobia.
However, like all contracts, you must do it with someone, you cannot make a contract to yourself. So, choose one of the people you have chosen in point two to help you throughout the process to overcome nyctophobia, and make the contract with her.
In the behavioral contract you can specify anything, but the ones that are usually most useful are the following.
You must agree between the two of you all these aspects, write them and sign them so that, later, you will comply with all of them. This will strengthen your commitment and motivation..
An effective technique so that anxiety does not appear when you are in the dark is to try to make other types of emotions appear. To look for those positive emotions, what you have to do is very simple: do things or look for stimuli that are pleasant for you..
You can listen to music that you like while you are in a dark place and look for the positive emotions that that song transmits to you. You can also be in the dark (or semi-dark) while talking with a family member or friend, while watching your favorite television series or reading a book.
The goal is for you to be able to ignore the darkness and focus on the other stimuli that produce positive emotions..
Finally, the final goal that you must achieve with all the previous steps is to change your idea about the dark.
You have imagined dark situations and you have managed to control your anxiety, you have been in places without light and nothing bad has happened to you, you have managed to feel positive emotions when there was no light and you increasingly believe that it makes no sense to have this fear.
You have to do a new analysis exercise about what darkness is and realize that you do not have to fear it, since it is something totally normal.
And how have you done it to overcome nyctophobia? Share your experiences to help readers! Thank you!
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