{"id":122307,"date":"2021-04-22T11:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-04-22T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/?p=122307"},"modified":"2023-03-13T09:24:36","modified_gmt":"2023-03-13T09:24:36","slug":"exposure-therapy-for-anxiety","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm","title":{"rendered":"Exposure Therapy for Anxiety &#8211; Could it Work for You?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_122309\" style=\"width: 304px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-122309\" class=\" wp-image-122309\" src=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash-400x400.jpg\" alt=\"exposure therapy for anxiety\" width=\"294\" height=\"294\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash-400x400.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash-500x500.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash-200x200.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash-50x50.jpg 50w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash.jpg 709w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 294px) 100vw, 294px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-122309\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">photo by: Alexandra Gorn<\/p><\/div>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">by Andrea M. Darcy<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Exposure therapy might sound like you are about to be left out in a snowstorm. But rest assured <strong>exposure therapy for anxiety<\/strong> is instead a practical <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/psychotherapeutic-approaches-the-main-schools-of-thought.htm\">psychotherapeutic technique<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">What is exposure therapy? <\/span><\/h2>\n<p class=\"p1\"><b>It&#8217;s an approach used by therapists <\/b>to help clients deal with the things they fear, as well as the emotions, reactions, and life choices that their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/feeling-of-fear.htm\">fear<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/anxiety-therapy.htm\">anxiety<\/a> creates.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"color: #333399;\">Exposure therapy aims to safely expose you to what you perceive as dangerous, in order to help you manage, diminish, or entirely eradicate your fearful reaction.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h2><span class=\"s1\">Does it work for anxiety disorders?<\/span><\/h2>\n<blockquote><p><span class=\"s1\">As well as generalised anxiety (GAD), exposure therapy can be used to treat the entire family of anxiety disorders, including:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/obsessive-compulsive-disorder-ocd.htm\"><span class=\"s1\">obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/acute-stress-disorder-vs-ptsd.htm\"><span class=\"s1\">post-traumatic shock disorder (PTSD)<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/fears-and-phobias.htm\"><span class=\"s1\">phobias <\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/panic-attack-vs-anxiety-attack.htm\"><span class=\"s1\">panic disorder<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><span class=\"s1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/what-is-social-anxiety-disorder.htm\">social anxiety disorder<\/a>.<br \/>\n<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h2 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">What is the goal of exposure therapy for anxiety?<\/span><\/h2>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><strong>There are four main theories\u00a0<\/strong>to explain how exposure therapy works. They are called extinction, self efficacy, habituation, and emotional processing. <\/span><span class=\"s1\">And behind these theories we find a breakdown of the goals of this therapeutic approach.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"s1\" style=\"color: #993366;\">1. Extinction.<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span class=\"s1\">This is a theory suggesting that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/fears-and-phobias.htm\">fear<\/a> is a conditioned response. Somewhere along the way we learned it. For example, we are stung by a jellyfish as a child, then are terrified of all water, even pools. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span class=\"s1\">The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/how-to-set-goals-that-work.htm\">goal<\/a> is to challenge then decrease your mental <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/making-assumptions.htm\">assumption<\/a> that sees you immediately assume a bad outcome (water=pain), or believing that avoidance is the only way to feel better.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"s1\" style=\"color: #993366;\">2. Self efficacy.<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span class=\"s1\">The belief here is that when we are afraid or<a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/midlife-crisis-depression.htm\"> anxious<\/a>, we underestimate our own capacities to manage and deal. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span class=\"s1\">The goal of exposure therapy for anxiety is to help you see how capable you are of actually facing the fear and feelings that arise.\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"s1\" style=\"color: #993366;\">3. Habituation.<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span class=\"s1\">This is the idea that the more we do something, the less the effect. The more we swim in cold water, the less it feels cold. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span class=\"s1\">The goal is to get you used to what you fear, until its effect is lessened.\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"s1\" style=\"color: #993366;\">4. Emotional processing.<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span class=\"s1\"> This theory suggests that fear gets stored by a process of stimulus \/ response \/ meaning. For example, public speaking (stimulus) makes our heart pound (response), so we assume it means we are bad at it (meaning). <\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span class=\"s1\">The goal here is to help you have newer, more <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/balanced-thinking-benefits.htm\">balanced thoughts<\/a> and feelings about the things you fear. You recognise you are choosing the meaning and can re-choose, which changes your response.\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">But it sounds scary<\/span><\/h2>\n<div id=\"attachment_122308\" style=\"width: 410px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-122308\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-122308\" src=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/4980776534_028398f109-400x300.jpg\" alt=\"exposure therapy for anxiety\" width=\"400\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/4980776534_028398f109-400x300.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/4980776534_028398f109.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-122308\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">By: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/38295844@N05\/4980776534\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">dryhead<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><strong>Does exposure therapy for anxiety all sound a little bit too, well<\/strong>, George Orwell, \u20181984\u2019, rat-in-the-face to you? Don\u2019t worry.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"color: #333399;\">Exposure therapy for anxiety is not aiming to overwhelm you and shock you into letting go of fear. Unless you and your therapist decide otherwise, exposure is progressive, not sudden.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><strong>Your therapist is working to understand the<\/strong> unique mix of thoughts, feelings, and physical responses that the thing you fear creates, and the ways you then try to \u2018escape\u2019 the fear. And they then work the break this pattern.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><strong>If at any time it\u2019s too much for you,<\/strong> then you can say so and ask to stop. <\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">The different \u2018levels\u2019 of exposure therapy <\/span><\/h2>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><strong>That\u2019s not to mean that over time you might not end up facing <\/strong>the fear head on at a high level. Or that, again, you might decide together with your therapist that in your case, the best route for you is &#8216;full on&#8217; immediately. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><strong>The pinnacle of exposure speed is referred to as \u2018flooding\u2019.<\/strong> This would mean facing your biggest fear first, head on.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>The idea here is that then you &#8216;flood&#8217; yourself with your biggest fear response and then by default diminish your entire fear \u2018hierarchy\u2019. So if you are afraid of, say, people looking at you, you wouldn\u2019t work on a scenario of people on the tube glancing at you but would go right to a scenario of standing in front of an audience giving a speech. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><strong>&#8216;Graded exposure&#8217; is the opposite and more common approach.<\/strong> You rank your fears and start from the bottom up.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">The different ways to approach exposure therapy<\/span><\/h2>\n<div id=\"attachment_122310\" style=\"width: 410px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/18476548042_b8b8c7e46c.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-122310\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-122310\" src=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/18476548042_b8b8c7e46c-400x300.jpg\" alt=\"exposure therapy\" width=\"400\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/18476548042_b8b8c7e46c-400x300.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/18476548042_b8b8c7e46c.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-122310\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">By: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/fixersphotos\/18476548042\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\">Frank Boston<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><strong>There are also different ways to &#8216;expose&#8217; you<\/strong> to your fear. <\/span><\/p>\n<p>Let&#8217;s take the case of a person who has anxiety about spiders.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><span style=\"color: #333399;\">Imaginal exposure<\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"color: #333333;\"><strong>This would see the client simply imaging <\/strong>a spider, as vividly as they can. Then the therapist works with the feelings and thoughts this visual creates for the client. <\/span><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"color: #333399;\">Interoceptive exposure<\/span><\/h3>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><strong>This works with sensations. <\/strong>If every time anything at all brushes this client\u2019s arm the client panics and thinks of spiders, the therapist might ask the client to run their fingers along their arm, or otherwise create this physical sensation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"color: #333399;\">Virtual reality exposure<\/span><\/h3>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">This is a newer branch of the therapy which is as it sounds. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/virtual-reality-therapy.htm\">Virtual reality<\/a> goggles are used to expose you to a virtual form of what you fear. So the client would be watching spiders scuttle along a floor in a virtual world.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"color: #800080;\">Don&#8217;t worry if your therapist doesn&#8217;t offer VR. While it&#8217;s interesting, and was shown in <a href=\"https:\/\/pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/28394217\/\">one study on veterans<\/a> with PTSD to have an equal effect to regular exposure therapy, it wasn&#8217;t found to provide any special benefit.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h3 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"color: #333399;\">In vivo exposure <\/span><\/h3>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"color: #333333;\"><strong>This would be the most aggressive form of exposure therapy for anxiety, where you actually<\/strong> face what you fear in real time. So you\u2019d be directly looking at a spider in a cage, or participating in a workshop where you handle one.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/online-therapy-effective.htm\">Online therapy<\/a><strong> has made this sort of exposure therapy something that can be done <\/strong>with your therapist at hand. For example, you can have a session where you visit a zoo, taking your therapist with you, so to speak, over a platform like FaceTime on your mobile phone. <\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Is exposure therapy a form of CBT?<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><strong>It would be a lot less confusing if this was instead called<\/strong> the exposure &#8216;technique&#8217; over therapy.<\/p>\n<p><strong>CBT therapists do use exposure therapy in their work with clients. But it&#8217;s not just <\/strong>CBT therapists who work with exposure therapy. Therapists from other training backgrounds can also take add-on courses in exposure therapy tools. For example, dialectical behaviour therapists (DBT) can train in a &#8216;prolonged exposure protocol&#8217; for working with clients with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/what-is-psychological-trauma.htm\">PTSD<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>So while you&#8217;ll find it being said that &#8220;exposure therapy is a form of CBT&#8217;, it&#8217;s not really a &#8216;form&#8217; of CBT<\/strong> but a technique, ingredient, or &#8216;approach&#8217; used CBT (and other therapies). You can&#8217;t, for example, find an &#8216;exposure therapist&#8217;, you can find a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/cognitive-behavioural-therapy-london.htm\">CBT therapist<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/dialectical-behaviour-therapy-london.htm\">DBT therapist<\/a>, or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/integrative-therapy-london.htm\">integrative therapist<\/a> who <em>offers<\/em> exposure therapy.<\/p>\n<p><strong>And note that not all CBT therapists like to focus on exposure when working with clients. It&#8217;s even <\/strong>a controversial approach for things like PTSD, despite the positive evidence it works. So if you are set on an exposure focus it would be best to make sure the therapist you book is willing, not just assume that booking CBT therapy means access to all forms of exposure therapy.<\/p>\n<h2>I want help with anxiety but just don&#8217;t think this is for me<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Then you might want to try<\/strong> cognitive behavioural therapy\u00a0without the exposure approach. CBT is also evidence based to help with anxiety.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"color: #800080;\">A review of <a href=\"https:\/\/bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com\/articles\/10.1186\/1471-244X-11-200\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">recent research on CBT and anxiety<\/span><\/a> looking at the cognitive tools it offers versus the exposure ones found that they were both equally effective for treating anxiety, including OCD and PTSD. In the case of social anxiety, a focus on cognitive tools was actually found to be better than exposure therapy.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>Or work with a therapist that uses<\/strong> mindfulness. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/mindfulness-based-cognitive-therapy-london.htm\">Mindfulness<\/a> lowers anxiety as it trains your mind to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/present-moment-secret-better-mood.htm\">stay with the present<\/a>, instead of being caught up with panicked thoughts about the future.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/does-hypnosis-work.htm\">Clinical hypnotherapy<\/a> is also useful for anxiety, and if your anxiety is connected to PTSD, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/emdr-therapy.htm\">eye movement desensitisation and reprogramming\u00a0 (EMDR)<\/a>\u00a0is recommended.<\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"color: #800080;\">Ready to face the fear, master your anxiety, and gain back control of your life? Contact our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/central-and-north-london-counselling.htm\">Harley Street clinic<\/a> where we can connect you with a highly regarded team of top <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/therapists.htm\"><span style=\"color: #333399;\">mental health experts in central London<\/span><\/a>\u00a0or online. Or use our <a href=\"https:\/\/harleytherapy.com\/?utm_source=Harley%20Therapy%20Blog&amp;utm_content=Post%20End\"><span style=\"color: #333399;\">booking platform<\/span><\/a> to source affordable online therapy and UK-wide registered therapists.\u00a0<\/span><\/h4>\n<hr \/>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #333399;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-117271 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/headshot-yellow-e1675110089673-150x150.png\" alt=\"Andrea M. Darcy mental health expert\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/headshot-yellow-e1675110089673-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/headshot-yellow-e1675110089673-200x200.png 200w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/headshot-yellow-e1675110089673-50x50.png 50w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/headshot-yellow-e1675110089673.png 268w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><strong>Andrea M. Darcy<\/strong> is a mental health and wellbeing expert and writer. She loves to take difficult concepts and make them easy for anyone to understand. Find her on Instagram @am_darcy<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>by Andrea M. Darcy Exposure therapy might sound like you are about to be left out in a snowstorm. But rest assured exposure therapy for anxiety is instead a practical psychotherapeutic technique. What is exposure therapy? It&#8217;s an approach used by therapists to help clients deal with the things they fear, as well as the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":122309,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_lmt_disableupdate":"yes","_lmt_disable":"no","footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[3,106,226,104],"class_list":["post-122307","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-anxiety-and-stress","tag-anxiety","tag-fear","tag-irrational-fears","tag-panic-attack","has_thumb"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.3 (Yoast SEO v27.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Exposure Therapy for Anxiety - Could it Work for You? - Harley Therapy\u2122 Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"What is exposure therapy for anxiety? And might it help you with your form of anxiety, whether that is GAD, panic disorder, OCD, or PTSD?\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Exposure Therapy for Anxiety - Could it Work for You?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"What is exposure therapy for anxiety? And might it help you with your form of anxiety, whether that is GAD, panic disorder, OCD, or PTSD?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Harley Therapy\u2122 Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/harleytherapy\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-04-22T10:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-03-13T09:24:36+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"709\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"709\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Andrea M. Darcy\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@https:\/\/twitter.com\/AndreaMDarcy\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@HarleyTherapy\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Andrea M. Darcy\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm\",\"name\":\"Exposure Therapy for Anxiety - Could it Work for You? - Harley Therapy\u2122 Blog\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-04-22T10:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-03-13T09:24:36+00:00\",\"description\":\"What is exposure therapy for anxiety? And might it help you with your form of anxiety, whether that is GAD, panic disorder, OCD, or PTSD?\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash.jpg\",\"width\":709,\"height\":709,\"caption\":\"photo by: Alexandra Gorn\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Exposure Therapy for Anxiety &#8211; Could it Work for You?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/\",\"name\":\"Harley Therapy\u2122 Blog\",\"description\":\"Self-Help for Better Emotional Health\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Harley Therapy - Psychotherapy & Counselling\",\"alternateName\":\"Harley Therapy\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/images\\\/logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/cropped-harleytherapypsychotherapycounsellinglogo.png\",\"width\":512,\"height\":512,\"caption\":\"Harley Therapy - Psychotherapy & Counselling\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/harleytherapy\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/HarleyTherapy\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.linkedin.com\\\/company\\\/harley-therapy\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.youtube.com\\\/c\\\/HarleyTherapyCoUk\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/harleytherapy\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/uk.trustpilot.com\\\/review.harleytherapy.co.uk\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.reviews.co.uk\\\/company-reviews\\\/store\\\/harleytherapy-co-uk\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.crunchbase.com\\\/organization\\\/harley-therapy-psychotherapy-counselling\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Exposure Therapy for Anxiety - Could it Work for You? - Harley Therapy\u2122 Blog","description":"What is exposure therapy for anxiety? And might it help you with your form of anxiety, whether that is GAD, panic disorder, OCD, or PTSD?","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Exposure Therapy for Anxiety - Could it Work for You?","og_description":"What is exposure therapy for anxiety? And might it help you with your form of anxiety, whether that is GAD, panic disorder, OCD, or PTSD?","og_url":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm","og_site_name":"Harley Therapy\u2122 Blog","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/harleytherapy","article_published_time":"2021-04-22T10:00:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-03-13T09:24:36+00:00","og_image":[{"width":709,"height":709,"url":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Andrea M. Darcy","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@https:\/\/twitter.com\/AndreaMDarcy","twitter_site":"@HarleyTherapy","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Andrea M. Darcy","Est. reading time":"7 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm","url":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm","name":"Exposure Therapy for Anxiety - Could it Work for You? - Harley Therapy\u2122 Blog","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash.jpg","datePublished":"2021-04-22T10:00:00+00:00","dateModified":"2023-03-13T09:24:36+00:00","description":"What is exposure therapy for anxiety? And might it help you with your form of anxiety, whether that is GAD, panic disorder, OCD, or PTSD?","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash.jpg","width":709,"height":709,"caption":"photo by: Alexandra Gorn"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/exposure-therapy-for-anxiety.htm#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Exposure Therapy for Anxiety &#8211; Could it Work for You?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/","name":"Harley Therapy\u2122 Blog","description":"Self-Help for Better Emotional Health","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/#organization","name":"Harley Therapy - Psychotherapy & Counselling","alternateName":"Harley Therapy","url":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/images\/logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/cropped-harleytherapypsychotherapycounsellinglogo.png","width":512,"height":512,"caption":"Harley Therapy - Psychotherapy & Counselling"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/harleytherapy","https:\/\/x.com\/HarleyTherapy","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/harley-therapy","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/c\/HarleyTherapyCoUk","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/harleytherapy\/","https:\/\/uk.trustpilot.com\/review.harleytherapy.co.uk","https:\/\/www.reviews.co.uk\/company-reviews\/store\/harleytherapy-co-uk","https:\/\/www.crunchbase.com\/organization\/harley-therapy-psychotherapy-counselling"]}]}},"modified_by":"Louise","uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash.jpg",709,709,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash-400x400.jpg",400,400,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash.jpg",709,709,false],"large":["https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash-500x500.jpg",500,500,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash.jpg",709,709,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash.jpg",709,709,false],"post-thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash-200x200.jpg",200,200,true],"featured":["https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash-200x200.jpg",200,200,true],"related":["https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash-180x120.jpg",180,120,true],"widgetthumb":["https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash-50x50.jpg",50,50,true],"slider":["https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/alexandra-gorn-smuS_jUZa9I-unsplash-600x200.jpg",600,200,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Andrea M. Darcy","author_link":"#"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"by Andrea M. Darcy Exposure therapy might sound like you are about to be left out in a snowstorm. But rest assured exposure therapy for anxiety is instead a practical psychotherapeutic technique. What is exposure therapy? It&#8217;s an approach used by therapists to help clients deal with the things they fear, as well as the&hellip;","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122307","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=122307"}],"version-history":[{"count":21,"href":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122307\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":140094,"href":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122307\/revisions\/140094"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/122309"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=122307"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=122307"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=122307"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}