Transcript
Part of the reason why Prolonged Exposure
is called "Prolonged" Exposure is that
what often happens is when people go into a situation,
feel that physical, physiological response,
is that they immediately leave.
What that does over time is actually strengthen anxiety.
So what you've told yourself is that
"This is something that I can't handle."
One of the parts of Prolonged Exposure
is working with a therapist and being in a situation --
and not the end goal, so not going straight into the mall,
but maybe something that's more achievable at first --
and sitting with anxiety and noticing that over time
anxiety naturally decreases, anxiety naturally goes away.
Also, changing how you feel about yourself about that situation.
So being able to do that step of the process,
being able to do that part of the therapy,
hopefully will change some thoughts about your competence
and how you feel about yourself.