Implosion Therapy (Flooding)

Implosion therapy, also called flooding, seeks to help the client by directly exposing him to the source of his fear. This form of behavior therapy works with the principle that fear is time limited.

For instance, an individual who has arachnophobia (fear of spiders) will be locked in a room with harmless spiders. After being in a state of extreme anxiety, the client will then feel exhausted and he will stop trying to escape the situation. With the decrease of the anxiety level, the client will be left with no choice but to confront his fears. Ideally, the treatment goal is achieved when the panic dies down and there is a realization that being with the feared object is completely harmless. This technique is rarely used as it may backfire and intensify the phobia