“Fear Needing Professional Help” - Accompanies Lesson: 7
Objectives
Students will:
- Recognize the signs that the management of fear needs professional help.
Discussion
Discuss with students the following signs indicating the need for professional help in managing fear:
- The fear keeps you from doing necessary daily tasks (e.g., afraid to leave home to go to work, afraid to see a doctor when ill).
- The fear interferes with enjoying life and relationships (e.g., afraid to ride the bus to visit a friend across town, afraid to be in crowds, afraid to touch a friend, afraid of the water, afraid of heights).
- The fear causes chronic physical pain (e.g., hypertension, heart palpitations, interferes with sleep and/or appetite).
Any of the above symptoms are signs that the emotion of fear is not being “managed” successfully and that help should be sought. Students should also urge any friends who shows these signs to seek help. It may save their life.
Important: This discussion reflects only part of the instructional content presented in the LifeFacts: Managing Emotions Teaching Guide. Please carefully read the corresponding lesson(s) in the guide prior to instruction. We recommend that teachers develop their own discussion questions to fit the functioning levels of specific student audiences.