A nurse is assessing a client with a phobia. Which non-pharmacological therapy should the nurse recommend to help the client cope with their fear?

Choice A rationale:

While this characteristic is important, it doesn't distinguish specific phobia from other mental disorders. It's a common requirement for many mental disorders to ensure the symptoms are not transient.

Choice B rationale:

This characteristic is more aligned with Social Phobia, where individuals fear negative evaluation in social situations, rather than Specific Phobia, which involves fear of specific situations or objects.

Choice C rationale:

The persistence of fear or anxiety for at least 6 months is a defining feature of specific phobias. This chronic nature helps differentiate it from transient fears or anxieties.

Choice D rationale:

This characteristic is related to Agoraphobia, where individuals fear situations in which they might develop incapacitating symptoms and lack available help. It doesn't specifically describe the fear of certain situations or objects seen in specific phobias.

Choice A rationale:

Neurochemical imbalances in the brain are more commonly associated with mood disorders like depression and anxiety disorders in general, rather than being a specific cause of the physiological symptoms seen in phobias.

Choice B rationale:

Negative self-beliefs and cognitive distortions are central to anxiety disorders like generalized anxiety disorder and social anxiety disorder, but they don't directly explain the acute physiological symptoms like palpitations and sweating seen in phobias.

Choice C rationale:

Traumatic experiences and learned associations are relevant to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other anxiety disorders. However, they are not the primary cause of physiological symptoms in specific phobias.

Choice D rationale:

The correct answer. Specific phobias trigger a "fight or flight" response through the autonomic nervous system, leading to physiological symptoms like palpitations, sweating, and shortness of breath. This response is an evolutionary adaptation designed to prepare the body to respond to threats.