ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses diagnosis of client with specific phobia. A local General Medical Practitioner (GP) referral indicated that a 12-year-old girl, Chloe, had been struggling with a specific fear of zips since she was a toddler. While conducting the comprehensive background gathering session, it became clear that Chloe's family had a history of specific phobias as well as severe anxiety and depression. Systematic desensitization and the Visual, Auditory, Kinaesthetic (VAK) relaxation technique were used to decondition Chloe's specific phobia of zips. When Chloe was completely relaxed she was eventually presented with the lowest trigger that was placed on her hierarchy of anxious severity. Therapeutic gains from the interventions were evidenced by the child's self-report, as well as her mother's report, classroom teachers, paediatrician, and GP report of Chloe's ability to discuss and be around zips in her environment without avoidant and panic behaviours.
