Confronting Your Fears Through Exposure
149Exposure to Social Situations vs. Feared Sensations
Situational exposure involves exposing oneself to places and situations that produce 
anxiety. Overcoming social and performance anxiety almost always includes situational 
exposure as a component. In other words, to become more comfortable with public 
speaking, meeting strangers, or lunching with your coworkers, you will need to practice 
these activities.
Some people with social and performance anxiety may also beneﬁt from exposure to 
sensations. This form of exposure is sometimes called interoceptive exposure, and it involves 
practicing exercises that trigger particular physical sensations. For example, spinning in a 
chair can be used to induce dizziness, and running up and down the stairs will make your 
heart race. Exposure to sensations is useful for people who are fearful of experiencing 
uncomfortable physical feelings.
If you are not afraid of the physical sensations that you experience when anxious, 
there is no need to practice these exercises. However, if you are frightened by the physi -
cal sensations you experience in social situations, you may ﬁnd it helpful to practice 
experiencing these feelings purposely until they no longer frighten you. Exposure to 
sensations can be combined with situational exposure so that feared physical feelings are 
purposefully brought on during the course of the exposure to feared situations. Chapter 
9 provides a detailed description of how to use interoceptive exposure to reduce your 
fear of sensations.
Imagined vs. Live Exposure
Exposure can be conducted in your imagination (imagining being in a feared situa -
tion) or in real life (actually entering the feared situation). Generally, whenever possible, 
we recommend that live exposure (also called in vivo exposure ) be used rather than imag -