New study confronts fear of snakes

Hartford, Conn (WTNH) - There's an old adage -- face your fear, it will disappear.

There's a study underway at the Institute of Living at Hartford Hospital, and the focus is on snake phobia. Researchers say it could have a wider application for other behavioral disorders.

Holding this often misunderstood reptile is something Joan Lewis never really thought would ever happen. She was 5 years old when an encounter with a snake scarred her for most of her life.

"I know now that it was not poisonous, but it was huge, and I was 5 years old. I saw it and I tried to scream. I couldn't. Nothing would come out. My voice closed up. I couldn't move, and I just started shaking," Lewis said.

She became tired of her fear of snakes constricting her quality of life.

"I couldn't go into the woods without bringing someone with me, and I would be constantly asking, do you see any snakes, do you hear any snakes," said Lewis.

Joan signed up for a snake phobia study at the Institute of Living at Hartford Hospital. Dr. David Tolin is the lead investigator.

"It's a relatively straight forward fear. We know very well how it responds to treatment, and it would be a good test case for us to test the application of a new form of treatment to anxiety and fear based disorders," Tolin said.

It involves exposure therapy.

"The basic idea of exposure therapy is that a person is facing their fear, their doing it in a way that's gradual," said Tolin.

Researchers are also looking into the drug D-cycloserine, a well known anti-biotic, thought to act as a super booster.

"It seems to kick start the process, so that the cells learn more rapidly that nothing is happening as a result the person learns more rapidly that nothing bad is happening and they get over their fear faster," Tolin said.

"Again, they're not my favorite reptile, but they're wonderful creatures, and there's no reason to fear them. I know that now," Lewis said.

It is a double blind study, meaning the participants and researchers do not know who received the drug or the placebo, but everyone gets the exposure therapy.

Dr. Tolin is looking for more people for the study. For more information call 860-545-7685.