Fear of heights

What is it?

Fear of heights is an intense fear response to being high up, or sometimes to the sensation of looking down — balconies, stairwells, bridges, glass floors.

What might it feel like?

• Dizziness and unsteadiness
• A pull-toward-the-edge sensation
• Legs weakening
• Avoiding routes, floors or viewpoints

What may contribute to it?

• A fall or near-fall
• A sensitive balance and alarm system
• Watching someone else frightened at a height

Is it fear, discomfort, or a possible phobia?

These are reflection questions, not a test. More “yes” answers suggest this fear deserves attention — they do not mean you definitely have a disorder.

• Does the fear feel much bigger than the situation's likely danger?
• Does anticipation cause strong distress?
• Do I routinely avoid it?
• Do I endure it with extreme distress?
• Does it interfere with healthcare, school, work, relationships, travel, sleep or recreation?
• Have I reorganised parts of my life around it?
• Has it persisted rather than fading naturally?
• Do reassurance and facts give only temporary relief?

What else could resemble it?

• Vestibular or inner-ear conditions
• Panic disorder
• A reasonable response to a genuinely unsafe edge

How can I cope today?

• Step back before you decide anything
• Fix your gaze on something at eye level
• Hold a rail — that is accommodation, not failure

How can I work on it over time?

• Ladder from low, enclosed heights upward
• Repeat each step until it becomes ordinary

Living with it right now

• Ask for advance explanations, choices and breaks
• Explain the fear to one person who will not pressure you
• Plan travel and medical appointments with slack in them
• Keep checking whether your world is widening or narrowing

When professional help may be useful

• Avoidance is disrupting essential healthcare
• The fear affects work, education, parenting or relationships
• Panic is frequent
• Alcohol or other substances are being used to cope
• The fear is expanding to additional situations
• Attempts at facing it feel overwhelming or destabilising
• The fear is linked to trauma, OCD, eating difficulties or medical risk

Psychotherapy is the primary treatment for phobias — commonly cognitive behavioural therapy and gradual, consented exposure. Medication may sometimes be used for particular symptoms or situations under medical guidance.