Flight of the Appalachian Bumblebee: Solution-Oriented Brief Therapy with a Young Adult

A 19-year-old single Appalachian Caucasian man presented with panic attacks related to a recently developed phobia of bees. Brief solution-oriented therapy, along with the tools of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), was employed successfully to treat this specific phobia. Cultural, familial, gender, and sexual identity issues were also addressed. [Article copies available for a fee from The Haworth Document Delivery Service: 1-800-342-9678. E-mail address: Website: ©2001 by The Haworth Pres., Inc. All rights reserved.] A 19-year-old single Appalachian Caucasian man presented with panic attacks related to a recently developed phobia of bees. Brief solution-oriented therapy, along with the tools of rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT), was employed successfully to treat this specific phobia. It also addresses the cultural, familial, gender, and sexual identity issues. Jonah began to have 'panic attacks' three months prior to seeking help while working as a lifeguard at a community swimming pool. He presented in crisis due to his having had such an attack during the previous weekend in which he felt 'out right hot', nauseous, tightness in his chest and back, and had racing thoughts about bee stings and dying. The author believed successful treatment of his Axis I Specific Phobia was possible through a focused, brief approach. Thus, the goal was to reduce, if not eliminate his bee phobia, and the plan was to use a solution-oriented approach with cognitive-behavioral techniques.