Systematic desensitization is a technique based on behavioral principles that used to treat phobias or anxiety disorders; also called graduated exposure therapy. The technique is supposed to pair an anxiety event with a stimulus that elicits an opposing response, such as relaxation, relaxed muscles and coping techniques. This is also what psychologists call counter conditioning. In order for the person to identity what is causing the anxiety; one must identify the specific factors that are building up to it, and they must be individually focused on; the feared stimulus. Basically, the psychiatrist is constructing a hierarchy of fears that gradually moves up to its ultimate fear, in which the patient can experience without any type of anxiety
