Phone phobia - how to overcome?

[Chemenger]

How do I get over this irrational fear of making phone calls? I have always been like this, I hated speaking to relatives on the phone as a child (still hate the thought of it). I am extrovert and chatty in real life but the thought of phone calls makes be come out in a cold sweat. Do I need hypnotherapy or something? It’s quite ridiculous that I’m like this in my 60’s.

Are there any friends you do feel comfortable talking to that you could practice with? Or a partner? Or practice with voice notes?

For calls like doctors etc, you could always write a script to go through. Hi, I'm calling because... etc.

This is quite interesting on phone calls OP:

https://www.authenticallyemily.uk/blog/why-phone-calls-can-be-incredibly-difficult-for-autistic-people-and-people-with-anxiety

Thanks for the advice. The most annoying thing is that once I have started the call I’m fine. I’ve just made a call that has literally been stopping me from sleeping well for a couple of weeks and had a perfectly normal conversation with a very nice man. I just cannot rationally convince myself to start calls. It is so stupid.