A phobia is an immense fear that is irrational and excessive to the point where it effects your life. When you have a phobia, even the thought of the fear can be enough to create a deep sense of dread and panic. Phobias are connected to something specific, unlike generalized anxiety disorder. A phobia is a type of anxiety disorder, this means that it is a mental illness. These irrational fears need to be around for at least 6 months for them to be considered a phobia. The good news is that almost all phobias can be cured.
according to the DSM-V, there are 5 types of phobias.
fears related to animals
fears related to the environment
fears related to blood or injury
fears related to specific life situations
or other
There is a wide range of phobias and we don't have a list of them all. The DSM-V mentions some common ones and other resources discuss more. Some of the most common phobias include:
Acrophobia (heights)
Aerophobia (flying)
Hemophobia (blood)
social-phobia (groups of people)
claustrophobia (small spaces)
hydrophobia (water)
auto-phobia (being alone)
ophidiophobia (snakes)
zoophobia (animals)
astraphobia (storms)
coulrophobia (clowns)
arachnophobia (spiders)
dentophobia (dentists)
necrophobia (death)
phobophobia (fear)
trypanophobia (needles)
achluophobia (the dark)
agoraphobia (public spaces)
Symptoms of Phobias can include, dizziness, nausea, shortness of breath, sweating, shaking, vomiting, increased heart rate,chest pains, hot/cold flushes, diarrhea, numbness, tingling sensations, dissociation, disconnection from reality, fainting, and even a feeling of dying. If these symptoms are very intense a panic attack could occur.
Phobias can be developed for a number of reasons. the three main reasons phobias can be present are a past negative experience, genetics/environmental factors, and changes in brain function. You may be at higher risk of developing a phobia if you are younger than 10, someone in you family has a phobia, if you tend to be a sensitive person, if you have traumatic experience, and if you often hear others discuss traumatic events.
Phobias can become quite dangerous if they get out of control. Some phobias may cause people to become isolated, develop mood disorder, turn to substance abuse, or even commit suicide. The best way to prevent these things from happening is by seeking professional help to learn to cope with your fear or cure it completely.
Treatment for phobias includes exposure therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy. Exposure therapy focuses on changing your reaction to the object or situation overtime by exposing yourself to in in small steps and controlled environments. Cognitive behavioral therapy aims to change the way that you think about and view the situation, in hopes you will learn to be confident and in-control of your thoughts rather than being scared and overwhelmed by them. If these treatments are ineffective alone then they may be accompanied by medications such as beta-blockers or sedatives.
Some self-help strategies that can be used to help deal with phobias include, mindfulness, relaxation techniques and exercise.
Resources:
I hope that you found this post to be informative and helpful. I am not a professional but all information shared was found in the above sources. Thank you so much for reading.
Jen xx
