Fear / Phobia
A phobia is an anxiety disorder that involves an irrational, persistent, and excessive fear of an object or situation. Phobias can cause a rapid onset of fear, and people with phobias often feel an overwhelming need to avoid the thing that scares them. When exposed to the object of their phobia, people may experience feelings of panic and intense anxiety, which can lead to physical effects like sweating, abnormal breathing, and an accelerated heartbeat.
To others, the fear may seem irrational or silly, but the person with the phobia feels genuinely threatened and afraid. it’s a very real and complex disorder that can take a few forms.
Phobophobia is more common than people might think there are hundreds of specific phobic disorders. and many people with phobophobia already have other phobias or mental health disorders.
Phobias can be caused by many things, including animals, natural environments, blood, medical procedures, situations, and other things. For example, someone might have a fear of water, which would be called hydrophobia. Or, someone might have a fear of panic attacks, or a fear of developing a phobia like hydrophobia, after having a panic attack while sailing. A person with phobophobia may be scared of the physical sensations that come with fear, such as shortness of breath, sweaty palms or heart palpitations. They might feel that these symptoms threaten their life or have the potential to cause permanent damage. Or they may have a fear of developing a specific phobia, such as claustrophobia (fear of crowded, confined spaces) or trypanophobia (fear of needles). The anxiety of anticipating a potential phobia actually becomes a phobia itself. People with phobophobia tend to avoid any situation where they think they might become fearful. This might mean avoiding normal “scary situations” such as horror movies, roller coasters or skydiving. But it can also mean staying away from anxiety in any form, such as refusing to go to a job interview. Avoidance strategies can also stem from other phobias. For instance, if a person has aerophobia (fear of flying), they may be so scared to experience the symptoms associated with this phobia that they start avoiding other forms of travel such as cars, trains and buses.
A person with phobophobia may have symptoms of a panic attack if they see, think or talk about fear, like:
Chills, Dizziness and lightheadedness, Excessive sweating (hyperhidrosis), Heart palpitations, Nausea, Shortness of breath (dyspnea), Trembling or shaking, Upset stomach or indigestion (dyspepsia).
People with phobophobia may also have other mental health disorders, such as:
Avoidant personality disorder, Illness anxiety disorder (hypochondria), Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), Panic disorder, Paranoid personality disorder, Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Treatment
Many people suffering from phobia may already have other phobias or mental health disorders. In such a situation, it becomes very important to treat it. If you think you may have a specific phobia, talk to your gladful mind`s mental health professional . They can guide you to the right treatment. Childhood fears, such as fear of the dark, monsters or of being left alone and any bad incident are common. Most children outgrow them. But if your child has an ongoing, strong fear that interferes with how they act at school or work daily, take our help and the sooner you ask for help, the more likely that treatment will be effective. At Gladful Mind Center, phobias are treated using a variety of techniques. We treat phobias in a natural way without any medication and evidence-based treatment which is quite effective
FAQs
It’s hard knowing exactly how many people have a specific phobia, like phobophobia, but it’s rare. We do know that about 1 in 10 adults and 1 in 5 teenagers will deal with a specific phobia disorder at some point in their lives, though. These disorders are about twice as common in women as they are in men.
Phobias can cause problems that affect many areas of life. They can result in:
Social isolation. Staying away from places and things that are feared can cause problems at work or school, or in connections with others. Children with these disorders are at risk of problems at school and loneliness. They also may have trouble in social situations if their behaviour’s are very different from their peers.
Mood disorders. Many people with specific phobias have depression and other anxiety disorders.
Substance misuse. The stress of living with a severe specific phobia may lead to misuse of drugs or alcohol.
Suicide. Some people with specific phobias may be at risk of suicide.
Strain on loved ones. To try to keep from feeling anxious, people often rely too much on being reassured by others. Sometimes this leads to others becoming too protective over the person with anxiety. For example, a parent may become too protective of a child, resulting in more stress for the parent.
Although there are many different phobias, they can be divided into 2 categories:
Simple phobias: are fears about specific objects, animals, situations or activities. Some common examples include:
dogs (cynophobia)
spiders (arachnophobia)
snakes (ophidiophobia)
enclosed spaces (claustrophobia)
dentists (dentophobia)
flying (aerophobia)
Simple phobias affect different people in different ways. Some people only react with mild anxiety when confronted with the object of their fear. Others experience severe anxiety or have a severe panic attack.
Complex phobias: tend to be more disabling than simple phobias. This is because they’re often associated with a deep-rooted fear or anxiety about a particular circumstance or situation.
Speaking to a GP about your anxiety may help to identify a complex phobia.
Two common examples of complex phobias are agoraphobia and social phobia.
Agoraphobia is a fear of being in situations where escape might be difficult, or where help wouldn’t be available if things go wrong.
Agoraphobia often involves a combination of several interlinked phobias. Someone with agoraphobia may also fear being left alone (monophobia), or places where they feel trapped (claustrophobia).
This means someone with agoraphobia may find it difficult to:
travel on public transport
visit a shopping centre
leave home (in extreme cases)
The symptoms experienced by agoraphobics vary in severity. Some people feel very apprehensive and anxious if they have to leave their home to visit the shops. Others may feel relatively comfortable travelling a short distance from their home.
Social phobia If you have social phobia, you may experience fear of:
being in social situations, like weddings
performing in social situations, like public speaking
leaving home because of the risk of meeting people (in extreme cases)
If you have a social phobia, the thought of being seen in public or appearing at social events can make you feel very anxious and frightened. These situations can make you feel vulnerable.
Intentionally avoiding meeting people in social situations, like at a dinner party, is a sign of social phobia.
Almost all phobias can be successfully treated and cured.
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