PHOBIA

 

A phobia is an irrational fear of something that’s unlikely to cause harm. The word itself comes from the Greek word phobos, which means fear or horror.

Hydrophobia, for example, literally translates to fear of water.

When someone has a phobia, they experience intense fear of a certain object or situation. Phobias are different than regular fears because they cause significant distress, possibly interfering with life at home, work, or school.

People with phobias actively avoid the phobic object or situation, or endure it within intense fear or anxiety. Phobias come in all shapes and sizes. Because there are an infinite number of objects and situations, the list of specific phobias is quite long.

According to the DSM, specific phobias typically fall within five general categories:

• fears related to animals (spiders, dogs, insects)
• fears related to the natural environment (heights, thunder, darkness)
• fears related to blood, injury, or medical issues (injections, broken bones, falls)
• fears related to specific situations (flying, riding an elevator, driving)
• other (choking, loud noises, drowning)

some of the most common phobias include:

• acrophobia, fear of heights
• aerophobia, fear of flying
• arachnophobia, fear of spiders
• astraphobia, fear of thunder and lightning
• autophobia, fear of being alone
• claustrophobia, fear of confined or crowded spaces
• hemophobia, fear of blood
• hydrophobia, fear of water
• ophidiophobia, fear of snakes
• zoophobia, fear of animals