Phobia

A phobia (from the Greek φόβος, mean "fear" or "morbid fear") is a strong fear for some things/situations/people. Each is otherwise a great fear. For most people, these fears are minor. Such fears can be very common. Those who suffer, usually very strongly want to avoid (keep away from) what they fear. People with arachnophobia, for example, are scared of spiders, and want to keep away from the places where they might find spiders. Fear may be affected resist various common situations (take the elevator, go over the bridge ..). They refuse because of the phobia better place to work (work stations above; more frequent contact with people ..). People with disabilities have their nonsense conscious behavior but it can not dominate. Most phobias are acquired in childhood, but can also develop in adults.

Difference phobia and fear

A Phobia is different from normal fear in many ways:

1. Phobia is much too strong, given the situation
2. Phobia lasts much longer than necessary
3. Those suffering from the phobia cannot explain why they suffer from it. They also cannot influence the fear; this makes coping with the fear difficult for them.
4. Phobias have a direct influence on the life of the sufferers
5. Those suffering from sociophobia (also social phobia) will be much more reluctant to contact new people

It is hard to tell how many people suffer from phobias; numbers indicate though that between 5 and 13 percent seem to have a phobia. Women suffer from phobias about twice as often.

Fears in children

Every child is afraid of something. For most children, these fears eventually disappear. If fear does not interfere with the child's everyday life or if he does not need large so concerns are unnecessary.

Normal fears in children

• 0-2 years - loud noises, strange people, separation from parents; great things
• 3-6 years - imaginary things as ghosts, monsters, dark, strange sounds
• 7-16 years - more realistic fears e.g. school performance, injury, illness, death, disaster

Causes and risk factors

Causes and risk factors phobias is very.

Caused

It can be caused by:

• phobia occurs mostly in childhood
• innate fear
• traumatic event (assault, assault witness, injury ...)
• hear about the possible danger (someone attacked animal; hear about a natural disaster ...)

Risk factors

• family influence and culture
• psychological personality disorder
• type of character traits - susceptible nature are more prone to phobias
• parents' lack of interest
• gender - women are more prone to phobias

Types phobias

Phobia sort the different species. Examples are:

• Specific phobias
• Social phobias
• Zoophobias
• Blood-Injection-Injury phobias
• Prejudices and discrimination phobias
• Humorous and fictional phobias

Specific phobias

also psychological phobias. These include hundreds of types phobias. Some:

• Aichmophobia - fear of sharp objects (scissors, needle..)
• Bacillophobia - fear of bacteria
• Claustrophobia - fear of small and close room
• Necrophobia - fear of death
• Pharmacophobia - fear of medicaments
• Taphophobia - fear of buried alive

Social phobias

Social phobia is fear for some interpersonal contact. Victim has low self-esteem, fear of public humiliation, a bad rating, fear of ridicule. This includes for example:

• Sociophobia - fear of people and/or social situations
• Glossophobia – fear of speaking in public

Zoophobias

Zoophobia is fear of one, several, or all animals. Specific phobia of animals:

• Arachnophobia – fear of spiders
• Cynophobia - fear of dogs
• Entomophobia - fear of insects
• Ophidiophobia - fear of snakes
• Scoleciphobia - fear of worms

Symptoms

When a person with a phobia is exposed to their fear (encounters with the stimulus, think of it, sees the object of fear in the picture...) occur at these physical and psychological symptoms. Intensity depends on the degree of fear.

Psychical symptoms

Psychological symptoms are symptoms that take place within a human. These include the:

• anxiety up to panic
• want to run away
• shaking or tremors
• fear that the loss of their control, or to drive crazy
• fear of death
• fear of loss of consciousness
• nervousness, restlessness

Physical symptoms

• difficulty breathing, shortness of breath
• heart beat, increased heart rate
• shaking or tremors
• more sweating
• malaise, feeling sick
• weakness up to fainting
• rush hot or cold
• dry mouth
• pain or spin head
• a need to go to the toilet

Treatment

There are different ways to help people with phobias. There is treatment available; it focuses on making the patient less sensitive to the fear they suffer from, or showing him or her how the cycle of fear works. There is also medication available (mostly sedatives) that help people cope. Finally there are self-help groups. It is said to originate from a Greek god FOBO.

See also

List of phobias

Other websites

• Phobias and Fears - Symptoms, Treatment, and Self-Help
• Page with more types and descriptions phobias
• Phobias and anxiety disorders (czech)