𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐈𝐒 𝐀 𝐏𝐇𝐎𝐁𝐈𝐀?

A phobia is a type of anxiety disorder. It causes a person to experience overwhelming or debilitating fear of a situation or thing that typically does not pose any real danger.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, in the United States alone, around 12.5% of adults experience a phobia of a specific situation or object at some point in their lives.

This article describes what a phobia is and outlines the different categories of phobia. It also lists some of the most common and least common phobias, as well as some ways a person can treat a phobia.

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Phobias can interfere with a person’s everyday life.

A phobia is an overwhelming or debilitating fear, usually of something that poses no real danger at all. If it does pose some danger, the person’s response is usually out of proportion to the actual danger it poses.

People who have a phobia are generally aware that their fear is irrational. They will nonetheless experience severe anxiety upon exposure to their phobia.

Having a phobia does not just mean that someone is scared of something. People with phobias have an exaggerated fear response. In severe cases, people may rearrange their lives to avoid the situation or thing that is causing their anxiety.

𝐓𝐘𝐏𝐄𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐏𝐇𝐎𝐁𝐈𝐀?

There are three broad phobia categories: specific phobias, social phobias, and agoraphobia.

The sections below will look at these in more detail.

𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜 𝐩𝐡𝐨𝐛𝐢𝐚𝐬

Specific, or “simple,” phobias are those that relate to a particular object or situation.

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5)  classifies specific phobias according to the following categories:

𝐀𝐧𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐥 𝐭𝐲𝐩𝐞 : Examples include dogs, snakes, and spiders.

𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐞𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐲𝐩𝐞: Examples include storms, water, and heights.

𝐁𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐝, 𝐢𝐧𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐣𝐮𝐫𝐲 (𝐁𝐈𝐈) 𝐭𝐲𝐩𝐞: Examples include needles, invasive medical procedures, and blood.

𝐒𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐭𝐲𝐩𝐞: Examples include a fear of flying and a fear of enclosed spaces.

𝐎𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐲𝐩𝐞: This type is characterized by any phobia that does not fit into the above categories.

People often develop specific phobias when they are younger. They may find that the phobia becomes less severe with age, but this is not always the case.