“Fear: False Evidence

Appearing Real.”—
Unknown

Different
Types of
phobias

infant savari
 Introduction to phobias
What are phobias?
A phobia is an excessive and irrational fear reaction. If you have a phobia, you may
experience a deep sense of dread or panic when you encounter the source of your
fear. The fear can be of a certain place, situation, or object. Unlike general anxiety
disorders, a phobia is usually connected to something specific.
The impact of a phobia can range from annoying to severely disabling. People with
phobias often realize their fear is irrational, but they’re unable to do anything about
it. Such fears can interfere with work, school, and personal relationships.
An estimated 19 million Americans have a phobia that causes difficulty in some area
of their lives. Seek the help of your doctor if you have a fear that prevents you from
leading your fullest life.
Causes
Genetic and environmental factors can cause phobias. Children who have a close
relative with an anxiety disorder are at risk of developing a phobia. Distressing
events, such as nearly drowning, can bring on a phobia. Exposure to confined
spaces, extreme heights, and animal or insect bites can all be sources of phobias.
People with ongoing medical conditions or health concerns often have phobias.
There’s a high incidence of people developing phobias after traumatic brain
injuries. Substance abuse and depression are also connected to phobias.
Phobias have different symptoms from serious mental illnesses such
as schizophrenia. In schizophrenia, people have visual and auditory hallucinations,
delusions, paranoia, negative symptoms such as anhedonia, and disorganized
symptoms. Phobias may be irrational, but people with phobias do not fail reality
testing.
Risk factors
People with a genetic predisposition to anxiety may be at high risk of developing a
phobia. Age, socioeconomic status, and gender seem to be risk factors only for
certain phobias. For example, women are more likely to have animal phobias.
Children or people with a low socioeconomic status are more likely to have social
phobias. Men make up the majority of those with dentist and doctor phobias.
Symptoms of phobias
The most common and disabling symptom of a phobia is a panic attack. Features of
a panic attack include:
 pounding or racing heart
 shortness of breath
  rapid speech or inability to speak
 dry mouth
 upset stomach
 nausea
 elevated blood pressure
 trembling or shaking
 chest pain or tightness
 a choking sensation
 dizziness or lightheadedness
 profuse sweating
 a sense of impending doom
A person with a phobia doesn’t have to have panic attacks for accurate diagnosis,
however.

What types of therapy can help with a phobia?

The good news here is that psychotherapy is usually effective at treating phobias.
Here are a few approaches worth exploring.
Exposure therapy
Exposure therapy is a type of behavior therapy. With this type of treatment, a
therapist usually begins by training you in relaxation techniques that can calm you
when you’re under a lot of stress.
Another approach to exposure therapy is systematic desensitization. This is a
process of gradually exposing you to fear-provoking situations from least scary to
most scary.
Once you’re equipped to calm yourself when under stress, you and your therapist
can build a hierarchy of experiences related to your phobias. Include the least scary
ones at the bottom and the biggest fears at the top.
Exposure therapy is a way of gradually bringing you closer to something you fear. It
usually begins first in your imagination, then in various representations, perhaps
cartoons, drawings, or photographs.
As you approach each one, your therapist guides you in using your relaxation skills
to calm your anxiety.
Once you can defuse anxiety related to one kind of representation, you and your
therapist can proceed to the next level on your hierarchy.
The goal is to systematically desensitize you to the specific phobia, so it no longer
triggers the same symptoms and gets in the way of you living your life to the fullest.
Cognitive behavioral therapy
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) often incorporates the same systematic
desensitization methods used in exposure therapy. CBT also focuses on the specific
thoughts and beliefs you have associated with the phobias.
Often, people with phobias have developed thought patterns around the phobia that
aren’t based in reality.
For example, when you encounter a specific fear, you might have a tendency
to catastrophize (imagine the absolute worst that might happen). This can amplify
your anxiety.
CBT helps you identify cognitive distortions. These are unhelpful thought patterns
that aren’t accurate. Once you’ve identified these thoughts, you can replace them
with more accurate ones instead.
When you’re immersed in the intense fear of a phobic episode, CBT can help you:
 remind yourself that you’re experiencing a phobia
 recall that the episode will be over soon
 notice the thoughts that are ramping up your fear
 replace the inaccurate thoughts with statements that are more realistic
Mindfulness training
Mindfulness techniques can help reduce the level of stress you feel. This technique
may not stop the initial rush of anxiety a phobia can release, but mindfulness
training may help you lessen the severity of the fear.
It may be a good idea to work with a therapist to learn mindfulness techniques.
Practicing them often on your own as well can help you use them when you’re face-
to-face with a phobia.
Here are some mindfulness techniques that may be helpful:
 meditation
 deep breathing
 progressive muscle relaxation
In a small 2010 studyTrusted Source, mindfulness techniques combined with
cognitive behavioral therapy improved participants’ social phobia symptoms in the
long term.
And recent research has shown that mindfulness techniques can be used along with
exposure therapy to curb the effects of anxiety.
Symptoms
A person with a phobia will experience the following symptoms. They are common
across the majority of phobias:
 a sensation of uncontrollable anxiety when exposed to the source of fear
 a feeling that the source of that fear must be avoided at all costs
 not being able to function properly when exposed to the trigger
 acknowledgment that the fear is irrational, unreasonable, and exaggerated,
combined with an inability to control the feelings
A person is likely to experience feelings of panic and intense anxiety when exposed
to the object of their phobia. The physical effects of these sensations can include:
 sweating
 abnormal breathing
 accelerated heartbeat
 trembling
 hot flushes or chills
 a choking sensation
 chest pains or tightness
 butterflies in the stomach
 pins and needles
 dry mouth
 confusion and disorientation
 nausea
 dizziness
 headache
A feeling of anxiety can be produced simply by thinking about the object of the
phobia. In younger children, parents may observe that they cry, become very clingy,
or attempt to hide behind the legs of a parent or an object. They may also throw
tantrums to show their distress.
 Common types of phobias
1.Arachnophobia (Fear of spiders)
Arachnophobia is a fear of spiders that goes beyond the desire to kill one when you
see it in your home. People with arachnophobia will become extremely anxious at
the sight of a spider, usually jumping, screaming, or freezing in place. These
reactions can sometimes be evoked by a mere picture of a spider. 
People with arachnophobia will avoid places where spiders might be found at all
costs. This often means not participating in outdoor activities, such as camping or
hiking. They will refuse to come in close proximity to spiders, especially getting close
enough to kill or remove them from their home. They will often require help from
another person in order to do so.
This phobia is thought to develop from an innate fear of spiders that are venomous,
which would result in negative effects, or death if bitten.

2. Ophidiophobia (Fear of snakes)

Ophidiophobia is a fear of snakes. This can sometimes be confused with
herpetophobia, which is a fear of reptiles in general, but people with ophidiophobia
are specifically afraid of snakes.  They will be startled at the sight of a snake,
oftentimes jumping, screaming, or crying.
Similar to arachnophobia, people with ophidiophobia will avoid places where snakes
may be found and avoid participating in outdoor activities such as camping or hiking.
Unlike arachnophobia, the fear is less likely to be induced simply by looking at a
picture of a snake.
Like arachnophobia, this phobia is thought to be an innate fear of being bitten by a
venomous snake. It can also be derived from a traumatic experience with a snake,
such as being startled by, hissed at, or even bitten by one.

3. Acrophobia (Fear of heights)

Acrophobia is a fear of heights. People with acrophobia will commonly have
symptoms of spinning, also known as vertigo, in response to situations where they
perceive they are high off the ground. In response to heights, they may also freeze
in place and are unable to move from the spot.
In most cases, the feeling of anxiety is relieved when the person returns to ground
level. People with acrophobia will often avoid situations involving heights. The
severity of this phobia can vary greatly. In some people, the fear will be onset from
standing at the top of a tall building, while in others it can be induced by scaling a
ladder. 
This phobia stems from the person losing confidence in their ability to stay balanced
or fearing that they will fall. People with acrophobia tend to overestimate vertical
distances, meaning that at certain heights, they perceive themselves as being
higher off the ground than they really are.

4. Aerophobia (Fear of flying)

Aerophobia is a fear of flying. People with aerophobia become extremely anxious
when flying.  For some, it is brought on by simply entering a plane or even the
thought of entering a plane, whereas others experience the phobia when there is
turbulence during a flight.
People with aerophobia will avoid flying if they can. If it is absolutely necessary,
some may endure it with great anguish, while others will simply choose not to go
anywhere that would require them to fly to get there. People with aerophobia may
become anxious and dreadful in the days leading up to a trip, to the point where it
could interfere with their work or social life.
This phobia tends to stem from the fear that the airplane will crash. It can also be a
combination of other phobias that culminate in the environment of an airplane, such
as a fear of a confined space, heights, no escape or an outbreak of illness.

5. Cynophobia (Fear of dogs)

Cynophobia is a fear of dogs. People with cynophobia will commonly freeze at the
sight of a dog and have intense symptoms of anxiety.
People with cynophobia may avoid situations where they may encounter a dog,
which can be difficult given their abundance as pets in society. They may find it
difficult to interact with others who have dogs, including friends or family members.
They may even avoid becoming friends with a dog owner.  
This phobia usually arises from a negative experience with dogs, many times as a
child. The person may have had an interaction with an aggressive dog at some
point, or they may have witnessed a family member being bitten or chased by a dog.
The fear can also develop indirectly, by observing a family member that has
cynophobia.

6. Astraphobia (Fear of thunder and lightning)

Astraphobia is the fear of lightning and thunder. People with astraphobia will
experience extreme symptoms of anxiety during storms, which many times will be
amplified if the person is alone.
People with astraphobia will likely be constantly up-to-date on the weather and will
avoid leaving home if a storm is expected. During a storm, they will often find a safe
place to hide, where the noise will be diminished. This fear can also be experienced
by animals, such as dogs and cats.
The fear of thunder and lightning is thought to come from a traumatic experience
related to a storm involving thunder or lightning.

7. Trypanophobia (Fear of injections)

Trypanophobia is a fear of injections. It is also known as a fear of needles. People
with trypanophobia will experience extreme anxiety in response to procedures
requiring a needlestick, such as getting a shot or getting their blood drawn. The
response can often occur at the site of a needle before the procedure is performed.
They will often become very dizzy or even faint in response to the needlestick. 
People with trypanophobia may avoid medical care due to their fear. In some cases,
the symptoms of trypanophobia can also be induced by observing others
undergoing injections.
The anxiety may also be linked to a fear of hospitals, doctors, and/or medical
procedures in general, which tend to involve needles. It can also be the result of a
traumatic experience with a prior procedure involving an injection.
8. Social Phobia (Social anxiety disorder)
Social phobia, also known as social anxiety disorder, is a fear of social situations,
usually involving people the person doesn’t know very well. Most people associate
social phobia with being shy or introverted, but it is much more than that. 
People with social anxiety are extremely afraid of social interactions, to the point that
It is frequently debilitating and interferes with their life. People with social phobia will
avoid social situations, sometimes refusing to leave their house.
It is usually brought on by a fear of judgment by others or feeling exceedingly self-
conscious when out in public. They are afraid of being embarrassed or humiliating
themselves in front of others.

9. Agoraphobia (Fear of a situation where escape may be difficult)

Agoraphobia is defined in many different ways, but in general, is known as a fear of
a situation where escape may be difficult or where help will not be able to reach
them in the case of an emergency. Other definitions include the fear of leaving home
alone, fear of crowds, or fear of having a panic attack in public. People with
agoraphobia tend to think of places outside of their home as unsafe.
People with agoraphobia usually experience flashes of severe fear, resembling
a panic attack. They may avoid situations such as traveling on public transportation,
visiting the mall, standing in crowded rooms, where exits may be limited, or even
being in spaces that are wide open, where they may be too exposed. Their
symptoms can sometimes be relieved if accompanied by another person.
This phobia may stem from a traumatic experience, such as a loved one being
severely injured or dying in a traumatic situation. It can also be a fear of being a
victim of a crime or an act of terrorism, exposure to illness, or being in an accident.

10. Mysophobia (Fear of germs)

Affects: 13.2% of the U.S. population
Mysophobia is a fear of germs. A person with mysophobia might also be called a
“germaphobe”. They may also be afraid of dirt or getting dirty, where germs might be
present.
People with mysophobia may obsessively wash their hands or use hand sanitizer.
They may avoid public spaces where high levels of germs may be present, such as
public restrooms. They tend to be extremely clean and disinfect everything in their
homes. They typically avoid touching other people. In extreme cases, they may also
avoid leaving their home altogether. 
This phobia can arise from the fear of contracting an illness upon exposure to
germs. It may be related to hypochondria, which is a condition wherein a person is
overly anxious about their health. While it is also thought to be related to obsessive
compulsive disorder (OCD), people with OCD tend to be more obsessed with the act
of washing their hands rather than the exposure to germs.

11. Claustrophobia (Fear of small spaces)

Affects: 5% of the U.S. population
Claustrophobia is a fear of small spaces. Space can vary from a confined area, like
a closet or elevator, to being trapped in a crowded room, where others are invading
one’s personal space.
When feeling trapped, they will experience extreme sensations of anxiety, similar to
a panic attack, which will likely subside when they remove themselves from the
space or situation. People with claustrophobia will avoid putting themselves in these
situations whenever possible.
This phobia may stem from a traumatic event as a child, such as being trapped in a
small space for some period of time. People with claustrophobia also tend
to consider their personal space as farther from their body than people without
claustrophobia. In other words, their personal space is more easily interfered with
compared to other people’s.

12. Glossophobia (Fear of public speaking)

Affects: 26.2% of the U.S. population
Glossophobia is a fear of public speaking. This can be seen as a variant of social
anxiety disorder but is more specific in that people with glossophobia are afraid of
talking in front of groups of people. This fear can vary widely, from becoming very
nervous when standing in front of a crowd to being unable to speak at all. 
People with glossophobia will evade public speaking whenever possible, usually
avoiding occupations that require public speaking. As with social phobia, this may
stem from the fear of being embarrassed in front of others.

Major Phobia Categories:

There are several categories of phobias that people may be affected by, including
phobias related to the natural environment, animals, situations and medical
treatment. Each category has a unique set of specific phobias that are related.
People with these types of phobias may experience more than one of the phobias
within a group.
The phobias that fall into these categories are among the most common types of
phobias. There are other phobias that do not fall into these categories, and these
are listed in alphabetical order on this page.
1. Natural Environment
Natural environment phobias involve fears of natural events, places in nature or
situations that naturally occur.
The following are examples of natural environment phobias:
 Achluophobia – Fear of darkness
 Acrophobia – Fear of heights
 Anemophobia – Fear of wind or drafts
 Antlophobia – Fear of floods
 Astraphobia – Fear of thunder and lightning
 Hydrophobia – Fear of water
 Hylophobia – Fear of forests
 Lilapsophobia – Fear of tornadoes and hurricanes
  Pagophobia – Fear of ice or frost
 Thalassophobia – Fear of the sea
2. Animals
Animal phobias are the fear of specific animals or the fear of animals in general,
which is termed zoophobia. Animal phobias are the most common types of specific
phobias.
A list of animal phobias includes:
 Agrizoophobia – Fear of wild animals
 Ailurophobia – Fear of cats
 Alektorophobia – Fear of chickens
 Apiphobia – Fear of bees
 Arachnophobia – Fear of spiders
 Bovinophobia – Fear of cows or cattle
 Bufonophobia – Fear of toads
 Cetaphobia – Fear of whales
 Chiroptophobia – Fear of bats
 Cynophobia – Fear of dogs
 Entomophobia – Fear of insects
 Equinophobia – Fear of horses
 Herpetophobia – Fear of reptiles
 Ichthyophobia – Fear of fish
 Musophobia – Fear of mice
 Myrmecophobia – Fear of ants
 Ophidiophobia – Fear of snakes
 Ranidaphobia – Fear of frogs
 Scoleciphobia – Fear of worms
 Spheksophobia – Fear of wasps
 Taurophobia – Fear of bulls
3. Situations
Situational phobias are the fear of specific situations. People with these phobias will
avoid the situation at all cost, which can majorly interfere with their life.
Examples of situational phobias are found in the following list:
 Aerophobia – Fear of flying
 Agoraphobia – Fear of crowds and open spaces
 Amaxophobia – Fear of being in an automobile
 Autophobia – Fear of being alone
 claustrophobia – Fear of confined spaces
 Hodophobia – Fear of travel

4. Medical Treatment
Medical phobias include fears of medical treatments, illnesses that require medical
treatment or the people administering medical treatment. 
Some examples of medical treatment phobias include:
 Aichmophobia – Fear of pointed objects like needles
 Hemophobia – Fear of blood
 Hypochondria – Fear of illness
 Trypanophobia – Fear of needles or injections
 Iatrophobia – Fear of doctors
 Odontophobia – Fear of dental surgery
 Pathophobia – Fear of disease
 Pharmacophobia – Fear of medicines