Phobias

Phobias are extreme irrational fears of objects or situations. Though many people claim to be phobic of something, a true phobia will cause the victim to avoid any triggers of that phobia at any cost. For instance, a person with a phobia of flying will do anything to avoid flying, even if it means walking, and often will show the same avoidance pattern when confronted with something related to flying, such as heights.

Most therapists believe that phobias are caused when an original threatening situation (a near-drowning, for instance) is transferred to similar situations (avoiding water), and even when the original situation is forgotten, the fear remains. A person who is phobic of deep water will get worse, if not treated, because every time the trigger is avoided, it reinforces the pathways of the phobia.

Phobias are treated with behavior therapy, in a form of acclimatization. The phobic person is gradually exposed to more and more threatening forms of his or her phobia; for instance, a person with a fear of spiders may first be shown a toy spider from across the room, the spider gradually brought closer with every session, and then later switched for a real spider. The idea is that by not fleeing the trigger, and by the patient seeing that the trigger does not harm him or her after all, the phobia pathway is gradually undone.

Psychotherapy and antianxiety drugs are also used in the treatment of phobias, especially in the early stages of treatment.

There are almost as many possible types of phobia as there are people. Children suffer from fear or anxiety, such as separation anxiety, but in general their fears aren’t well-enough practiced to have become phobias. A parent can prevent them from turning into phobias by encouraging – not forcing – the child to become acclimatized to the situation or object that inspires fear.

Because phobias persist until treated, they can be very dangerous to an individual’s social and work well-being. They can cause someone to limit their movement and interaction to a pathological degree.

There are three basic types of phobic syndromes according to the DSM-III: simple phobia, which is the fear of a relatively ordinary object; social phobia, which is the fear of something to do with social situations, such as crowds or public speaking; and agoraphobia, in a class by itself because it is so debilitating. Each phobia has both similar and distinct features, but all are treated by acclimatization therapy, psychotherapy, and drugs.