Difference Between Fear and Phobia
The word “phobia” is often used to describe a general fear, just like “bipolar disorder” is used to describe someone’s mood swing, or “OCD” is used to refer to someone’s commitment to cleaning. However, like bipolar or obsessive-compulsive disorders, phobias are actually serious, diagnosable, and more intense than the flippant usage of the label in everyday culture suggests. If you have a particularly strong fear, you may have a phobia without even realizing it, so here’s how to tell the difference between the two.
What is a phobia?
Here is how Johns Hopkins medicine defines a phobia :
“A phobia is an uncontrollable, irrational, and prolonged fear of a particular object, situation, or activity. This fear can be so overwhelming that a person may go to great lengths to avoid the source of this fear. One of the reactions may be a panic attack. It is a sudden, intense fear that lasts for several minutes. It happens when there is no real danger.”
For what it’s worth, “related” topics suggested by Johns Hopkins on this page include OCD and Generalized Anxiety Disorder. This is a mental health issue, not just fear or discomfort. The last part of the definition—”it happens when there is no real danger”—is key: Just because you would feel intense fear if you were, say, being chased by an aggressive dog, doesn’t necessarily mean you have a phobia. dogs. If a photo of a dog triggers a panic attack or other strong reaction, even when the dog is not around and you are not facing any threat of chasing the dog, it may be a phobia. If you change your daily activities to avoid dogs, even knowing that you are likely to run into a leash and are well trained, it could be a phobia.
According to Johns Hopkins, about 19 million Americans suffer from at least one phobia, and these can range from mild to severe. Although they can develop in early childhood, they are usually first noticed between the ages of 15 and 20. A lot of research has been done here, and researchers believe that genetic and environmental factors may contribute to the onset of the phobia. Some of these have been linked to a “very bad first encounter” with the trigger, but experts aren’t sure if this is necessary for the phobia to occur.
What are the most common phobias?
There are three main categories of phobias: specific phobias, social phobias, and agoraphobia. Specific phobias are those that you are probably familiar with because they are associated with specific things or situations. People with these phobias are aware that their fear is very strong, but they may not be diagnosed if the trigger is easily avoided.
For example, someone with a specific height phobia may simply avoid skyscrapers or bridges, but when that avoidance prevents them from getting a certain job, going somewhere, or getting a particular apartment, that’s clearly a problem. Common specific phobias include flying, dogs, enclosed spaces, tunnels, heights, and insects or spiders. Again, although any of these can be potentially dangerous, phobias are characterized by intense fear and a reaction when there is no danger.
Social phobia, on the other hand, is an anxiety disorder in which someone experiences significant discomfort due to fear of embarrassment, humiliation, or contempt from others in social or work situations. Mostly social phobia involves public speaking, meeting people, eating in public and the like, and Johns Hopkins makes it clear that the extreme anxiety leading up to these events is what distinguishes social phobia from standard shyness.
Finally, agoraphobia is the fear of a panic attack from which there is no escape. The anxiety associated with agoraphobia can, in turn, cause panic attacks. Examples of agoraphobia include intense fear of being alone outside the home, being alone at home, in a crowd, in an elevator, on a bridge, or in similar situations.
Treatment of phobias
Phobias are not only diagnosable, but even treatable. One detailed review of research in The Lancet indicated that the development of a phobia proceeds from fear to avoidance of diagnosis, so interrupting progress may reduce the prevalence of the phobia. In addition, the presence of a phobia is a strong predictor of the onset of other anxiety, affective and substance use disorders, so early treatment is critical not only to improve quality of life immediately, but also to try to prevent other potential problems in the future. bud.
The problem with treatments, of course, is that by definition of a phobia, they are troublesome or simply damaging, as the review points out. As a result, people with phobias are generally hesitant to seek treatment. Affected people become masters of avoidance; only 10% to 25% have ever sought treatment.
The preferred treatment for certain phobias is exposure therapy, which includes in vivo or imaging approaches to the trigger or stimuli conducted in a professional setting. CBT and breathing exercises combined with exposure therapy are recommended for specific phobias, while CBT and medications are recommended for people with social phobia and agoraphobia.
The first step, of course, is diagnosis. An initial diagnosis does not mean you will automatically be sent to exposure therapy, so don’t let your fear of facing your trigger prevent you from seeing a professional. Once you’ve been diagnosed, you can develop a step-by-step treatment plan that’s comfortable for you. A mental health professional won’t do anything to panic you without warning, but every day you put off diagnosis and treatment is another day you can face your irritants in real life, so consider Seek help if any of the above symptoms apply to you. you.