Dr. Shivali Sachin Gainewar
(Clinical Psychologist) Mob.: 8955482970
A phobia is a type of anxiety disorder define by a persistent and excessive of an object or situation. The phobia typically results in a rapid onset of fear and is present for more than six months.
There are almost as many phobias as there are situations, the most common kind of phobias include
- social phobia
- agoraphobia
- Claustrophobia
- aerophobia
- coulrophobia
- zoophobia
- mysophobia
- hemophobia
- ophidiophobia
- aichmophobia
Causes genetic and environmental factors can causes phobias children who have close relative with an anxiety disorder are at the risk of developing phobia. Distressing events , such as nearly drawing can bring an phobia.
Most of the three types of phobia :
- Social phobia
- Agoraphobia
- Specific phobia
Social Phobia : A chronic mental health condition in which social interactions causes irrational anxiety. For people with social anxiety disorder , everyday, social interactions causes irrational anxiety , fear , self-consciousness and embarrassment.
Agoraphobia : Fear of places and situation that might causes panic, helplessness or embarrassment. Agoraphobia is an anxiety disorder that often develops after one or more panic attacks.
Specific phobia : A specific phobia is any kind of anxiety disorder that amounts to an unreasonable or irrational fear related to expose to specific object or situations.
Causes of Phobia :
- Genetic factors
- Environmental factors
Genetic and environment factors causes phobias children who have a close relative with an anxiety disorder are at the risk of developing a phobia. Distressing events, such as nearly drowning, can bring on a phobia. Exposure to continued space , extreme heights and animal or insects bites can all the sources of phobias.
People with on going medical conditions or health concerns often have Phobias. There is 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 illness such as Schizophrenia. In Schizophrenia, people have visual and auditory hallucinations , delusions, paranoia , negative symptoms such as anhedonia and disorganized symptoms. Phobia may be, irrational, but people with phobias do not fail reality testing.
Other type of Phobias :
Glossophobia : This is know as performance anxiety , or the fear of speaking in front of an audience. People with this phobia have severe physical symptoms when even think about being in front of a group of people.
Aviophobia : This is also known as the fear of flying.
DentoPhobia :Dentophobia is fear of Dentist or dental procedures this phobia generally develops after an unpleasant experience at a dentist’s office. It can be harmful if it’s prevents you from obtaining needed dental care.
Hemophobia: This is phobia of blood or injury. A person with hemophobia may faint when they come in contact with their own blood or anther person blood.
Arachnophobia : This means the fear of spiders
Cynophobic : This is a fear of dogs
Ophidiophobia : People with this phobia fear snakes.
Nyctophobia : This phobia is fear of the nighttime or darkness. It almost always beings as typical childhood fear.
When it progresses past adolescence , it’s considered a phobia.
Symptoms of Phobia :
- Ponding or racing heart
- Shortness of breath
- Rapid speech or inability to speak
- Dry mouth
- Upset stomach
- Nausea
- Elevated blood pressures
- Trembling or shaking
- Chest pain or tightness
- A choking sensation
- Dizziness or lightheadedness
- Profuse sweating
- A sense of impending doom
Treatment of Phobia :
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy [CBT] :Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is the most commonly used therapeutic treatment for phobias. It involves exposure to for source of the fear in a controlled setting . This treatment can decondition people and reduce anxiety. The therapy focus on identifying and changing negative thoughts, dysfunctional beliefs and negative reactions to the phobic situation. New Cognitive Behavioral Therapy[CBT] techniques to expose people to the sources of their phobias safely.
Meditation : Antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications can helps calm emotional and physical reactions to fear, often a combination of medication and professional therapy is the most helpful
Conclusion : Phobia is the irrational fear of certain things , conditioning , traumatic experience and observation and treatment are examples that shows we are able to learn to irrationally fear something . Also shows that people can learn to stop fearing these things to get ride off phobia realization of our self and belief in reality is essential. In conclusion virtual reality is proving to be a positive impact on healthcare.
