All About Phobias: What, Why And How

Disorders Cure

oi-Staff

By Super

Friday, February 26, 2016, 11:08

Phobias are all about an extreme and sometimes, irrational fear of something. The term is used loosely to indicate a severe fear of anything. There are endless types of phobias as there is no set formula to determine all about phobias. These types of phobias could be as minor as fear of spiders or a major as fear of heights that causes 'vertigo' and can be fatal. It is not wrong to classify phobias as a mild type of mental disorder but we have to be careful while doing that. Almost all human being have some phobia or the other.

Causes of Phobias:
No exact cause of phobias has yet been discovered. Probably because of the varied nature of these strange fears it is a herculean task to determine their exact cause. However, there are some well researched hypothesis about the causes of phobias that cover almost all about phobias.

• Family: Some phobias have been observed to be running in families. This is because the family is the first influence on a child and phobias are developed in childhood. For example, if one of your parents has an irrational fear of foreigners or migrants (xenophobia), it might permeate to you. The connection between object and phobia is all about emotions not genetics.
• Cultural: Some fears are a product of the culture we grow up in. For example the western religions consider 'snakes' to be vicious creatures due to their mythological connection with Satan. Being bred in such a faith may cause phobia of snakes.
• Personal Experiences: this is by far the strongest cause of phobias as explains the specific nature of phobias. If you were stuck in a dark cupboard as a child you have the potential to develop claustrophobia.

Symptoms of Phobias:
It is the symptoms of phobias that set them apart from normal fears. For example, it is normal to experience some anxiety while fly be it the first time or not. However, a person who has phobia of flying will refuse a job offer abroad because they have to fly!The reaction of a phobic person to the object or condition of fear is psychosomatic. This means that psychological fear triggers physical symptoms like

• asphyxiation, strained breathing
• sweating profusely
• palpitation
• in some extreme cases the symptoms of phobia may include fainting

Types of Phobias:
It is near impossible to list all about phobias. However there are certain groups of phobias and some strange phobias that don't fall under any category.

• Animal-phobias: Snakes, dogs, cats, rats, spiders etc.
• Psychological-phobias: Necrophobia (fear of death), Agoraphobia (fear of open spaces), Genophobia (fear of sex), Xenophobia (fear of foreigners or outsiders), Pediophobia (fear of dolls), Somnophobia (fear of sleep), Phobophobia (fear of having a phobia) etc.
• Elemental-phobias: Hydrophobia (fear of water), Photo-phobia (fear of light), Phonophobia (fear of sounds) etc