What Is The Worst Phobia

Where Can People Get Information And Help For Phobias

If you or a loved one suffers from a phobia, the following organizations can help.

• The National Alliance on Mental Illness provides education and advocacy for mental health issues. NAMI also offers support groups, online discussion groups, and listings for state and local NAMI chapters.
• MentalHealth.gov offers education and a helpful treatment locator to help you find mental health services and resources in your area.

Additional resources are listed above on this slide.

• MentalHealth.gov: “Phobias. ” Aug. 22, 2017.
• APA: “Figuring Out Phobia.”

What Are Americans Worst Phobias Get The Latest Findings

In an effort to explore Americans most common fears and how these relate to phobias, we recently conducted a large-scale survey of a broad sample of the U.S. population and asked respondents to tell us what they were most afraid of. The goal was to better understand the relationship between fears and phobias and the driving force behind phobias in particular. What follow are the results of this landmark survey into Americans most common fears, including a discussion of phobias and how they develop.

Try To Understand Phobias

• Find out as much as you can about phobias. Doing this will help you understand what someone might be experiencing. Our information on phobias is a good place to start. Reading personal experiences from the Mind blog can help too.
• Try to learn about their experience of living with a phobia. You could ask them how their phobia affects their life, or what can make it better or worse. Listening to their experience might help you empathise with how they feel.

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What Are The Treatment Options For Phobias

Phobias are treatable and people who have them are nearly always aware of their disorder. This helps diagnosis a great deal. Phobias are treated with a combination of therapy and medications, which may include the following

• Behavioral therapy: Behavioral therapy is an umbrella term for the types of therapy that are used to treat mental health disorders. This form of therapy seeks to identify and help change potentially self-destructive or unhealthy behaviors. It functions on the idea that all behaviors are learned and that unhealthy behaviors can be changed. The focus of treatment is often on current problems and how to change them.
• Cognitive behavioral therapy : The doctor, therapist or counselor helps the person with a phobia learn different ways of understanding and reacting to the source of their phobia. This can make coping easier. Most importantly, CBT can teach a person experiencing a phobia to control their own feelings and thoughts.
• Medications such as beta blockers, antidepressants and tranquilizers may help treat a phobia
• Beta blockers: These can help reduce the physical signs of anxiety that can accompany a phobia.
• Antidepressants: Serotonin reuptake inhibitors are commonly prescribed for people with phobias. They affect serotonin levels in the brain and this can result in better moods.
• Tranquilizers: Benzodiazepines are an example of a tranquilizer that might be prescribed for a phobia. These may help reduce anxiety symptoms.

Acrophobia: Fear Of Heights

Acrophobia is an excessive fear of heights and manifests as severe anxiety. A person could have an attack just walking up stairs or climbing a ladder. Sometimes the fear is so great a person can’t move. Acrophobia can create a dangerous situation for someone who has it. An anxiety attack can make it extremely difficult to safely get down from whatever high place triggered the attack.

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How Are Phobias Diagnosed

A variety of healthcare professionals may diagnose phobias, including social workers, psychotherapists, psychiatrists, and primary-care professionals. Both physical and psychological symptoms are assessed. The doctor will rule out potential physical causes for the symptoms. Phobias often occur along with other anxiety disorders. Anxiety may be a feature of other medical conditions or occur as a side effect due to the use of certain medications. The doctor may order lab tests to explore other potential causes of symptoms.

Arachnophobia The Fear Of Spiders

Nearly 30.5% of Arachnophobia sufferers are living in the United States alone. It is one of the most common animal phobias around the world. The cause of the phobia is often evolutionary meaning that some species of spiders are deadly and it is a natural human response to survive. Arachnophobes however tend to go to extreme lengths to ensure that their surroundings are free from spiders, often causing themselves a great deal of embarrassment, which is something most phobics try hard to avoid.

So there you have it the top 10 phobias of all time. Share this list of extremely common fears with your friends and remember to check out the top 100 phobias in the world if you want more like this.

Would you like to know what the rich and famous are afraid of? Here are some surprising celebrity phobias.

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Specific Or Simple Phobias

Specific or simple phobias centre around a particular object, animal, situation or activity.

They often develop during childhood or adolescence and may become less severe as you get older.

Common examples of simple phobias include:

• animal phobias such as dogs, spiders, snakes or rodents
• environmental phobias such as heights, deep water and germs
• situational phobias such as visiting the dentist or flying
• bodily phobias such as blood, vomit or having injections
• sexual phobias such as performance anxiety or the fear of getting a sexually transmitted infection

What Is A Phobia

A phobia is a strong, irrational fear of something that poses little or no actual danger. It is a type of anxiety disorder. A phobia is a persistent, excessive, unrealistic fear of an object, person, animal, activity, or situation. Phobias are diagnosable mental disorders. People with phobias try to avoid what they are afraid of. If they cannot, they may experience the following

• Panic and fear
• A strong desire to get away

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How Can You Manage Your Phobias

While it’s easy to dismiss other people’s phobias, in severe cases they can have an extremely negative impact on someone’s life. For example, it’s not hard to see how a fear of public speaking might harm someone’s career prospects.

A phobia can easily bring about an anxiety attack, There are many potential physical and psychological symptoms, from sweating and trouble breathing to simply not being able to control your thoughts.

If you have a phobia that’s stopping you making the most of life, our GPs are here to help you. These are just a few of the treatment options available.

Your Worst Fear According To Your Zodiac Sign

• Zodiac Signs ‘N Secrets

What do we hide inside? Have you dared to look inside your soul? It takes much courage to face your worst fears, but it takes, even more, courage to acknowledge them. Yet, this is the first step. To know yourself means to hold the destiny of your life. Astrology can help us understand and tame even our worst fears, because, in fact, it helps us understand more our nature. After all, what we fear, might be what we secretly want

Worst Fear of Your Zodiac Sign

In this article, we will see and examine the nature of our deepest, our worst fears. Lets see nature, thus the power of our enemies. Knowing this can help us fight back and win this game.

• First step: Knowing our enemies
• Second step: Embracing our nature
• Third step: Learning to let go

These are the steps we should follow in order to overcome our worst enemies, ourselves. Dont take this the wrong way. Ourselves can help us but at the same time hold us back. Why? Because many times, we secretly want to stay back.

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What We Fear More Than Death

Pat LaDouceur, PhD, helps people dealing with anxiety, panic, and relationship stress who want to feel more focused and confident. She has a private practice…Read More

Youve probably heard that public speaking is feared more than death itself. It sounds crazy, but thats what people say. Is there any truth to this?

Certainly the vast majority of people rank fear of public speaking as number one 75% according to the National Institutes of Mental Health. For some people, this means a fear of speaking to large groups. For others, it means speaking to even a single person if that person has the power to evaluate you, as in a supervisor, interviewer, or professor giving an oral exam.

My client Robert was required to give presentations as part of his job. For most people, regular speaking builds confidence, and speaking gets easier over time. For Robert, however, they got more difficult. When he eventually had a full blown panic attack, he gave me a call.

Some facts about fear of public speaking

The scientific word for fear of public speaking is glossophobia. It comes from the Greek words glossa and phobos .

Glossophobia affects men and women in equal numbers, although men are more likely to seek treatment for it.

Some people are anxious because they arent prepared. Preparation is essential. But many people are afraid to speak in public despite solid preparation.

The roots of glossphobia

What we really fear more than death

What Are The Different Groups Of Phobias

What are the different groups of phobias?There are three main groups of phobias which include the following

• Specific phobia: These are the most common type of phobias and focus on a specific object. Specific or simple phobias produce intense fear of a particular object or situation that is, in fact, relatively safe. People who suffer from specific phobias are aware that their fear is irrational, but the thought of facing the object or situation often brings on a panic attack or severe anxiety. Examples may include persistent fear of dogs, insects, or snakes driving a car heights tunnels or bridges thunderstorms and/or flying.
• Social phobia: People with a social phobia are afraid of being in the company of other people. They fear being humiliated or embarrassed in front of other people. This problem may also be related to feelings of inferiority and low self-esteem and can drive a person to drop out of school, avoid making friends, and remain unemployed.
• Agoraphobia: People with agoraphobia are afraid of being in open spaces such as markets, bank queues, or bridges. In some cases, panic attacks can become so debilitating that the person may develop agoraphobia because they fear another panic attack. In extreme cases, a person with agoraphobia may be afraid to leave their house.

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The Most Common Phobias

Steven Gans, MD is board-certified in psychiatry and is an active supervisor, teacher, and mentor at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Terrified of the creepy-crawlies? Scared of slithering serpents? Well, youre not alone. According to the American Psychiatric Association, phobias are the most common psychiatric illness among women and the second most common among men.

The National Institute of Mental Health suggests that phobias affect approximately 10% of U.S. adults each year. These phobias typically emerge during childhood or adolescence and continue into adulthood. They also impact twice as many women as they do men.

There are a number of explanations for why phobias develop, including evolutionary and behavioral theories. Whatever the cause, phobias are treatable conditions that can be minimized and even eliminated with cognitive and behavioral therapy techniques and medication.

When Should You Seek Treatment

When phobias are mild, they dont affect your life to the same degree as more severe phobias do. If youre irrationally afraid of snakes, for example, maybe youll skip a trip to the zoo with friends. If you have a phobia of elevators, youll take the stairs whenever possible. These are inconveniences, but ultimately, they dont affect your ability to lead a healthy, functional life.

However, even some of the most common fears can completely halt your lifeespecially if you find yourself exposed to them often in your line of work or daily life. If your anxiety detracts from your ability to live the life you want, its time to consult a professional.

Phobia treatment can take many forms, ranging from conventionalpsychotherapy or talk therapy, consisting of sessions with a licensed counselorto the extreme, including controversial methods of exposure therapy.

At FHE Health, we see countless people every day who struggle with anxiety disorders, including specific phobias. You dont have to continue to miss out on experiences because of your most common fears. Contact us today at 299-0618 and learn about your options to get high-quality help from addiction and mental specialists in South Florida.

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Necrophobia: Fear Of Death

The actor and director Woody Allen is famously quoted as saying: Im not afraid of death I just dont want to be there when it happens. In fact, death is the great unknown and a fear that most people share. But some people have an abnormal fear of death or of dead things, a condition known as necrophobia. Fear of death may be at the root of many other phobias such as acrophobia or claustrophobia.

Signs And Symptoms Of Phobias

The symptoms of a phobia can range from mild feelings of apprehension and anxiety to a full-blown panic attack. Typically, the closer you are to the thing youre afraid of, the greater your fear will be. Your fear will also be higher if getting away is difficult.

Physical symptoms of a phobia include:

• Difficulty breathing

Emotional symptoms of a phobia include:

• Feeling overwhelming anxiety or panic
• Feeling intense need to escape
• Feeling unreal or detached from yourself

• Fear of losing control or going crazy
• Feeling like youre going to die or pass out
• Knowing that youre overreacting, but feeling powerless to control fear

Symptoms of blood-injection-injury phobia

The symptoms of blood-injection-injury phobia are slightly different from other phobias. When confronted with the sight of blood or a needle, you experience not only fear, but also disgust.

Like other phobias, you initially feel anxious as your heart speeds up. However, unlike other phobias, this acceleration is followed by a quick drop in blood pressure, which leads to nausea, dizziness, and fainting. Although a fear of fainting is common in all specific phobias, blood-injection-injury phobia is the only phobia where fainting can actually occur.

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What Are The Signs And Symptoms Of Phobias

Phobia symptoms may include panic, terror, dread, rapid or irregular heartbeat, difficulty breathing, sweating, feelings of wanting to escape or flee, and trembling. People with phobias often know their fears are out of proportion to any actual threat or danger. It’s not uncommon for someone who has a phobia to go to extreme lengths to avoid or flee from a phobic situation.

Treating Phobias In Baton Rouge

It is perfectly normal to experience some level of hesitation or nervousness when confronted with a new or intimidating situation. However, such instances should not produce symptoms of panic such as increased heart rate, rapid breathing, trembling, and nausea. If these types of symptoms occur as the result of a particular object or situation, you are likely suffering from a phobia. Fortunately, most of these conditions can be improved dramatically with care from a mental health professional. If you are in the Baton Rouge area and struggling with a phobia, contact Psychiatry Associates of Baton Rouge to request an appointment with one of our skilled psychiatric physicians.

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Social Phobia: Beyond Being Shy

Someone with a social phobia is not just shy. That person feels extreme anxiety and fear about how they will perform in a social situation. Will their actions seem appropriate to others? Will others be able to tell they are anxious? Will the words be there when it’s time to talk? Because untreated social phobia often leads to avoiding social contact, it can have a major negative impact on a person’s relationships and professional life.

Here Are 20 Bizarre Phobias That People Actually Have

1) Heliophobia: the fear of the sun, sunlight, or any bright light.

2) Chaetophobia: the fear of hair. They may also fear the hair on their own body. Some only fear detached or loose hair and do not mind attached hair.

3) Arachibutyrophobia: the fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of the mouth.

4) Haphephobia: the fear of touch. It is a rare but often devastating phobia. Most people with haphephobia fear being touched by anyone.

5) Oikophobia: an abnormal fear of home surroundings.

6) Ablutophobia: the persistent, abnormal, and unwarranted fear of bathing, washing, or cleaning.

7) Ergophobia: an abnormal and persistent fear of work.

8) Nomophobia: the fear of being out of mobile phone contact. It is, however, arguable that the word phobia is misused and that in the majority of cases it is only a normal anxiety.

9) Philophobia: the abnormal, persistent and unwarranted fear of falling in love or emotional attachment.

10) Somniphobia: the often irrational and excessive fear of sleep.

11) Globophobia: a fear of balloons and also balloons popping sound.

12) Ombrophobia: an irrational fear of rain.

13) Geniophobia: an extreme unwarranted fear and/or physical aversion to chins.

14) Trypophobia: the fear of holes.

15) Pogonophobia: is the extreme dislike of beards.

16) Hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia: the fear of Long words.

17) Lipophobia: the fear of becoming fat.

18) Genuphobia: the fear of ones own knees, someone else knees, or the act of kneeling.

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Social Phobia: Fear Of People

Fear of being embarrassed in front of other people is called social phobia. In mild cases it may be experienced as the common fear of public speaking, but for some people this fear may extend to something as simple as writing a check in front of another person or eating in public. Social phobias are also called social anxiety disorders and they affect about 15 million American adults, men and women equally.