Phobias

What are phobias

• Phobias are a persistent fear of either a specific activity, event, place, person, social situation, animal or certain types of objects. 
• Some phobias can be simple such as a fear of spiders, blood, or needles, but social and medical phobias can be quite complex. 
• People can often develop phobias related to everyday activities such as using lifts or travelling by trains. 

Why are phobias distressing

• Having a phobia can be distressing because for some people high levels of anxiety can be generated just by thinking about the feared activity, event, place, person, social situation, animal, or using a certain object. 
• For other people being in contact with the source of the phobia is what creates high levels of anxiety. 
• Phobias are also distressing because they can severely restrict a persons ability to work, socialise or complete everyday activities. 

Anxiety symptoms

• People with phobias often report the following types of anxiety symptoms: sweating, feeling sick or an upset stomach, increased heart rate or palpitations, shortness of breath and shaking or trembling. 
• People can also experience other types of anxiety symptoms. See the blog on anxiety symptoms.