Difference between phobia and phobia

The word “phobia” is often used Frequently used to describe common horror.Similarly, “bipolar” is thrown out to explain someone’s mood swing Or “OCD” is used to represent someone’s dedication to cleaning. However, like bipolar disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder, phobias are actually serious, diagnosable, and more severe than the frivolous use of labels in everyday culture implies. If you have a particularly strong fear, you may have a phobia, or even unaware of it —So here’s how to tell the difference between the two:

What is phobia?

This is the Johns Hopkins medical practice Define phobia:

“Phobia is an uncontrollable, irrational, and lasting fear of a particular object, situation, or activity. This fear can be so overwhelming that one avoids the cause of this fear. It can take a very long time to do. One response can be a panic attack. This is a sudden and intense horror that lasts for a few minutes. It happens when there is no real danger. increase.”

For its value, the “related” topics proposed by Johns Hopkins next to that page include OCD and Generalized Anxiety Disorder. This is not just a fear or discomfort, but a mental health issue. The last part of the definition, “what happens when there is no real danger,” is important. For example, just because you feel a strong fear of being chased by an aggressive dog does not mean that you are. necessary Means you I have a dog phobia. If a picture of a dog causes a panic attack or other violent reaction, it can be a phobia, even if there are no dogs around or you are not facing the threat of chasing the dog. It can be a phobia, even if you know that if you change your daily routine to avoid a dog, you may encounter a well-trained dog tied up with a leash.

According to Johns Hopkins, about 19 million Americans have at least one phobia, which can range from mild to severe. They can develop in early childhood, but are usually first seen between the ages of 15 and 20.There are many studies done here and researchers believe they are genetic When Environmental factors can contribute to the onset of phobia. Some are related to the “very bad first encounter” with the trigger, but experts are not sure if it is necessary to start phobia.

What are the most common phobias?

There are three main categories of phobia: specific phobia, social phobia, and square phobia. Specific phobia is a familiar phobia because it is related to a particular thing or situation. People with these phobias know that their fears are extreme, but they may not be diagnosed if it is easy to avoid triggers.

For example, a person with a certain height of phobia may be able to avoid skyscrapers and bridges, but that avoidance does a particular job, travels somewhere, or moves to a particular apartment. If it interferes with your ability to acquire, it’s clearly a problem. Specific phobias that are common include flying, dogs, closed areas, tunnels, heights, insects and spiders. Again, all of these can be potentially dangerous, but phobias are characterized by intense fear and reaction when there is no danger.

Social anxiety disorder, on the other hand, is an anxiety disorder in which someone feels serious discomfort about the fear of being embarrassed, humiliated, or despised by others in social or performance situations. .. Primarily, social phobia includes speaking in public, meeting people, eating in public, and Johns Hopkins said that the extreme anxiety leading up to these events made social phobia a standard shyness. It makes it clear that it is a distinction.

Finally, agoraphobia is the fear of having a panic attack in a place where there is no escape. Anxiety associated with agoraphobia, in turn, Cause Panic attack. Examples of agoraphobia are when you are alone outside the house, when you are at home alone, when you are in a crowd, when you are in an elevator, when you are on a bridge, or in similar situations. Includes tremendous horror.

Treatment of phobia

Phobia is not only diagnosable, it can even be treated. One detail Research review Lancet He pointed out that interrupting the progression of phobias can reduce the prevalence of phobias, as the developmental process of phobias is a fear of avoiding diagnosis. In addition, having a phobia strongly predicts the development of other anxiety, mood, and substances-Due to the use of disability, early treatment is very important not only to completely improve someone’s quality of life, but also to dig into other potential problems.

Of course, the problem with treatment is that, by definition of phobia, they are either in distress or have a total disability, as the review points out. As a result, people with phobias may hesitate to look for treatment. Affected individuals are proficient in avoidance. Only about 10% to 25% seek treatment.

The best treatment for specific phobia is exposure therapy, which involves an in vivo or imaging approach to triggering or stimulating in a professional environment. Breathing combined with cognitive-behavioral therapy and exposure therapy is recommended for specific phobias, and CBT and medicine are recommended for people with social phobias and agolaphobia.

Of course, the first step is to get a diagnosis. The first diagnosis does not mean that you are automatically thrown into exposure therapy, so don’t let the fear of having to face your trigger stop you from reaching out to a specialist. Once you are diagnosed, you can work on a step-by-step treatment plan that will make you comfortable. Mental health professionals do nothing to panic you without warning, but every day you delay getting a diagnosis and treatment is another that you may encounter your stimuli in real life It’s a day, so consider asking for help if any of the above symptoms apply to you.