Below is some more information
about some of the more well known Phobias and Fears, there are many others. It
is important for you to understand that whatever you have is an important thing
in YOUR life and it doesn't matter what others say. By seeing me you can
explain all aspects of your condition to someone who is totally impartial and
un-judgemental, whose main interest is in helping you overcome this as quickly
and easily as possible.
A phobia is an irrational fear
of an object/situation etc. that would not normally trouble most people. As the
name suggests, simple/specific phobias are phobias that are about specific
objects, situations etc. They can be quite distinct in nature and easily
identified. For example, fear of spiders, fear of thunderstorms, fear of
heights, etc.
Any phobia may produce a state of panic when the sufferer is confronted with
the phobic object/situation.
A wide variety of physical symptoms are experienced such as nausea, increased
heartbeat and jelly legs. For this reason, many people with simple or specific
phobias enter into a pattern of avoidance which can vary enormously in severity
from someone who would not want to touch a spider, to someone who cannot even
look at a picture of a spider in magazines, and therefore has to vet everything
they come into contact with.
The latter demonstrates just how debilitating even a simple phobia can be.
Agoraphobia is a very complex
phobia usually manifesting itself as a collection of inter-linked phobias. For
example many agoraphobics also fear being left alone (monophobia), dislike
being in any situation where they feel trapped (exhibiting claustrophobia type
tendencies) and fear travelling away from their 'safe' place, usually the home.
Some agoraphobics find they can travel more easily if they have a trusted
friend or family member accompanying them, however this can quickly lead to
dependency on their carer.
The severity of agoraphobia varies enormously between sufferers from those who
are housebound, even room-bound, to those who can travel specific distances
within a defined boundary.
This disorder has also been
nicknamed 'Imagined Ugliness Syndrome' for sufferers of the condition have an
irrational preoccupation with a perceived body defect, either present in
themselves or in others; the latter being dysmorphophobia by proxy. BDD
sufferers cannot accept that their fears of their perceived body defect are out
of all proportion, and frequently seek plastic surgery/other measures in an
attempt to rectify the perceived problem.
This can be defined as a
disorder in which the sufferer feels in a constant state of high anxiety. The
anxiety experienced is not as a result of any specific trigger, but those with
this condition feel that they are on edge all the time for no specific reason.
GAD is often accompanied by depression. GAD is sometimes called 'free-floating'
anxiety condition.
This disorder can be looked at
in two parts; obsessions - these are repetitive, obtrusive, unwanted thoughts
that are experienced and result in unreasonable fears, and compulsions - acts
or rituals carried out in response to fears generated by obsessions. The
classic OCD condition is that of compulsive hand washing in response to an
irrational fear of germs/contamination. Sufferers of this disorder feel less
anxious once they have carried out a compulsion. It is possible to experience
obsessive thoughts only and not have the desire to carry out a compulsion.
Examples of compulsions are excessive cleaning, counting, checking, measuring,
and repeating tasks or actions. Trichotillomania (compulsive hair-pulling) may
also be classified under the general umbrella of OCD. Examples of obsessions
are worrying excessively about death, germs, illness - usually AIDS, cancer,
etc. (this can also be classified as an 'Illness phobia',) having undesirable
sexual thoughts, fearing causing harm to others.
The common thread between most
anxiety disorders is the panic attack. However, when panic attacks are
experienced out of the blue without an apparent trigger, this is classified as
panic disorder. Sufferers of panic disorder often feel fine one minute, and yet
the next may feel totally out of control and in the grips of a panic attack.
Panic attacks produce very real physical symptoms from a rapid increase in
heartbeat to a churning stomach sensation. These physical symptoms are
naturally unpleasant and the accompanying psychological thoughts of terror can
make a panic attack a very scary experience. For this reason, sufferers start
to dread the next attack, and quickly enter into a cycle of living 'in fear of
fear'.
PTSD is an anxiety disorder
which may develop following exposure to any one of a variety of traumatic
events that involve actual or threatened death, or serious injury. The event
may be witnessed rather than directly experienced, and even learning about it
may be sufficient if the persons involved are family members or close friends.
Sufferers may experience flashbacks, panic attacks and heightened awareness.
Social or public situations of
any kind may induce this disorder which is often expressed as a fear of being
the centre of attention, or of others noticing the sufferer's anxious
behaviour. Social phobia can also be classed as 'specific social phobia' i.e.
when there is social phobia only in specific social situations, e.g. public
speaking. The fear of behaving in an embarrassing or humiliating way can lead
to a complete withdrawal from social contact, as well as avoidance of specific
social situations such as public toilets, eating out etc. The physical
manifestations of this phobia include blushing, shaking and sweating etc.
This page
is a very brief summary of the most widely occuring fears and phobias. Please
get in touch to discuss your particular circumstances. I am a very good
listener!
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