Specific Phobia

Specific phobia is a clinical diagnosis describing a fear of a particular thing or situation that some people suffer from. This anxiety would be an exaggerated reaction that would not be common to the average person. It would not be uncommon for the person to be affected to such a point that his or her normal life would become abnormal.

An example would be someone with a fear of snakes. The average person doesn't like snakes and doesn't want to be around them. A person with a specific phobia, in this case snakes, would not only stay away from any situation that could possibly involve them but could become anxious and stressed at just seeing one in a book or on television. A normal fear becomes irrational and can affect every day activities.

The actual causes of specific phobia and the anxiety it creates are hard to pin down. They can stem from a childhood incident, or watching parents exhibit extreme fear in these situations. They can be taught to fear such things by books and the fear becomes irrational with time. Normally it is triggered by a specific negative event. A child is bitten by a dog and develops a lifelong acute fear of all dogs. There is evidence to suggest that some genetics may play a role.

Treatment includes "conquering" the fear by facing it up close over and over until the fear diminishes over time. Drugs have not been a large part in treating specific phobias however Valium and Paxil have been used.

Specific phobia is experienced by approximately 11% of people and the most common is snakes, spiders and fear of high places. To some it is a minor anxiety event triggered only occasionally. To others it is a major part of thier lives avoiding these things that cause panic and fear.

I personally have a fear for most insects AND spiders and am not sure if I can overcome them by facing them over and over. Sigh.

The American Psychiatric Association recognizes specific phobia as a disorder and has broken it down into these 5 specific types:

- Natural Environment: Fear of water, heights, lightning, are among this type.
- Animal: Snakes, birds, fish, cats, dogs, insects.
- Situational: situations like elevators, planes, trains, or closed in spaces.
- Blood-Injury-Injection: fear of the sight of blood, needles.
- Other: This is the most unusual type. It includes fear of clowns, choking, balloons popping, and more