You may not recognize it as such. In fact, you may even deny you ever experience it.
But if you get a feeling of anxiety and apprehension when an object or a situation comes up, then you are demonstrating fear.
Fear is an emotion that arises from a perception that something is harmful. It is a self-preservation “device” wired into our brain. This is why we feel nervousness, panic and exhilaration coming in a sudden rush in moments of fear.
Physiologically speaking, that rush is caused by the body producing and releasing hormones such as adrenaline. Adrenaline as you may already know is an “emergency” feature our body uses to make us do things we may not be able to do under normal circumstances. Fear is a very strong trigger for adrenaline. And as its purposes are mainly for self-preservation, it is only rightly so.
However, fear comes in many forms, not all of which are motivated by the need to protect yourself. Sometimes, the source of fear could be perceived as irrational by some although for the one experiencing it, it may seem perfectly logical. Nevertheless, the more people understand the kinds of fear they experience, the better they are equipped at addressing them.
Phobia is the term most researchers use when describing an irrational, persistent fear of something. A feeling of dread can easily escalate into anxiety and then panic when a person encounters an object or situation that he or she has a phobia about. In extreme cases, a phobia may become elevated to an obsession that hampers a person’s life as well as the people around them.
Phobias triggered by a particular object or situation are called simple phobias. But they are only called as such to pertain to fears triggered by a specific, and therefore, easily traceable source. It is common practice for experts in this field to interchange the terms simple and specific phobias.
Common examples of these would be hydrophobia (fear of the water), arachnophobia (fear of spiders), and acrophobia (fear of heights). There are some unfamiliar names that are used to describe quite common fears such as ophidiophobia (fear of snakes), claustrophobia (fear of closed, small spaces) or ailurophobia (fear of cats). There is even a term to describe the fear of the number thirteen (triakaidekaphobia).
Social phobias
While most people can keep their fears in check, there are those who allow fear to overwhelm them, thus rendering them unable to function normally in society. Social phobia is the term used to describe this kind of affliction.
Agoraphobia is a kind of social phobia that pertains to the fear of open spaces. People who suffer from this are unable to go out of the confines of places what they feel are safe. The fear limits social interaction, which can impede recovery. This kind of fear, too, is self-perpetuating as it builds on the perception that those from the outside are harmful – all the more keeping the person inside and closed off from human interaction.
Other examples of social phobias would be the fear of speaking in public. There are cases of people who are afraid of placing an order in a restaurant, using a common washroom and even filling out a form when someone is watching.
There are ways to address the problems of socially debilitating phobias. Two schools of thought exist in this regard, namely psychoanalysis and behavioral therapy.
Psychoanalysis maintains that specific and social fears stem from a repressed memory or feeling from one’s childhood. One represses that memory or feeling because of some traumatic experience concerning it. It, however, manages to manifest itself to that person well into their adult life through phobias.
Psychoanalytic treatment is usually one-on-one talk therapy sessions where the therapist aims to detect that repressed feeling and brings it to the patient’s attention where the patient can address it and come to terms with it. Once the patient has unearthed and faced these repressions, the phobias can be managed more easily if not totally abandoned. This form of treatment seems best suited for more mature patients who are more comfortable with one-on-one sessions rather than group therapy.
Behavioral therapy, on the other hand, asserts that a fear is acquired and learned, in which case, the process can be reversed through unlearning. The treatment for phobia involves gradually exposing the patient to the source of what he or she fears.
This gradual introduction is very important because it is part of the desensitization process where he learns that the object of the fears is not as ominous as previously perceived. People who prefer group therapy will most likely benefit from this kind of treatment. Young children also stand to benefit more from this as they may yet be unable to express themselves in a psychoanalysis session.
Whatever form of treatment you decide to follow to help you manage your fears (whatever they may be) they are a positive step towards mastering it. You can only be a better, and a much less afraid, person after it.
