Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsTypes of PhobiasList of PhobiasSymptomsCausesCommon vs. Rare PhobiasTreatments
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Types of Phobias
List of Phobias
Symptoms
Causes
Common vs. Rare Phobias
Treatments
A phobia is an anxiety disorder involving excessive and persistent fear of a situation or object. Exposure to the source of the fear triggers an immediate anxiety response.
Phobiasare one of the most commonmental illnessesin the United States. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIH), approximately 12.5% of adults in the U.S. will deal with a specific phobia in their lifetime.Women are more likely to experience phobias than men. Typical symptoms of phobias can include nausea, trembling, rapid heartbeat, feelings of unreality, and being preoccupied with the fear object.
The American Psychiatric Association (APA) identifies three different categories of phobias:
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While not comprehensive, this list of phobias offers a glimpse of themany phobiasthat can have a serious impact on a person’s life. As you may notice while you browse through this list, most specific phobias fall into one of four major categories:
One important thing to remember is that virtually any object can become a fear object. The names of specific phobias are often formed as nonce words, or words coined for a single occasion only.
A–Z List of Some of the More Common Phobias
This article lists more than 100 of themost common phobias. It also covers some of the treatment options that are available.
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Recap
Symptoms of Phobias
Phobias lead to physical, emotional, and behavioral symptoms. Common symptoms include:
In addition to these physical symptoms, people may experience dread, a sense of impending doom, fear of losing control, or even the feeling that death is imminent. To avoid such feelings, people with phobias may avoid any situation where they might potentially encounter the source of their fear.
Causes of Phobias
The exact causes of phobias are not known, but it is likely that a combination of factors plays a part. Some factors that increase the risk of developing a phobia include:
Some phobias are more common, while others are often quite rare. Five of the most common phobias include arachnophobia (the fear of spiders), ophidiophobia (the fear of snakes), glossophobia (the fear of public speaking), acrophobia (the fear of heights), andsocial phobia(the fear of social interactions).
The fear of public speaking is so common that some researchers have estimated that as much as 77% of people have some level of this fear.
Rare phobiasmay be novel terms coined to identify a single, unique case or fear that occur quite infrequently. Some different rare specific phobias includespectrophobia(the fear of mirrors),chiclephobia(the fear of chewing gum), andhippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia(the fear of long words).
Treatment for Phobias
While phobias can be distressing and create disruptions in your life, they are treatable. Some of the different treatment options includetherapyand medication.
Exposure Therapy
Types of exposure-based treatments that may be used include:
During this process, you’ll also practice relaxation techniques to help calm your body when your fear response kicks in.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Often referred to as CBT,cognitive behaviorial therapyinvolves learning to identify the underlying negative thoughts that contribute to feelings of fear. Once you become better at noticing these thoughts, you can then work on replacing them with more positive, helpful thoughts.
Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapyutilizes rhythmic eye movements to help people process and recover from traumatic experiences. It is frequently used in the treatment ofpost-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), but can also be effective in the treatment of a variety of other mental health conditions including phobias.
Medications
Medications may be prescribed in some cases to help manage some of the symptoms you might be experiencing as a result of your phobia. Medications your doctor might prescribe includeselective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), beta-blockers, and anti-anxiety drugs.
What Treatments for Phobias Work Best?
A Word From Verywell
Phobias can have a serious impact on well-being, but it is important to remember that you are not alone. Phobias are common and treatable.If you believe that you have the symptoms of some type of phobia, consult a doctor for further evaluation and treatment advice.
Fear vs. Phobia: What’s the Difference?
9 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.National Institute of Mental Health.Specific phobia.Regier DA, Kuhl EA, Kupfer DJ.The DSM-5: Classification and criteria changes. World Psychiatry. 2013;12(2):92-8. doi:10.1002/wps.20050American Psychiatric Association.Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.). Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing; 2013.Anxiety & Depression Association of America.Symptoms.Van houtem CM, Laine ML, Boomsma DI, Ligthart L, Van wijk AJ, De jongh A.A review and meta-analysis of the heritability of specific phobia subtypes and corresponding fears.J Anxiety Disord. 2013;27(4):379-88. doi:10.1016/j.janxdis.2013.04.007Heeren A, Ceschi G, Valentiner DP, Dethier V, Philippot P.Assessing public speaking fear with the short form of the Personal Report of Confidence as a Speaker scale: confirmatory factor analyses among a French-speaking community sample.Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. 2013;9:609-18. doi:10.2147%2FNDT.S43097Thng CEW, Lim-Ashworth NSJ, Poh BZQ, Lim CG.Recent developments in the intervention of specific phobia among adults: A rapid review.F1000Res. 2020;9:F1000 Faculty Rev-195. doi:10.12688/f1000research.20082.1Valiente-Gómez A, Moreno-Alcázar A, Treen D, et al.EMDR beyond PTSD: A systematic literature review.Front Psychol. 2017;8:1668. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01668Spiegel SB.Current issues in the treatment of specific phobia: Recommendations for innovative applications of hypnosis.Am J Clin Hypn. 2014;56(4):389-404. doi: 10.1080/00029157.2013.801009
9 Sources
Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.National Institute of Mental Health.Specific phobia.Regier DA, Kuhl EA, Kupfer DJ.The DSM-5: Classification and criteria changes. World Psychiatry. 2013;12(2):92-8. doi:10.1002/wps.20050American Psychiatric Association.Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.). Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing; 2013.Anxiety & Depression Association of America.Symptoms.Van houtem CM, Laine ML, Boomsma DI, Ligthart L, Van wijk AJ, De jongh A.A review and meta-analysis of the heritability of specific phobia subtypes and corresponding fears.J Anxiety Disord. 2013;27(4):379-88. doi:10.1016/j.janxdis.2013.04.007Heeren A, Ceschi G, Valentiner DP, Dethier V, Philippot P.Assessing public speaking fear with the short form of the Personal Report of Confidence as a Speaker scale: confirmatory factor analyses among a French-speaking community sample.Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. 2013;9:609-18. doi:10.2147%2FNDT.S43097Thng CEW, Lim-Ashworth NSJ, Poh BZQ, Lim CG.Recent developments in the intervention of specific phobia among adults: A rapid review.F1000Res. 2020;9:F1000 Faculty Rev-195. doi:10.12688/f1000research.20082.1Valiente-Gómez A, Moreno-Alcázar A, Treen D, et al.EMDR beyond PTSD: A systematic literature review.Front Psychol. 2017;8:1668. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01668Spiegel SB.Current issues in the treatment of specific phobia: Recommendations for innovative applications of hypnosis.Am J Clin Hypn. 2014;56(4):389-404. doi: 10.1080/00029157.2013.801009
Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
National Institute of Mental Health.Specific phobia.Regier DA, Kuhl EA, Kupfer DJ.The DSM-5: Classification and criteria changes. World Psychiatry. 2013;12(2):92-8. doi:10.1002/wps.20050American Psychiatric Association.Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.). Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing; 2013.Anxiety & Depression Association of America.Symptoms.Van houtem CM, Laine ML, Boomsma DI, Ligthart L, Van wijk AJ, De jongh A.A review and meta-analysis of the heritability of specific phobia subtypes and corresponding fears.J Anxiety Disord. 2013;27(4):379-88. doi:10.1016/j.janxdis.2013.04.007Heeren A, Ceschi G, Valentiner DP, Dethier V, Philippot P.Assessing public speaking fear with the short form of the Personal Report of Confidence as a Speaker scale: confirmatory factor analyses among a French-speaking community sample.Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. 2013;9:609-18. doi:10.2147%2FNDT.S43097Thng CEW, Lim-Ashworth NSJ, Poh BZQ, Lim CG.Recent developments in the intervention of specific phobia among adults: A rapid review.F1000Res. 2020;9:F1000 Faculty Rev-195. doi:10.12688/f1000research.20082.1Valiente-Gómez A, Moreno-Alcázar A, Treen D, et al.EMDR beyond PTSD: A systematic literature review.Front Psychol. 2017;8:1668. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01668Spiegel SB.Current issues in the treatment of specific phobia: Recommendations for innovative applications of hypnosis.Am J Clin Hypn. 2014;56(4):389-404. doi: 10.1080/00029157.2013.801009
National Institute of Mental Health.Specific phobia.
Regier DA, Kuhl EA, Kupfer DJ.The DSM-5: Classification and criteria changes. World Psychiatry. 2013;12(2):92-8. doi:10.1002/wps.20050
American Psychiatric Association.Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.). Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing; 2013.
Anxiety & Depression Association of America.Symptoms.
Van houtem CM, Laine ML, Boomsma DI, Ligthart L, Van wijk AJ, De jongh A.A review and meta-analysis of the heritability of specific phobia subtypes and corresponding fears.J Anxiety Disord. 2013;27(4):379-88. doi:10.1016/j.janxdis.2013.04.007
Heeren A, Ceschi G, Valentiner DP, Dethier V, Philippot P.Assessing public speaking fear with the short form of the Personal Report of Confidence as a Speaker scale: confirmatory factor analyses among a French-speaking community sample.Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. 2013;9:609-18. doi:10.2147%2FNDT.S43097
Thng CEW, Lim-Ashworth NSJ, Poh BZQ, Lim CG.Recent developments in the intervention of specific phobia among adults: A rapid review.F1000Res. 2020;9:F1000 Faculty Rev-195. doi:10.12688/f1000research.20082.1
Valiente-Gómez A, Moreno-Alcázar A, Treen D, et al.EMDR beyond PTSD: A systematic literature review.Front Psychol. 2017;8:1668. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01668
Spiegel SB.Current issues in the treatment of specific phobia: Recommendations for innovative applications of hypnosis.Am J Clin Hypn. 2014;56(4):389-404. doi: 10.1080/00029157.2013.801009
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