Phobia and Anxiety disorders

Anxiety is a normal reaction to stress. It helps you study harder for an exam, pass a driving test or manage a meeting. In general, it helps one cope. But when anxiety becomes an excessive, irrational dread of everyday situations, it has become a disabling disorder. Anxiety disorders are not just ‘nerves’- they occur when anxiety becomes extreme and prevents a person from coping with everyday situations. Work, social life and family life can be seriously affected and sufferers may become housebound. Anxiety disorders can be effectively treated but many people do not seek help for anxiety disorders.

 

There are several types of anxiety disorders which include:

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Phobic Disorders

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

The most common phobias are:

1. Arachnophobia: fear of Spiders.

2. Aerophobia or aviatophobia: fear of flying.

3. Agoraphobia: this involves intense fear and avoidance of any place or situation where escape might be difficult or help unavailable in the event of developing sudden panic-like symptoms.

4. Claustrophobia: fear of being trapped in small confined spaces, tight clothing, suffocation.

5. Acrophobia: fear of heights.

6. Emetophobia: fear of vomit.

7. Carcinophobia: fear of cancer.

8. Brontophobia: fear of thunderstorms.

9. Necrophobia: fear of death or dead things.

10. Hematophobia: fear of the sight of blood.

Anxiety disorders and phobias are misunderstood and individuals think they should be able to overcome the symptoms by sheer willpower. Wishing the symptoms away does not work. The good news is that effective treatments are available for anxiety disorders which include specific forms of psychotherapy such as hypnotherapy, and medication or a combination of the two.