Difference between fear and phobia

Fear and phobia they are different situations that cannot be confused. Fear is an important emotion that makes us avoid situations that could harm us, while phobia is a disproportionate fear that can significantly affect an individual's life.

→ What is fear?

Fear is displayed by several species of animals, including humans. It is an extremely important emotion, as it prevents us from being exposed to risky situations. By avoiding danger, we guarantee our survival, therefore, fear is a protective mechanism.

Fear can happen in some everyday situations, such as public speaking. the fears are normal and transient and they occur commonly in people, without causing serious harm to them. Disproportionate and intense fears that impede an individual's normal life can be a case of phobia.

→ What is Phobia?

Phobia happens when we have an exaggerated and disproportionate fear of a certain situation or object. Generally, individuals with phobia tend to avoid the situations they fear, causing considerable damage to their life, such as avoiding places or events for fear of facing what is feared. Generally speaking, people

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who have phobia consider a situation much more threatening than it actually is.

Read too: Phobia Names

Among the phobia groups, we have the specific phobias, at social phobias and the agoraphobias. Specific phobias are those that have a well-defined stimulus and can be classified according to it: animal phobia (exaggerated fear of spider), environment phobianatural (exaggerated fear of storms), blood-injection-injury phobia (exaggerated fear of medical procedures), situational phobial (exaggerated fear of closed places) and others (exaggerated fear of costumed characters).

The callsocial phobia it is one in which an individual has a marked fear of situations in which they may be exposed and judged or evaluated by other people. Presenting a work in front of a classroom, for example, can bring great anxiety to the individual, who often prefers to avoid the situation.

we still have the agoraphobia, which is the individual's excessive fear in relation to some situations, fearing that something bad will happen, and he will not be able to escape or get help. In these cases, the individual is afraid of two or more of the following situations: using public transport, staying outdoors, staying indoors, standing in a queue or standing in a crowd, leaving home alone.

Phobias can make us avoid certain situations. People who have a phobia of injections, for example, avoid going to the doctor.
Phobias can make us avoid certain situations. People who have a phobia of injections, for example, avoid going to the doctor.

→ fear and phobia

We see, therefore, that the fear is a normal feeling that does not harm the individual's life and is related to our survival. already the phobia characterized by being a disproportionate fear that significantly affects the life of an individual, that he starts to avoid many situations that he fears.

Let's not forget that there are calls panic attacks, which differ from fear and phobia and are characterized by being recurrent and unexpected. According to "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders”, a panic attack would be a bout of intense fear that combines four or more of the following symptoms:

1. palpitations, racing heart, tachycardia;

2. sweating;

3. tremors or shaking;

4. sensations of shortness of breath or suffocation;

5. choking sensations;

6. chest pain or discomfort;

7. nausea or abdominal discomfort;

8. feeling dizzy, unstable, dizzy or faint;

9. chills or hot flashes;

10. anesthesia or tingling sensations;

11. sensations of unreality or a feeling of being distanced from oneself;

12. fear of losing control or “going mad”;