Fear can be a very helpful emotion when it keeps us alert to potentially dangerous or uncomfortable situations. Some things people tend to fear the most are pain and the unknown, and it’s common to fear embarrassment or alienation from other people. We also develop fears based on bad experiences. 

Phobias are intense, persistent fears that have an overall negative impact on a person’s life. They’re unique to each individual, though some phobias like the fear of public speaking and the fear of heights are more common than others. A person with a phobia may go to great lengths to avoid the thing they’re afraid of. When they do encounter it, they may have both physical and mental symptoms along with a strong sense of fear. They might sweat, tremble, feel nauseous, have trouble concentrating or have panic attacks.

Many people with phobias choose to live with their fears and avoid them whenever possible rather than seeking treatment. However, there are effective treatments for phobias and related anxiety disorders. The right treatment can significantly improve your quality of life and empower you to live your life based on your desires and your values rather than your fears.

The first steps toward healing are accepting that you have a phobia and that you can get better with help from a licensed clinician. In this blog post, we’ll describe five common types of phobias and list some examples. 

5 of the most common types of phobias

The DSM-5 lists five different specifiers of specific phobias. Most phobias fit into the first four: animal phobias, natural environment phobias, situational phobias, and phobias related to blood, injections or injuries. The fifth category is for other phobias that don’t fit neatly into the other categories. For instance, fear of ghosts and fear of vomiting would fall under “other” phobias. Social anxiety disorder (formerly social phobia) and agoraphobia are separate diagnoses, not grouped in with other phobias.

We can also draw a distinction between specific phobias and complex phobias. Specific phobias are fears of specific things, such as blood or heights. These phobias usually begin in childhood. There may not be a reason behind them, and they may become less intense over time. While not a term used in the DSM-5, complex phobias are more pervasive anxiety disorders like social anxiety disorder, which was once known as social phobia, and agoraphobia. People may develop them based on their experiences. Complex phobias typically affect a person’s life in more than one way, and they can be harder to overcome than specific phobias.

Here’s a bit more detail about the five most common types of phobias and some examples:

• Animal phobias

People may develop phobias of animals that seem dangerous, disgusting, creepy or unsanitary. These fears are usually out of proportion to any real danger.

These are a few examples of animal phobias:

• Arachnophobia: fear of spiders
• Ornithophobia: fear of birds
• Zoophobia: fear of animals
• Natural environment phobias

Extreme weather, natural disasters and aspects of the environment can create fear of bodily harm. Fear of the dark is more closely related to fear of the unknown or fear of attacks.

These are a few examples of natural environment phobias:

• Aquaphobia: fear of water
• Astraphobia: fear of storms
• Acrophobia: fear of heights
• Nyctophobia: fear of the dark

• Situational phobias

People with phobias of certain activities and situations often worry about the potential outcome or things that could go wrong. Claustrophobia is a very common situational phobia.

These are a few examples of situational phobias:

• Aerophobia: fear of flying
• Amaxophobia: fear of driving
• Claustrophobia: fear of confined or tight spaces
• Monophobia: fear of being alone

• Blood-injection-injury phobias

When fears related to needles, blood, injuries or pain become extreme enough to cause significant distress, they’re considered phobias. The fear of blood can cause vasovagal syncope or fainting at the sight of blood. This response occurs due to a sudden drop in heart rate and blood pressure, leading to reduced blood flow to the brain and causing fainting.

These are a few examples of blood-injection-injury phobias:

• Hemophobia: fear of blood
• Trypanophobia: fear of needles
• Algophobia: fear of pain
• Dentophobia: fear of dentists

• Other phobias

There’s really no limit to fears that can become phobias. The “other” phobia specifier is mostly for simple, distinct fears, like a fear of public speaking or fire. Social phobia and agoraphobia are both complex fears that have their own diagnostic criteria, so they’re not included under this specifier. People used to think that agoraphobia was a fear of leaving one’s home or a fear of open spaces. It’s more closely related to panic disorder, and it involves a fear of being unable to escape from certain situations without difficulty.

The following are phobias that don’t fit into the other four categories:

• Mysophobia: fear of germs
• Glossophobia: fear of public speaking
• Agoraphobia: fear of situations that may be difficult or embarrassing to get out of
• Social anxiety disorder: a condition that used to be known as social phobia
• Coulrophobia: fear of clowns
• Nosocomephobia: fear of hospitals
• Phasmophobia: fear of ghosts
• Emetophobia: fear of vomiting
• Pyrophobia: fear of fire

To be physically and mentally well, human beings need a baseline of safety and security. Individuals may experience fear differently, but the survival instinct mechanisms are generally consistent between humans. While it can be protective, it’s not a feeling we should experience for long periods of time. When we sense a possible threat, the body releases stress hormones that make us more alert and quicken our reflexes. When fear becomes a regular part of our lives, the short-term benefits of our fear response can turn into health problems like indigestion, insomnia and heart disease. Significant fears can also interfere with our lives when we start avoiding certain places, situations and people.

At Lightfully, we take a compassionate approach to helping people heal from phobias and anxiety disorders. Building your resilience to your phobia is an important part of treatment. We’ll also help you examine the underlying beliefs related to your fears and learn healthy coping skills, like mindfulness and self-soothing techniques. 

Are you considering treatment for a phobia or looking for ways to help a loved one? Contact us with any questions. Let’s talk about your next steps together.