Agoraphobia, the fear of open spaces, affects nearly 30% of Americans. Phobias range from mild fear to terror and can only be treated with therapy. Other common phobias include social phobia, arachnophobia, claustrophobia, acrophobia, emetophobia, carcinophobia, brontophobia, and necrophobia.
One of the most common phobias people suffer from is agoraphobia. Agoraphobia is the fear of open spaces and of being left alone in open spaces. Agoraphobics rarely venture into crowded places and avoid areas from which they fear there is no escape, such as crowded shops and movie theaters. Although it is one of the most common phobias, agoraphobia is, like all phobias, an irrational and psychological fear. It affects nearly 30% of all Americans.
Phobias can range from a mild fear to terror that can affect a person’s daily life. Phobias are medically defined as irrational fears of a harmless situation. The sufferer’s reaction to a phobia is uncontrollable. It leaves the person suffering from extreme fear and heart palpitations and can lead to anxiety attacks. The only treatment for phobias is therapy, which may include behavioral methods or hypnosis.
Social phobia is another of the common phobias. Often referred to as stage fright, social phobia is the fear of being observed by others. The social phobic avoids any situation that requires her to speak in public. Not only that, but the phobia can also apply to mundane incidents like eating at restaurants or riding public transportation. This phobia has affected 5.3 million Americans at some point in their lives.
Number one on the list of the most common phobias is arachnophobia, or fear of spiders. Almost 50% of women have this fear and almost 10% of men suffer from it. The fear of flying is also a very common phobia.
The fear of being trapped in small places is also one of the most common phobias. Known as claustrophobia, this fear of enclosed, confined spaces is often thought of as the exact opposite of agoraphobia. However, like agoraphobics, claustrophobics fear crowded rooms and places where large numbers of people congregate.
At the top, no pun intended, on the list of common phobias is acrophobia. This is the term for fear of heights, which can be quite dangerous if the sufferer is at a height. Acrophobics become very anxious and tense in these situations and some feel the need to throw themselves off a building or other high place.
Other lesser known but common phobias include emetophobia, which is a fear of vomiting or being near someone who is vomiting. Carcinophobia is the fear of cancer and brontophobia is the fear of thunderstorms. Number ten on the list of common phobias is necrophobia, which is the fear of anything to do with death or dead things.
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