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Phobias: Fear and Mind-body Health Site

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Phobias: Fear and Mind-body Health Site
Phobias
According to the Special Education Department 's "Glossary of Psychiatric Disorders" catalogue, a "phobia is a persistent, irrational fear of a specific object, activity, or situation that results in a compelling desire to avoid it".
A phobia is not an illness or a mental disorder. Nor is it a lack of will-power, or 'moral fibre ', or determination. A phobia is a syndrome that can both develop independently within the limits of neurosis (after a caused fright or a serious psychical shock) and be a result of mental illnesses (depressions, manic-depressive psychosis). Only psychiatrist can reveal what is a reason for a certain fear. Also, there is a hereditary predisposition to phobias. Phobic disorders usually develop in timid, vulnerable, and taking hard the failure people. (Uvarova, psychology lecture)
The essence of this "illness" is in anxiety appearance (to the extent of a panic) in certain situations. As a result, sick people begin avoiding it (for example, using an underground or taking the lift). Anxiety does not abate because of a realization of a fact that other people don 't consider similar situation to be anyhow dangerous.

Phobia types:
(According to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Web Site and my psychology class lectures)

 Agoraphobia
Agoraphobia is a fear of open spaces, crowd or impossibility to return back home right away. As a whole, agoraphobia can be determined as a fear of leaving the house. Quite often, patients turn to be chained to their flats completely. During the process of assault, patients have a fear of death because of the heart rupture or asthma. An assault lasts approximately for a half an hour; after it fear steps back. Assaults ' frequency varies from everyday to several times per year. In the course of time, patient begins avoiding situations, which provoke assault, entirely, and can feel only feebly-expressed anxiety during a long period of time.
 Claustrophobia



Bibliography: • "Glossary of Psychiatric Disorders." Department of Special Education. Peoria Unified School District. 2001, 2002. . • "Useful Information on Phobias and Panic." U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Public Health Service Alcohol, Drug Abuse, and Mental Health Administration. 1988. . • "The practical applications of NLP in your life." Pegasus NLP 's Mind-Body Health Site. Wednesday, 16 February 2005.

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