The most common phobias include claustrophobia, social phobia, and arachnophobia. Rare phobias include ablutophobia, alektrophobia, and phobophobia. Effective phobia treatment can involve therapy, medication, or both, which help the individual better cope with their phobia.
It sounds crazy, but that's what people say. Is there any truth to this? Certainly the vast majority of people rank fear of public speaking as number one – 75% according to the National Institutes of Mental Health.
The top 10 fears found in the 2022 survey suggest that Americans' fears center on five main topics: corrupt government officials (number 1), harm to a loved one (numbers 2 & 4), war (numbers 3, 5, & 10), environmental concerns (numbers 6 & 9), and economic concerns numbers 7 & 8).
We are born with only two innate fears: the fear of falling and the fear of loud sounds. A 1960 study evaluated depth perception among 6- to14-month-old infants, as well as young animals.
Examples of innate fear include fears that are triggered by predators, pain, heights, rapidly approaching objects, and ancestral threats such as snakes and spiders. Animals and humans detect and respond more rapidly to threatening stimuli than to nonthreatening stimuli in the natural world.
666: Fear of 666 (hexakosioihexekontahexaphobia) is also widespread in Western cultures. The book of Revelation in the Bible lists 666 as the “number of the beast.” Many horror or doomsday films incorporate the number into plotlines as a mark of evil or the end of the world.
There are only five basic fears, out of which almost all of our other so-called fears are manufactured. These fears include extinction, mutilation, loss of autonomy, separation, and ego death.
Social phobias are the most common type of fear. They are considered an anxiety disorder and include excessive self-consciousness in social situations. Some people can fear being judged so much they avoid specific situations, like eating in front of others. Up to one in 20 people have a social phobia.
Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia is one of the longest words in the dictionary — and, in an ironic twist, is the name for a fear of long words. Sesquipedalophobia is another term for the phobia.
Thanatophobia is an extreme fear of death or the dying process. You might be scared of your own death or the death of a loved one. Psychotherapy can help most people overcome this disorder. Appointments 866.588.2264. Request an Appointment.
People who have autophobia have an irrational, extreme fear of being alone. A person may experience this fear when they're alone. Some people may have autophobia even when they're with other people. In this case, the fear centers on worries about isolation.
Emetophobia can affect your whole life, yet most emetophobes don't tell their friends, a lot don't even tell close family members. This is why it's been coined the secret phobia.
The most popular theory about the origin of fear of the number 13 is biblical: there were 13 diners at the Last Supper. The 13th to arrive was Judas, who betrayed Jesus. In Norse mythology, too, a table of 13 proved unlucky, to say the least.
If your fear of the number thirteen is interfering with your ability to live a normal life, then it would be good to see a therapist who specializes in phobias. Therapies such as CBT and hypnotherapy can be helpful in reducing or eliminating phobias, and giving you better strategies to cope.
Amaxophobia: Definition, Symptoms, Causes, Treatment.
Most common baby fears
In newborn babies, common baby fears include loud noises, falling, separation from parents, and strangers. At this stage, babies can't distinguish between objects accurately enough to be scared by looking at them. However, loud noises trigger the startle reflex.
(Note: There are five core fears, or “universal themes of loss,” that capture the basic interpretations of danger that we all make. They are 1) fear of abandonment, 2) loss of identity, 3) loss of meaning, 4) loss of purpose and 5) fear of death, including the fear of sickness and pain.)
Scolionophobia is an overwhelming fear of school. It is not a clinical diagnosis, but it's often a symptom of other anxiety disorders. School refusal is more likely to affect children during times of transition, such as starting middle school or high school.