Introduction

Fear can be defined as an unpleasant emotion that accompanies the realization of danger or threat. It is a feeling regularly experienced by every living being. However, in some individuals, it can become so disturbing that it becomes pathological. Among the diseases where it is found, two are frequently encountered: anxiety and phobias.

Anxiety

It is the main psychiatric disorder encountered worldwide. Studies show that 12 to 15% of the global population suffers from it or will suffer from it during their lifetime. A phobic object represents the danger behind the fear. In anxious individuals, this phobic object is poorly defined. Indeed, the anxious person is afraid without knowing why; sometimes it’s about the future or a dire prediction. In any case, they cannot put their finger on it but are certain that the threat is real and imminent. The fear is said to be floating and can take several expressions, including irritation, trembling, hyper sweating, teeth grinding, not to mention the famous pit in the stomach. These are signs that undermine the daily lives of those who suffer from them.

A panic attack is a particular type of anxiety with more dramatic consequences, even leading to suicide. It is a crisis that occurs suddenly and most of the time during the night. People who experience it report palpitations, chest pain, a feeling of suffocation, the sensation of going crazy, or dying. The crisis is described as a horrible harassment from which one is willing to do anything to escape, even smashing their head against a wall.

Phobias

This is a condition affecting up to 10% of the global population. The manifestations are similar to those in anxious individuals, but the threat is less elusive. Unlike the previous situation, the phobic object is a specific element, of a very variable nature ranging from a type of situation to an animal, which is harmless. This characteristic makes it one of the most misunderstood categories of fears, and people who suffer from them are often ridiculed. For example, an agoraphobe who has sweaty hands in a crowd is often wrongly treated as a misanthrope. A nyctophobia is mocked for their fear of the dark, going so far as to be deliberately placed in their phobic situation as a joke. Yet, has anyone ever seen an allergic person be brought into contact with their allergen to be able to laugh at their crisis?

Phobias are classified according to the object of fear, which can be the crowd, social interactions, or a specific and isolated element. The latter range from a fear triggered by what could be described as completely harmless (acrophobias, the fear of fruits) to a fear where the patient’s fear is sometimes understood by those around them (necrophobia, the fear of corpses). In the latter case, the intensity of the fear and the patient’s reactions are the elements that allow distinguishing between non-pathological fear and a real phobia.

Conclusion

Fear can take on various aspects depending on what it is directed at or the consequences it brings. However, there are situations where it becomes debilitating and too burdensome in daily life, thus moving from the realm of simple fears to that of a disease requiring intervention. Specialized help can be provided in such cases to relieve and improve the lives of those who suffer.