Phobia vs Fear: What’s the Difference?

Under certain circumstances, fear is experienced by each of us, regardless of age or gender. But if in some cases the manifestation of fear is quite justified and does not surprise others, then in others it may look groundless and uncontrollable. But the question is: when does fear cease to be a natural emotion and turns into a deviation? So, let’s understand what is the difference between fear and phobia.

Every phobia is a painful fear. Therefore, not every fear can be called a phobia. Let’s say more: all people have different fears and this is normal. Phobias, on the other hand, are a less common phenomenon and are considered in psychiatry as a deviation. Many not only do not know how fear differs from phobia, but mistakenly consider them identical concepts.

What is fear

Fear is usually called a special psycho-emotional state of a person caused by a real or potential threat. In other words, it is an emotional response to danger. Psychologists attribute fear to the basic emotions of a person, characterized by a negative color. Fear is an unconditional protective instinct that is designed to save human life. In this state, a person usually has a desire to hide or run away, which, however, is explained by the main functions of fear. According to experts, fright performs signal, protective, search and adaptive functions.

The limbic system of the brain is responsible for the manifestation of various emotions, including fear. That is, in order for a person to feel fear, the brain must perceive what is happening as a kind of threat. He may perceive visual or tactile signals, some sounds, smells or tastes as danger. But in different situations, the assessment made by the brain may or may not correspond to reality (the danger is exaggerated, the reality is distorted).

If fear is a reaction to a real threat, this indicates its functional nature. In such cases, one speaks of the so-called healthy fear, which helps to mobilize forces and increase vigilance. The cause of fear can also be far-fetched – when a person thinks too much about a possible threat.

Fear can be caused by both internal and external causes, which can be congenital or acquired. For example, fear can arise as a result of feelings of loneliness or rejection, as well as in cases where a person anticipates imminent failure or realizes his own inadequacy.

As for the intensity of fear, it can manifest itself as confusion, anxiety, excitement, fear or anxiety. A stronger emotion is expressed in the form of panic or horror, which are considered the most acute forms of fear.

What is a phobia

A phobia is a mental disorder in which a person experiences an excruciating fear of harmless objects or situations. More precisely, it is a pathological fear that cannot be controlled by a person, and excessive anxiety. This kind of fear each time manifests itself as a reaction to a certain situation or a specific object.

Psychiatrists describe a phobia as an intense, obsessive, and persistent fear that cannot be described logically. A person suffering from a certain phobia tries to avoid certain places, situations, objects or activities.

It is widely believed that it is impossible to control a phobia. However, experts assure that it is realistic to overcome panic fear, especially when it is still in its infancy. And they agree: the more time a person lives with a phobia, the harder it is to help him.

Nowadays, experts pay a lot of attention to studying the causes of various phobias. Most researchers acknowledge that there are usually underlying causes behind phobias.

There are main factors that provoke phobias:

1. Biological and genetic causes. The former include people with congenital reduced synthesis of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), a neurotransmitter that has a calming effect. Also exposure to certain drugs, psychoactive substances, chronic stress. Genetically determined phobias occur in families where one of the parents suffers from a painful fear and projects it onto the child. But it is impossible to say with accuracy what influences the appearance of a phobia more – a genetic predisposition or observation of the behavior of parents.
2. social reasons. Shocking external influences suffered in childhood and adolescence form phobias in adults. For example, a child (as a joke) was locked in a closet by other children and left there for a long time. An adult may develop claustrophobia (fear of closed spaces). This includes experienced bites from animals, insects, being lost in a crowd, the threat of drowning, falling from a height, etc.
3. psychological reasons. When there seemed to be no traumatic situation, but there is a phobia. In this case, the reasons are hidden in the subconscious. Perhaps these are misinterpreted words and actions, emotional and physical abuse that was observed in relation to a person.
4. The experience of humanity is the fear of fire, thunder, water, reptiles, etc.

Fear or phobia: how to distinguish

To understand what controls a person: fear or phobia, you first need to determine the nature of his emotion. As already mentioned, fear is inherent in everyone to one degree or another. Fear is an integral part of the instinct of self-preservation, a natural defensive reaction of the body, a kind of inhibitory mechanism. It is fear that makes a person more cautious and vigilant.

If fear arises without any logical reasons and completely captures all the thoughts of a person, this is already a phobia. Experts consider this condition as a form of neurosis. In this case, fear haunts a person, poisoning and complicating his life.

The essential difference between both types of fear is the nature of the occurrence. If natural fear is, as a rule, innate, then a phobia is always an acquired symptom.

Speaking about the varieties of fear, it is important to note that, in addition to justified fear (manifestation of the instinct of self-preservation) and phobia, there is also the so-called unreasonable one, which is also often mistakenly perceived as a phobia.

Intensity of manifestation

Many experts call the intensity of manifestation one of the main differences between phobias and fears. According to this theory, phobias are much more intense than ordinary fear. In most cases, this is true, but if we are talking about unreasonable fears, then the intensity of their manifestation can sometimes even exceed the phobia. In addition, there are real ways to reduce the manifestation of an attack of a phobia. For example, a person suffering from claustrophobia can take a sedative pill, and a trip to the subway will cease to be a tragedy of his life for him.

Thus, the criterion of intensity is not always appropriate for differentiating different types of fright. Instead, experts advise using other characteristics to distinguish fear, including unreasonable fear, from phobia.

Awareness of the illogicality of fright

In the study of K. Holstein, it is proved that fear is the basis of fear. This is a reaction to a sudden, strong stimulus, in which a non-standard reaction is required from the body.

One of the criteria for differentiating fear is a person’s awareness / not awareness of the illogicality and groundlessness of the threat that he tries to avoid because of a feeling of fear. To make it clear what we are talking about, consider an example.

Let’s say a person is afraid to swim in bodies of water, regardless of their types or depth. Ask him why he avoids bodies of water. If in response he tells, for example, a story that he once almost drowned and now any body of water causes him a feeling of intense fear, then you can be sure that this is an example of typical fear. That is, a person realizes why water causes him to panic. He is afraid of repeating the situation from the past. Often the same can be observed in children, moreover, in situations not necessarily related only to water. From the outside, this behavior looks like an unreasonable fear, but one has only to understand the cause of the fear and everything becomes extremely clear. In addition, unreasonable fear is characterized by situationality. It appears as a reaction-response to new or recurring situations. The reason for such fear is not difficult to find in the superficial layers of the human psyche. Being afraid of something, he simply realizes the reality of the threat.

If the reason for the fear of water is a phobia, then a person could never get into dangerous situations in a pond at all, but at the same time he is still afraid to swim. If you ask him about the nature of his fear, most likely he will answer that he is aware of the absence of real reasons for fear, but he cannot do anything about his emotions. Although it should be recognized that in some people a phobia can develop as a result of an experienced fright. For example, a person may be terribly afraid of cemeteries after a strong fright associated with this place or the deceased. Nevertheless, not everyone’s fear will develop into a real phobia. Experts are convinced that this happens only when there is favorable soil in the deep layers of the human psyche. That is, the easiest way to understand what worries a person: unreasonable fear or phobia is to ask him why he is afraid.

Non-verbal reactions

As a rule, people suffering from a phobia speak uncertainly, confusedly about objects of fear, and their non-verbal behavior only confirms this (the person sweats, his heart rate increases, tremors appear, breathing becomes difficult, etc.). At the same time, in a conversation, he admits, although not quite confidently, the absence of a real reason for fear, but, nevertheless, he panics anyway.

Obsessive fear or phobia

Obsessive fear is often compared to a phobia, but there are clear differences between these types of emotions. An obsessive state usually manifests itself in the form of anxiety – groundless and illogical, which resembles a phobia. In turn, many phobias are also often obsessive. However, a phobia is a rather intense fright caused by a trigger. Obsessive fear manifests itself less intensely, but in this state a person is afraid of almost everything. This is the main difference between these emotions.

Pathological fear or phobia

Pathological fear is quite easy to distinguish from a phobia. A person prone to pathological fear constantly or for a long time experiences severe anxiety about a variety of life events. As a rule, this type of fear has no real basis and is the fruit of a person’s imagination and excessive emotionality. With pathological fear, a person seems to “try on” a potential threat and its consequences.

Is Fear of Heights Normal or a Phobia?

One of the most common fears is the fear of heights. In what cases can anxiety caused by height be considered a normal emotion, and when is it already a phobia?

Example one. The person understands and does not hide his fear of heights. He will not climb the ladder once again, he will always try to entrust washing windows to someone more courageous, and if he is on an airplane, he will feel very uncomfortable and will definitely choose a place away from the window. In this case, the cause of fear has a logical explanation. Each of the described situations involves a certain amount of risk to life or health. But as soon as the potentially dangerous situation disappears, anxiety and fear also disappear.

Second example. A person is terribly afraid of heights, and not only at the moment when he finds himself on the same ladder or in an airplane. A wave of fear covers him at the very thought of height. By the way, uncontrolled fear, as a rule, makes significant adjustments to a person’s life. For example, a panic fear of heights becomes the reason why a person travels only by land. Also, such people quite often do not rise above 2 floors. You won’t see them on the balcony of a high-rise building; it can be problematic for them to even look out the window of an apartment located on the 3rd or 4th floor.

Unlike the person from the first example, for whom height is uncomfortable, but not “deadly”, in the second case everything is much more complicated. A person with an uncontrollable fear of heights falls into a stupor at the very thought of the source of the panic. He has an increased heart rate, a tremor of the limbs, dizziness and heavy sweating. Comparing the two examples, one can understand that in both cases, although people are afraid of heights, the nature of their fear is significantly different. The first case is a classic example of ordinary fear. The second example is a typical manifestation of a phobia. By the same principle, analyzing what is behind a person’s emotion, you can determine where is the usual fear, and where is the phobia.

The following table will help to clearly understand all the subtleties of the difference between natural fear and phobia.

List of the most common phobias

It is impossible to compile a complete and definitive list of all phobias. Today, psychiatrists and psychologists around the world are aware of more than 500 phobias. But their number is constantly growing.

The most common:

• arachnophobia – fear of spiders;
• ophidiophobia – fear of snakes;
• acrophobia – fear of heights;
• agoraphobia – fear of open space;
• nyctophobia – fear of the dark;
• gerontophobia – panic at the thought of old age;
• glossophobia – fear of public speaking;
• astraphobia – fear of thunderstorms with lightning and thunder;
• trypanophobia – fear of injections;
• pteromerhanophobia – fear of flying;
• claustrophobia – fear of small rooms, elevators and even tight clothing;
• mysophobia – fear of germs and dirt;
• thanatophobia – panic fear of death;
• monophobia (autophobia) – fear of loneliness;
• kakorrafiophobia – fear of failure;
• acousticophobia – panic caused by loud sounds;
• algophobia – fear of pain;
• hemophobia – fear of blood;
• gephyrophobia – fear of bridges;
• hylophobia – panic caused by the forest.

How are fears and phobias treated?

Many experts recognize that treating phobias is much more difficult than justified or unfounded fears. If you do not help a person find the cause of his panic, the phobia will not go away on its own. By the way, it is widely believed among experts that a phobia is one of the symptoms of a person having problems in the deep layers of the psyche.

To get rid of ordinary fear, it is often enough for a person to meet him – to force himself to survive a situation that frightens. But getting rid of a phobia on your own is already a very rare exception to the rule. A psychotherapist or psychologist helps to get rid of panic attacks. With the help of a specialist, a person can understand the nature of his fear (without this stage, the treatment will not be successful) and learn how to overcome it correctly.

Modern doctors in the treatment of various types of fear, including phobias, resort to a variety of techniques. The specialist can offer the patient art therapy, a hypnotic session, autogenic training, a method of immersion in a real situation.

Recently, a method developed by scientists at the University of London has been popular. British experts have proposed to deal with phobias through virtual reality. In other words, a person is offered to go through his main fear in the virtual world (computer game). But this game has its own characteristics. The patient is not seated in front of a computer monitor, but is taken to a large hall, on the walls and floor of which a three-dimensional image is projected. A person becomes a part of this virtual world, in which, under the supervision of specialists, he must survive his fear.

In addition, some types of phobias, in particular acrophobia, arachnophobia and claustrophobia, can be treated with the help of ordinary computer games with the most realistic graphics, in which the player has to go through tests, facing their main fears.

Thus, we can conclude that a phobia, and even more so – an ordinary fear, can be treated. But here it is important to understand that the success of therapy largely depends on the person himself: his attitude, self-confidence and motivation.

To overcome fear, it is often worth simply distracting your thoughts from it, thinking about something positive, calming down and pulling yourself together. Breathing practice helps a lot – a few deep and rhythmic inhalations and exhalations allow you to maintain control over yourself and ease a panic attack. During a fright, the body produces a large amount of adrenaline, and the task of a person is to bring the hormone levels back to normal. To achieve this, in fact, breathing exercises help.

Another important rule in the treatment of fears: you should act gradually. For example, if a person is afraid of the audience, then at first you can “speak” in front of a mirror, then in front of your family, then in a circle of friends. And there, look, and in front of unfamiliar or unfamiliar people, it will be possible to make a speech without fear.

People who are afraid of, for example, spiders should first get used to looking at the image of an insect without panic. Then you can look at the dead spider, and then at the living one. Well, the aerobatics and the final stage of treatment will be the day when a person suffering from a phobia will be able to hold a spider in his hand without panic. But all this should be done in the presence of a loved one or a specialist who will always support and reassure if necessary.

Fear is one of the most ancient emotions. In many cases, it helps to save lives. But if the emotion gets out of control, it significantly complicates existence. What is the easiest way to distinguish fear from phobia? In short, fear is the instinct of self-preservation, a special protective reaction of the body, and a phobia is an obsessive fear that occurs when nothing threatens a person. But whatever the cause of fear, in most cases, with the right approach, you can get rid of it.