Health and Human Behavior
Discussion Topic- Phobias
"What is normal for the spider is chaos for the fly." This well-known expression is a good analogy for stress in that what is distressing to one person can actually be thrilling or exciting to another. This can also be said for the issue of phobias.
According to the DSM-V (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, 5th edition), a book that catalogs all recognized mental health and brain-related disorders, a phobia is an intense or irrational fear of a specified object or situation. Phobias fall into five general categories:
- 1. Natural/environment type: Phobias related to weather, and environmental events or situations (ex. fear of water, thunder and lightning).
- 2. Injury type: Fears related to physical harm or injury (ex. fear of injections, fear of going to the dentist).
- 3. Animal type: Fear of animals or insects (ex. fear of snakes, bugs).
- 4. Situational type: Fears triggered by specific situations, such as getting in an elevator or fear of crowds.
- 5. Other types: Fears that do not fit into the other four categories. Can include things such as a fear of clowns, or the fear of balloons.
In this week's discussion, we will explore the issue of stress as it relates to phobias.
- -Select an object, event or situation that you have an intense fear about (ex. flying on an airplane, public speaking).
- -In detail, explain what it is about the object, event, or situation that triggers negative feelings.
- -How do you feel when you are confronted with said object, event, or situation? Describe any physical and emotional symptoms.
- -How long have you been aware of this phobia? Do you know what might have caused it?
- -On a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 is minimal stress and 10 is extreme stress, where would you rate your discomfort/stress level with this phobia?
- -How do you manage this phobia? Have you ever sought professional help?
**Note: Because the questions posed here are of a rather personal nature, you are free to share as much or as little as you feel comfortable sharing. If you do not wish to speak of a personal phobia, you can write about another person's phobias and respond to the questions from that perspective.
My Phobia I had and still have a little is public speaking or speaking to someone new.
When I was little around the age of 10 I think I developed a stuttering speech, I was in speech therapy for middle school, then came out of it, It's my nerves and I am thinking very fast and the connection is the words in my head is not coming out as fast enough for me to speak. I get confused and jumbled. It has gotten better over time. Sometime I just get in my head and my nerves get the best of me, but if i relax and think before I speak or write it down then I can use that as a guide. I've taken a communication class and another class at Monroe college that required me to do a presentation and work in groups. I applied all the skills of writing it down, what I wanted to say and going back to school helped me get over a little of my fear. Once in a while I do stutter a little, but I just have to remember pause and relax then continue. Its mind over matter.
APA Format. 275 words.
Required Texts:Sarafino, E.P. & Smith, T.W. (2017). Health Psychology: Biopsychosocial Interactions, 9th ed.Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons