Types of Phobia
Our clients bring with them some very interesting examples of phobias. These phobias fall into two types:
Specific or Simple phobias
These are phobias linked to a specific object or situation. Examples are spiders, snakes, bees, worms, frogs, birds, dogs, cats, hedgehogs, goldfish, sharks, vomiting, driving , flying clowns, balloons, thunder, needles, blood, dentists, beards, buttons, velvet, feathers, lifts and marbles.
Specific phobias can also be generalised – for example to all slimy green reptiles rather than just frogs. This seems to happen when the original traumatic event can’t be recalled.
Non-specific phobias
These phobias produce a more general anxiety or terror linked to social or performance situations and are often accompanied by panic attacks.
Agoraphobia (open spaces), claustrophobia (confined spaces) and social phobia (public speaking, being the centre of attention) are non-specific phobias.
