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I have already covered general anxiety and social anxiety, but there are so many other anxieties out there. These, according to the DSM 5, are listed as Specific Phobias. (OCD, another anxiety related diagnosis, will be covered later.)
The DSM-5 criteria for a specific phobia are:
- Marked and out of proportion fear within an environmental or situational context to the presence or anticipation of a specific object or situation
- Exposure to the phobic stimulus provokes an immediate anxiety response, which may take the form of a situationally bound or situationally predisposed panic attack.
- The person recognizes that the fear is out of proportion.
- The phobic situation(s) is avoided or else is endured with intense anxiety or distress.
- The avoidance, anxious anticipation or distress in the feared situation(s) interferes significantly with the person's normal routine, occupational (or academic) functioning, or social activities or relationships, or there is marked distress about having the phobia.
- The new DSM-5 criteria states that the symptoms for all ages must have a duration of at least 6 months.
- The anxiety, panic attack, or phobic avoidance associated with the specific object or situation is not better accounted for by another mental disorder.
It is not all in your head! I hate seeing people say that. Yes, the fear is irrational, and it is a mental mindset that gets it there. However, phobias have biological effects on a person. These are real, measurable effects that can be noted in the presence of that fear. Increased heart rate, increased blood pressure, even the presence of adrenaline in the blood stream. The fear cause harm not just to the mind, but the body as well.
That said, phobias can be of almost anything. The ones we hear of most would include clowns, spiders, flying, and more. (Don’t get me started on flying clown spiders!) However, there are more phobias out there than I could even begin to count. The guy who runs this phobia list started in the 80’s, and it is still growing.
It is no fun thing to be phobic. It is one thing to say you are arachnophobic, but an entirely different thing to be so phobic that you can not function. Being scared is one thing, but being phobic means taking it a step too far. “You want to go to the pet store? No way! There’s spiders there!” Phobics will stress out, trying to avoid the object of their phobia. “Does that pet store have spiders? I don’t want to go to any place that has spiders. Like the attic. The attic is full of them. I swear they are going to mass reproduce and attack me one day. OMG I need a new home before the spiders in the attic get me!”
No, I’m not trying to be funny here, I am trying to portray the way the phobic mind thinks. Worry or anxiety is typical of phobics, as are panic attacks. Many of us have seen a panic attack in someone, but few people understand what it is like to be in the middle of them. For me, it is like the entire world is closing in on me and the object I am currently panicking about. I see that object as not just one, but hundreds or thousands of them. “That spider is staring at me. I swear, it is looking at me and wondering what I taste like. It has babies, I know it does, and if I step on it the babies will explode out and consume me on the spot for vengeance.”
My breath shortens, because I truly feel the lack of oxygen around me, as if whatever it is I am focused on has now stolen the very air. My pulse speeds, and I freeze. Fight or flight no longer exist. “OMG, if I turn and run it’ll jump on me. But if I step on it I’m good as dead too. I can’t move.” But I’m fortunate. I’ve got the mind that can’t focus on one thing for long. Because at this point I start thinking, “Blink and you’re dead.” If you know why this is significant, then you fully understand why my brain starts flipping through other quotes and I end up grabbing a can of hair spray to kill the spider. (No, I don’t flame it. I find that hair spray keeps the beast from running, and traps the little babies well too!)
Not all people are like me (thank the heavens!), some just freeze until they pass out or are rescued by someone. In any case, the panic attacks are real, and are not so easily overcome. (I’ve actually improved my arachnophobia to the point where I can allow small spiders to live, though the big ones still freeze me.)
I would normally speak of how to write a character with phobias at this point, but there have been so many books, movies, and television shows involving phobias that I find it almost laughable. Phobias tend to be the go-to for many authors, and I find it almost a cop out in writing. Mind you, there are still good books being written involving phobias, but there are many farces as well.
However, should you decide to take on a phobia for a character, I beg of you to research it well. Look at all the angles of it, and speak to people who have that particular phobia. Learn their stories, break into their minds and find out what their anxieties are. Ask them how it feels when confronted with the object of their phobia. Ask them how they cope. Then take all this information into mind when you put yourself in your character’s shoes. Feel the panic, feel the sheer terror of the situation. Don’t make a mockery of the phobia, but don’t be afraid to crack a joke now and then either.
Disclaimer: I am not a therapist. I have not taken any classes, nor do I have a degree. I am writing this from my standpoint based on my personal experiences and research. I beg of you, if you think you may have a Phobic Disorder, please seek help from a licensed doctor.
No matter what, suicide is not an option. If you are thinking of harming yourself, seek help. Talk to a doctor, go to the ER, or even call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1 (800) 273-8255
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