Many people must have some knowledge about what phobia is. Unfortunately, even if they do, they tend to use to term to mean even the slightest of fears. As a result, they may just magnify many times an issue that is not really that serious. This lack of knowledge regarding phobia and fears is not just problem in terms of accuracy in definition though. Once wrong impressions are made, the next thing that would happen is inaccurate solutions. Therefore, it is very important for people to understand what a phobia really is. Pointing out the main characteristics of the three basic phobias or fears would be necessary.
The most common category is specific phobia. This is the kind of phobia attributed to persons that have intense fear of particular objects. For example, someone who has intensely and irrationally fearful of spiders is said to be suffering from arachnophobia. Many people may actually be afraid of the same thing but not as strongly as those who have phobia. One who has phobia of spiders does not only make sure that they avoid the object but would also be in panic mode once they find one. The intensity of the reaction is definitely what sets phobia and plain fear apart.
Social phobia is considered an abnormality by many people. The reason for this is that a human being is a social person. This means that it is the inherent characteristic of humans to socialize with each other. When someone considers such act as something terrifying then such a person tends to be considered by others as abnormal. This should not be the case though because there are indeed normal people who just have difficulties in relating with others. People suffering with social phobia should not be stigmatized further. Instead, help should be given to them in the most effective manner so that they can overcome their fears of socializing.
A number of children suffer from agoraphobia. From a literal definition, this kind of phobia means intense fear of open spaces. However, there are other fears that may be related to this too. One who dreads the idea of leaving home or his bedroom can be considered as someone who has agoraphobia. The home or the bedroom may be his comfort zone that anytime he feels being out of this would give him the sense of extreme vulnerability, which then triggers phobia. This may be related to social phobia too.
