Those who suffer from phobias face intense fears of situations that don’t show any danger or threat at all. A phobia is an excessive and irrational fear reaction. People with phobias may experience a deep sense of panic when they encounter the source of their fear. The fear is usually of a specific situation, place or object.
The most common symptoms of phobia are tachycardia, shortness of breath, sweating, vomiting, muscle tension, dizziness, insecurity and having trouble making decisions.
Also, genetic and environmental factors can cause phobias. Additionally, distressing events such as accidents, exposure to confined spaces, extreme heights or animal bites can be all sources of phobias.
The phobic syndrome can be divided into three components that are closed in a circle:

• Anticipatory anxiety that appears before facing or imagining the phobic stimulus.
• Fear at the time of exposure
• Avoidance behaviors that appear after having felt fear and that manage to mitigate anticipatory anxiety.

Diagnostic

The diagnosis of a phobia is based on the clinical evaluation by the specialist in Psychiatry. It presents quite characteristic symptoms and signs, which means that it is not necessary, in many cases, to carry out any other diagnostic test.

If it is suspected that it may have an organic cause, it is advisable to carry out other tests such as magnetic resonance imaging, laboratory tests and evaluation by other specialists.
Psychodiagnostic tests.