Phobia

A phobia (from the Greek: φόβος, romanized: fobos, lit. 'fear') is a strong, irrational fear of a specific thing or situation. In psychology, phobia is considered an anxiety disorder. Phobia is different than just being scared of something. The fear is so strong that it affects, and often damages, the sufferer's life. For example, the person will usually do everything they can to avoid the thing they fear. If they cannot avoid that thing, they will suffer from very strong anxiety which can damage their social relationships, their ability to work, and other areas of their everyday life.

There are two basic types of phobias: specific phobias and social phobias. People with specific phobias fear a certain thing, for example spiders (this is called arachnophobia) or high places (acrophobia). People with social phobias fear social situations (for example speaking in public, being in crowded areas, or being around other people).