Are you terrified of spiders or snakes? Do you get panicky when thinking about needles or hospitals? If you answered yes, you might be experiencing a phobia. Phobias are pretty common and some people even have more than one phobia at a time. Have you ever wondered if you have one phobia, two phobias, or multiple phobias?

In this article, we’ll explore what a phobia is, the types of phobias, and common and rare phobias. Lastly, we’ll briefly touch on how to get help for phobias, from a mental health professional. Keep reading to find out if the list of phobias in this article contains all of your phobias.

Do I have a phobia?

According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), a “specific phobia is an intense, irrational fear of something that poses little or no actual danger. Although adults with phobias may realize that these fears are irrational, even thinking about facing the feared object or situation brings on severe anxiety symptoms.”

Five symptoms you may experience if you have phobia are:

Intense fear and anxiety when faced with your phobia
Heart palpitations, shortness of breath, or chest pain
Going out of your way to avoid your phobia
Feeling like you need to escape
Frequent and intense worry about your phobia

If this sounds like you, you’re not alone. It’s been estimated that 9.1% of US adults experienced a phobia in the last year.

What phobias do I have?

Specific phobias are the most commonly occurring anxiety disorder. According to the NIMH, approximately 12.5% of the US population reports having at least one specific phobia in their lifetime. Additionally, it’s common for people to experience several different phobias at one time. Some phobias are more common than others and it’s normal to have two different phobias that fall into the same category. For example, if you have a fear of snakes, which is in the “animal” category, you might also have a fear of spiders.

Therefore, if you’re asking yourself “What phobias do I have?” or “What are my phobias?” you’re not alone. Starting therapy with a mental health professional who specializes in phobias can help. Learn more about using therapy to treat phobias here.

Types of phobias

While you could develop a specific phobia for just about anything, there are generally five different types, or categories, of specific phobias.

Animal phobia: dogs, cats, mice, birds, snakes, insects, bugs, spiders, and others
Natural environment phobia: heights, darkness, water, storms, rain, and so on
Situational phobia: Driving a car, traveling by train, bus, or plane; closed-in or claustrophobic situations, such as elevators, small windowless rooms, tunnels, crowded spaces, etc.
Blood-injection-injury phobias: Seeing blood, watching surgery, getting injections, needles, or related situations
Other phobias: All other types of phobias of specific objects or situations (i.e. vomiting, choking, clowns, balloons, snow, chocolate, clouds)

Is my phobia common or rare?

Some phobias are common, and you may have already heard about them, while others are quite rare. Some of the common and well-known phobias include Arachnophobia (Fear of spiders), Ophidiophobia (Fear of snakes), and Acrophobia (Fear of heights). You may have one of these phobias or even know someone who does.

Rare phobias typically occur infrequently, so you might not have heard about them before. A phobia could be so rare that only one person has ever reported experiencing it. Some rarer phobias include Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia (Fear of long words) and Spectrophobia (Fear of mirrors).

5 common phobias

Arachnophobia (Fear of spiders)
Ophidiophobia (Fear of snakes)
Acrophobia (Fear of heights)
Social phobia (Fear of social situations)
Glossophobia (Fear of public speaking)

Glossophobia is the fear of public speaking. This phobia could include nervousness, anxiety, worry, and panicky sensations when faced with a situation in which you have to speak in front of other people. Most people will experience some anxiety and nervousness when faced with public speaking.

The fear of public speaking is one of the most commonly occurring phobias, with it impacting about 40% of the US population, according to the National Social Anxiety Center. Researchers have found that there are a few thoughts and fears that are common for people who experience glossophobia, including:

Fear of doing or saying something embarrassing
Fear of one’s mind going blank
Fear of being unable to continue talking
Fear of saying foolish things or not making sense
Fear of trembling, shaking, and showing signs of being anxious

Glossophobia can impact your life in many ways including your social relationships, work life, and even day-to-day interactions. This phobia is a type of social anxiety. When you have glossophobia, just like with other phobias, a combination of CBT and Exposure therapy can help you face your fears.

5 rare phobias

Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia (Fear of long words)
Eisoptrophobia or spectrophobia (Fear of mirrors).
Arachibutyrophobia (Fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of your mouth)
Xanthophobia (Fear of the color yellow)
Emetophobia (Fear of vomiting)

Emetophobia is the fear of vomiting. It’s one of the rarer phobias, with estimates that it impacts only 0.1% of the population overall. Emetophobia involves an intense and often disproportionate fear of vomiting or other people vomiting.

People with emetophobia typically spend a lot of time avoiding situations that may increase the risk of witnessing someone vomit or vomiting themselves. Some examples of situations people with emetophobia avoid include:

Drinking alcohol
Boats and ferries
Being around drunk people
Becoming pregnant
Having contact with sick people

Although emetophobia is an understudied phobia, a combination of CBT and Exposure therapy has been shown to help people overcome their fears of vomiting. Learn more about using therapy to treat phobias here.

List of 55 phobias

Arachnophobia (Fear of snakes)
Ophidiophobia (Fear of spiders)
Acrophobia (Fear of heights)
Social phobia (Fear of social situations)
Glossophobia (Fear of public speaking)
Agoraphobia (Fear of open spaces or crowds)
Claustrophobia (Fear of confined spaces)
Hypochondria (Fear of illness)
Insectophobia (Fear of insects)
Aerophobia (Fear of flying)
Cynophobia (Fear of dogs)
Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia (Fear of long words)
Spectrophobia (Fear of mirrors).
Arachibutyrophobia (Fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of your mouth)
Xanthophobia (Fear of the color yellow)
Emetophobia (Fear of vomiting)
Chiclephobia (Fear of chewing gum)
Arithmophobia (Fear of numbers)
Dentophobia (Fear of dentists)
Herpetophobia (Fear of reptiles)
Nosocomephobia (Fear of hospitals)
Venustraphobia (Fear of beautiful women)
Somniphobia (Fear of sleep)
Plutophobia (Fear of money)
Globophobia (Fear of balloons)
Batrachophobia (Fear of amphibians)
Pedophobia (Fear of children)
Zoophobia (Fear of animals)
Katsaridaphobia (Fear of roaches)
Apotemnophobia (Fear of amputation or amputees)
Amaxophobia (Fear of driving or being a passenger in a car or other vehicle)
Erythrophobia (Fear of the color red, or fear of blushing)
Astraphobia (Fear of thunder and lightning or scattered and isolated thunderstorms)
Genuphobia (Fear of knees)
Ombrophobia (Fear of rain)
Technophobia (Fear of technology)
Arithmophobia (Fear of numbers)
Plutophobia (Fear of money)
Ablutophobia (Fear of bathing)
Aichmophobia (Fear of needles or pointed objects)
Samhainophobia (Fear of Halloween)
Octophobia (Fear of the number eight)
Ephebiphobia (Fear of adolescents)
Omphalophobia (Fear of belly buttons)
Linonophobia (Fear of string)
Pogonophobia (Fear of beards)
Chaetophobia (Fear of hair)
Vestiphobia (Fear of clothing)
Ergophobia (Fear of work)
Deipnophobia (Fear of dining with others)
Phobophobia (Fear of phobias)
Algophobia (Fear of pain)
Elurophobia (Fear of cats)
Pyrophobia (Fear of fire)
Verminophobia (Fear of germs)

Help for phobias

According to the American Psychological Association, exposure therapy is a specialized treatment designed to help people face their fears. When someone is afraid of something, like public speaking, they tend to avoid the feared situation. While avoidance can help reduce anxiety in the short term, it can make the fear (and anxiety) worse in the long term.

In exposure therapy, the mental health professional will help you break the pattern of fear and avoidance. They’ll work with you to “expose” you to what you fear and avoid safely and gradually. Exposure helps reduce fear and decrease avoidance over time.

According to the APA, exposure therapy is helpful for phobias. There are different types of exposures. Your mental health professional will determine which approach is best for you.

In vivo exposure: Directly facing the feared situation, in real life. For example, someone with acrophobia might be asked to stand on a balcony or climb a ladder.
Imaginal exposure: Vividly imagining the feared situation. For example, someone with acrophobia might be asked to imagine standing on a mountaintop and describe the situation in great detail.
Virtual reality exposure: In some situations, virtual reality technology can be used when practicing in vivo exposure is not practical. For example, someone with acrophobia might look out of a virtual skyscraper’s window while in the therapist’s office, using technology that provides the sights, sounds, and smells of a skyscraper’s window.

If you’re ready to start exposure therapy for help with all of your phobias, or if you just want to learn more about what phobias you may have, finding a mental health professional who specializes in therapy for phobias is a good next step. Learn more about using therapy to treat phobias here.

Summary

A phobia is a type of anxiety disorder. Phobias can cause extreme distress, panic attacks, and avoidance of the feared situation or situations. There are a few main types of phobias including 1. animals, 2. the natural environment, 3. situations, 4. blood-injection-injury, and 5. others. Whether your phobia is common or rare, therapy can help.

Working with a mental health professional can help bring you relief. The best treatment for any phobia is exposure therapy. It involves facing your feared situation in real life (in vivo), by imagining you’re in the situation or using virtual reality. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) can also help with phobias

To learn more about how to get over all of your phobias in therapy, check out my CBT for Anxiety or Therapy for Phobia page or schedule a free 15-minute consultation today.

Confronting Fear: What Phobias Do I Have?