John Dickson was walking down the street with his friend Len when a cute ,friendly, little dog ran over to them . Len knelt down and patted the dog ,but John froze and backed away in terror.Although the dog was clearly not a threat,John felt so terrified that his heart began pounding.He broke out in a cold sweat,and he felt like he was about to faint. Why did John have such an extreme reaction to such a harmless animal? John has a phobia of dog.
A phobia is an intense,irrational fear of a specific situation,activity,or thing that, in actuality,doesn't pose any true danger.People with phobia have a feeling of uncontrollable anxiety when they are exposed to the source of their phobia. This psychological reaction causes many physical symptoms. Some symptoms include shaking , rapid heartbeat ,difficulty breathing ,sweating , chest pains, dizziness, and a felling of overwhelming anxiety .When a person has such physical reactions to something they fear, they are said to be having a panic attack