By definition, phobias are irrational and they interfere with one's everyday life or daily routine. If a person's fear of high places prevents them from crossing necessary bridges to get to work,

A specific phobia is a marked and persistent fear that is excessive and unreasonable, cued by the presence or anticipation of a specific object or situation. Exposure to the phobic stimulus provokes an immediate anxiety response or panic attack. The person realizes that the fear is excessive and irrational and either avoids the situation (or object) or endures it with intense anxiety and distress. The avoidance, anxious anticipation and distress significantly interferes with the person's daily routine - occupational functioning and social activities.

~ establishing an anxiety hierarchy of the stimuli involved

that fear is irrational. If a fear prevents a person from enjoying life, preoccupies their thinking so they are unable to work, or sleep or do the things they need to do, then it becomes irrational. "One key to diagnosing a phobic disorder is that the fear must be excessive and disproportionate to the situation. Most people who fear heights would not avoid visiting a relative who lived on the top floor of a tall building; a person with a phobia of heights would. Fear alone does not distinguish a phobia; both fear and avoidance must be evident." (Lefton, L.A.,1997)

~ A commitment to carry through with cognitive-behavioral therapy even when it seems difficult

Chris Sletten, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist and behavioral medicine specialist at the Mayo Clinic, says "The use of SSRIs with behavior therapy is becoming more popular in the treatment of phobias because there are fewer side effects associated with these drugs and a very low addiction potential. Plus, the antidepressant action of these drugs is helpful in treating patients who suffer from depression, a common problem among phobic sufferers." (Http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/1997/297)

Although this disorder is sometimes thought to be shyness, it is not the same thing. Shy people can be very uneasy around others but they do not experience extreme anxiety in anticipating social situations, nor do they necessarily avoid them. The most common social phobia is fear of public speaking. Sometimes social phobia involves a general fear of social situations such as parties. Social phobia disrupts normal life, interfering with career and social relationships. For example, a worker can turn down a job promotion because he can't give public presentations. "The dread of a public event can begin weeks in advance, and symptoms can be very debilitating. People with social phobia are aware that their feelings are irrational but they experience a great deal of anxiety before facing the feared situation and they may go out of their way to avoid it. Even if they manage to confront what they fear, they usually feel very anxious before hand and are intensely uncomfortable throughout. Afterwards, the unpleasant feelings linger and they worry about how they may have been judged or what others may have thought or observed about them." ( Kleinman, A. 1988)

Some common words found in the essay are:
Http//wwwsocialphobiaorg/socialhtml Agoraphobia, Martin EP1971, Lefton LA, Rogers JA, , Birmingham People, Bernstein DA, Lefton LA1997, Http//wwwfdagov/fdac/features/1997/297 Social, Rothbaum BO, social phobia, phobia fear, anxiety disorders, intense fear, object situation, cognitive-behavioral therapy, panic attacks, lefton la 1997, phobic stimulus, specific phobia, social situations, social phobia fear, muscles tense person, presence phobic stimulus, person's daily routine,
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