Is it possible to suffer from a car-service-phobia?
I asked Grammarly to shows me synonyms of the word 'phobia' which are aversion, fright, fear, dislike, hate, disapproving. If I read this it's likely although the word disliking is not equal to fearing or hating.
Let's start with spiders for example. I don't hate spiders, I do not fear or disapprove of them but if it comes to disliking some spiders I might and which spider depends on where I am, how I feel and the type of spider. To me, spiders are not different from other animals or humans. What doesn't bother me, isn't in my way or I am not aware of what I can not dislike.
Disapproving a spider, human or plant sounds strange to my ears. Certain behaviour can be disapproved because of my norms and values but only if misbehaving is taken place by someone who knows better. Someone who can think and doesn't act out of instinct or habit.
People know better, animals and plants don't. Not even those animals we raised and forced into behaviour that fits us I can not disapprove because what an animal does is animal behaviour. Therefore its behaviour is normal and with plants, it's the same.
I am an introvert and also know how fear feels but... fear is not the same as a phobia. Fear is a strong feeling and what most of us will experience at least once in our life but this doesn't mean we suffer from a phobia. For a phobia is needed more. What exactly the combination for developing a phobia is, isn't always clear. Most likely something happened that triggered it. Trauma can cause it but so do certain impressions, occasions or thoughts. If it comes to a phobia the fear isn't real but the feelings, the fright for it is and it rules one's life.
Some fears are easier to fight. The fear of travelling by aeroplane, milk or swimming is easier to live with than the fear of going outside or people. Some things or situations can be avoided while others make it hard if not impossible to live with. It takes all your energy to always be alert and... to hide how you feel.
Being scared 24/7, fighting fears which sound ridiculous to others is a hard task. So is trying to explain why you feel what you feel but it is important to talk about it and ask for help.
The fear your child will get an accident on the way to school if it needs to cross a busy road without traffic lights is more realistic than getting rabies from a mouse or someone will make a fur coat out of your cats who always stay indoors. There are real fears. Solutions can be found to reduce them or take away the risk and this will make life easier.
Facing (the object of) your biggest fear (with help) is an option and so is avoiding. If you are afraid to choke in a fishbone don't eat fish. There's no need to bicycle or go for your driver's license if it scares you. You are not the only one who walks or takes the bus. Without milk, a pet or going out after 8 p.m. you can have a great life and there's nothing wrong with admitting you don't feel safe where you live or home alone. There's no need to follow in other's footsteps, it's not important to act as they do as long as your life is not dominated by fear(s).
Fear isn't unhealthy and part of a learning process. Without fear, we will be unnecessarily harmed day after day.
Interesting your article. My phobias of animals have been since I was a child. Perhaps because of some mistreatment suffered as a child because they locked me in a place all night for being a bad food. And in that place there were animals of all kinds. My phobia is basically to grab the animals. I can't get any of them in my hands