![]() The fear is experienced either with proximity or in anticipation of being confronted with the object or situation. It is not a transient fear, it is not a proportional fear, and the danger is overestimated, and the reaction must be intense and severe to have the disorder. The situation or object is considered the “phobic stimulus”. The key feature is fear or anxiety in the presence of the situation or object. The average individual with a specific phobia fears three objects or situations, and approximately 75% of individuals with a specific phobia fears more than one situation or object. It is quite common to have multiple specific phobias. The most common phobia is social phobia but that is different from a specific phobia. Other (situations leading to choking or vomiting, loud sounds, costumed characters).Situational (airplanes, elevators, enclosed places).Blood injection injury (needles, invasive medical procedures).Natural environment (heights, storms, water).Animal (spiders, insects, sharks, and dogs).There are five categories of specific phobias: The phobia causes clinically significant distress or impairment, and the reaction to the phobic stimulus (shark or thought of one in this case) is not better explained by other disorders. The pattern of fear and/or avoidance typically last longer than six months to meet the threshold for the clinical diagnosis. It is actively avoided or endured with intense fear or anxiety, and the reaction is out of proportion with the actual danger that the situation or object poses. The phobic object or situation almost always provokes immediate fear or anxiety. A specific phobia is an irrational fear or anxiety about a specific object or situation. If we are talking diagnosis, a shark phobia is considered a type of specific phobia. Never have I had a shark encounter when not spearfishing other than watching one of these majestic creates swim over a reef and keeping its distance from me. Surprisingly, despite my early fears, I became an avid scuba diver and spearfisherman with multiple harrowing shark encounters, yet all involved me dragging along bleeding and flailing fish. Seriosuly! Unfortunately, disproportional and irrational fears like that keep lots of people from experiencing the many pleasures and adventures our oceans bring. After that, I thought twice about diving into dark swimming pools for a few years. I remember watching, against my parent’s wishes, Jaws, in the fourth grade (around 1984, the same year of Van Halen’s album, also 1984) while spending the night at a friend’s home. We think we are more in control on land even though we cannot outrun a bear, giant cat, or rabid dog, all of which, we are also more likely to encounter. Humans are particularly prone to shark phobias due to the lack of control we sense in a water environment. Thanks to folklore, media, movies, and our evolutionary past, vicariously learning that sharks are dangerous (disproportionally), has led to shark phobia, galeophobia (meaning weasel or dogfish) or selachophobia (cartilaginous fish), for many people and mostly through vicarious learning rather than experiencing a shark trauma themselves. Why do people fear sharks who have never encountered one? Our sensory system overestimates dangers so we survive. Despite our capacity for logic, humans are stupid creatures, but we know how to survive. Well, we respond to emotion and not statistics despite the many stats that are thrown our way over the subject as you are more likely to be struck by lightning or being in an accident on the way to the beach. Why do we have such a strong fear of sharks? Shark! Does yelling “Shark” or “Fire” arouse the same level of reaction? I would suggest they both engender an extreme response to act, but hearing “Shark” instantly raises the hair on the back of your neck. What negative reinforcement actually is.Specific vulnerabilities to phobias like being human.Why do we have such a strong fear of sharks?.Nonetheless, I enjoyed my experience immensely and was so fortunate to be included! Based on my previous experiences (over 1000 dives and formerly being an avid spearfisherman) and being a Psychologist, I have been able to help many individuals overcome their fear of diving, swimming, and the open water in general. ![]() D’Arienzo) participated in the filming for Shark Week 2021 but the footage was not included because the individuals that I assisted in working through their Shark Phobia did not complete their dives for the show as a result of rough water conditions. Justin D'Arienzo, Psy.D., ABPP Overcoming Shark Phobia
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