7 - Phobia

It’s a beautiful day for a ride in the country. The weather’s fine and the road isn’t cluttered with other vehicles. You’ve been looking forward to this all week long and your friends are all ready to go. Your college buddy is driving and, as far as you know, he has never been involved in any accident before.

A phobia is an irrational, intense, persistent fear of certain situations, objects, activities, or persons. The main symptom of this disorder is the excessive, unreasonable desire to avoid the feared subject. When the fear is beyond one’s control, or if the fear is interfering with daily life, then a diagnosis under one of the anxiety [...]