An emotional condition provoked by danger and usually characterised by unpleasant subjective feelings accompanied by physiological and behavioural changes. The heart rate increases, sweating occurs and the blood pressure rises. Sometimes fear of certain events or places may develop into a phobia: for example, agoraphobia, a fear of open spaces.
n. an emotional state evoked by the threat of danger and usually characterized by unpleasant subjective experiences as well as physiological and behavioural changes. Fear is often distinguished from *anxiety in having a specific object. Associated physiological changes can include increases in heart rate, blood pressure, sweating, etc. Behavioural changes can include an avoidance of fear-producing objects or situations and may be extremely disabling. Specific disabling fears are known as *phobias. *Beta blockers relieve the physiological manifestations of fear and are useful in the treatment of short-term fears, such as the fear of hearing the results of an examination. *Behaviour therapy or *cognitive behavioural therapy are treatments for disabling and persistent fears.
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