What is acrophobia?
Fear of heights is medically called acrophobia.
Acrophobia is one of the most common phobias - symptoms are manageable, psychotherapy is effective.
People with this diagnosis are very afraid of heights and try to avoid being in an environment that aggravates the symptoms of the phobia.
Of course, any person can feel discomfort when looking down from a certain height, but acrophobia manifests itself with more severe symptoms, for example, the patient is afraid even to be close to the balcony.
A person with a fear of heights is afraid of:
- Climbing the stairs;
- Crossing the bridge;
- An attraction that climbs to a height (for example, American mountains);
- Being near the balcony;
- Rooftop;
- Looking out of the window and others.
Symptoms of acrophobia are:
- Fear and anxiety;
- Feeling that you will fall from a height or something bad will happen;
- Desire to escape from the environment (which is related to the height);
- Accelerated heartbeat;
- Dizziness and feeling of heart failure;
- Feeling of nausea;
- Shortness of breath;
- Trembling.
Source:
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/21956-acrophobia-fear-of-heights
