#anxiety

• Abandonment — The act of leaving, or permanently giving up on a person (child, partner), an asset, or an ongoing action. In clinical psychology and psychiatry, it is a central concept studied for its profound impact on emotional development, generating attachment traumas, severe anxiety, and persistent dysfunctional cognitive schemas.
• Abandonic — Exhibiting a pathological complex or fear of abandonment; relating to neurotic or defensive behaviors triggered by the fear of being left. An abandonic structure (or abandonic personality) tends to develop an anxious-dependent attachment, displaying extreme possessiveness or, conversely, a tendency to preemptively break off relationships for fear of being rejected.
• Abbagnano existential approach — The Abbagnano perspective in medical psychology refers to the application of positive existentialism (the theory of philosopher Nicola Abbagnano) in psychotherapy, emphasizing the structure of human possibilities, coping with existential anxiety, and the clinical approach to choices during psychological crises.
• Abdominalgia — A clinical term used to describe any form of pain localized within the abdomen. In psychiatric semiology and psychosomatic medicine, abdominalgia represents one of the most common somatic complaints, often being the clinical expression of a conversion disorder, generalized anxiety, or a masked depressive episode, where organic investigations reveal no structural lesion.
• Abendmusik (music therapy style) — A cultural term of German origin designating a series of evening musical performances, transposed into art therapy, clinical music therapy, and sleep management. In neuro-psychiatry protocols, the concept of abendmusik is used to describe structured interventions using relaxing, low-frequency music with steady rhythms, performed in the latter part of the day. The therapeutic purpose consists in reducing evening psychomotor agitation (sundowning syndrome found in dementias), inducing cortical relaxation, lowering cortisol levels, and facilitating the onset of sleep in patients with chronic anxiety or insomnia.
• Abeona developmental archetype — A mythological and cultural eponym transposed into developmental psychology and pediatric psychoanalysis (the Abeona complex, syndrome, or archetype). The concept denotes the protective maternal instinct of guiding and facilitating a child's first independent steps outside the secure family space. In the semiology of attachment, pathological manifestations of the Abeona type refer to severe parental separation anxiety (neurotic overprotection) that blocks the infant's motor and cognitive autonomy development.
• Abhorred / Loathed — Utterly detested, deeply loathed, or rejected with severe visceral disgust. In clinical and psychotherapeutic contexts, the term qualifies a stimulus, a traumatic memory, or a mental scenario that the patient compulsively avoids due to the extreme anxiety or panic attacks it triggers upon the slightest contact.
• Acarophobia — An anxiety disorder manifested by an irrational, persistent, and pathological fear of mites, ticks, or other microscopic parasitic organisms, as well as the possibility of having one's skin infested by them. Affected individuals frequently develop severe obsessive-compulsive behaviors, such as excessive cleaning of the home, repeated washing of the body (to the point of causing skin lesions), and avoidance of outdoor spaces; the condition is sometimes associated with delusional parasitosis (Ekbom syndrome).
• Acrophobia — An irrational, pathological, and persistent fear of heights or high places, manifesting as severe anxiety, panic attacks, vertigo, and dizziness.
• Aquaphobia — A pathological, irrational, and persistent fear of water or contact with it, manifested even in situations devoid of actual danger. This structural anxiety disorder can be triggered by the presence of large bodies of water (lakes, seas) or simple daily activities, such as bathing or showering, generating panic attacks and severe avoidance behaviors.
• Ailurophobe — A woman who manifests an intense, pathological, and irrational fear of cats; the feminine form of the term aelurofob. As an adjective, it describes a reaction, manifestation, attitude, or feminine state marked by severe anxiety and a compulsive avoidance behavior toward any visual or physical contact with felines.
• Ailurophobia — A morbid, irrational, persistent, and unjustified fear of cats. This specific anxiety disorder causes severe vegetative reactions (sweating, tachycardia, panic attacks) upon real or imaginary contact with felines, forcing the affected individual to systematically avoid places where these animals might be present.
• Aeroacrophobia — A specific anxiety disorder manifested by a pathological, extreme, and irrational fear of open spaces located at high altitudes, often combined with the fear of flying or falling. This compound phobia blends elements of acrophobia (fear of heights) and aerophobia (fear of air/flying), generating intense panic attacks and severe avoidance behaviors.
• Aerophobic — As a noun or adjective in psychology, it designates a person suffering from aerophobia, exhibiting a pathological and irrational fear of air drafts, fresh air, or flying. In biology, the term describes a microorganism or cell that avoids contact with molecular oxygen, showing anaerobic behavior.
• Aerophobia — A pathological, intense, and irrational fear of air drafts, fresh air, or flying. In psychiatry, it is classified as a specific anxiety disorder; in neurology and infectious diseases, it represents a severe clinical symptom found in the terminal stage of rabies, where an air draft triggers painful muscle spasms.
• Shaking — The act of agitating and its result; the physical process of mixing or intensely shaking a medium, or a psychological state of deep unrest, disturbance, nervousness, and anxiety. In a structural and technical sense, it represents the process of homogenizing fluids in a laboratory, and in a social sense, the act of instigation or active political propaganda.
• Agoraphobic — A person suffering from agoraphobia, characterized by a pathological, obsessive, and uncontrollable fear of open spaces, crowded public areas, or situations from which escape might be difficult or help unavailable during a panic attack; as an adjective, relating to or exhibiting agoraphobia.
• Agoraphobic — The feminine form of the term agorafob; designates a woman who suffers from agoraphobia, experiencing panic states and intense anxiety in open or public spaces, or, as an adjective, a manifestation or reaction marked by this pathological fear.
• Agoraphobia — A severe anxiety disorder characterized by an intense and persistent fear of open spaces, crowded public places, markets, or situations where escape might be difficult or embarrassing, or where help may not be available in the event of a panic attack. It frequently leads to severe avoidance behavior.
• Ailurophobe — A person who manifests an irrational, pathological, and persistent fear of cats; an individual affected by a specific phobia that triggers acute anxiety states upon seeing or contacting felines. As an adjective, it describes a behavior, reaction, or attitude marked by this severe structural aversion.