Friday the 13th – Fear or Phobia?

It’s Friday the 13^th! 

Did you change a flight? Or move a project deadline to avoid jinxing its success. Whether or not you’re superstitious, it’s safe to assume you’ll dodge black cats and ladders on that dreaded day…just in case the urban legends are true. 

Friday the 13^th is the only day people suffer from paraskevidekatriaphobia – the morbid, irrational fear of the date. 

Do you suffer from a bona fide phobia or are you just spooked? 

“It’s in our nature to do what other people in our environment do,” said Dr. Britta Ostermeyer, chief of psychiatry at Ben Taub General Hospital and the Harris County Hospital District. “If we see that other people are concerned about certain events, we tend to become concerned as well.”

Fear is the normal response to genuine danger. Meanwhile a phobia is a type of anxiety disorder – a strong, excessive, irrational fear of something that poses little or no actual danger. 

“A phobia is a mental disorder that causes enormous anxiety and distress for a person,” Ostermeyer said. “It essentially interferes with a person’s life – disturbing daily functions.”

The American Psychiatric Institute for Research and Education estimates 7.8 percent of American adults have phobias. They are the most common psychiatric illnesses among women of all ages and are the second most common among men older than 25. 

Phobias may cause a person to avoid common places, circumstances or objects, even though they logically know there isn’t any danger. In fact, the person might even panic at the idea of coming in contact with the source of their phobia. 

If a person suffers from any phobia – whether of Friday the 13^th or of heights – Ostermeyer suggests seeking medical help when it interferes with daily activities. 

“Treatment for phobias can involve behavioral therapy, which entails systematic de-sensitization,” Ostermeyer said. “In therapy, patients will gradually confront their fear, until their anxiety is gone.” 

While some are dreading this Friday, Ostermeyer is looking forward to it. After all, 13 is her lucky number. 

“Whenever 13 came up for me, it has turned out well,” Ostermeyer said. “If you have a positive outlook, then, indeed, good things might happen.” 

So whether it’s just a fear or actual paraskevidekatriaphobia, don’t worry— there are only two more days this year April 13 and July 13 where you’ll have to hide under the covers to avoid the dreaded day.

HCHD Accepting Applications for Summer Junior Volunteers

The Harris County Hospital District’s Volunteer and Guest Services Department is accepting applications for its Summer Junior Volunteer Program. 

The program is open to students who are entering grades 9-12 and are 14 to 18 years of age. 

HCHD volunteers work at Ben Taub General Hospital, Lyndon B. Johnson General Hospital, Quentin Mease Community Hospital and in the hospital district’s community health centers.

Duties range from being a hospitality host/greeter and performing clinical duties to assissting in a nursing station.

The program runs from June 13 to Aug. 19. Students must commit to volunteer eight of the program’s 10 weeks. 

To apply, students are required to fill out an application, write an essay and include a personal letter of reference. The students and a parent or guardian also must attend orientation. 

Applications must be submitted by Friday, March 30, 2012. No exceptions. Incomplete applications will not be processed. Space is limited, so apply early!

Please return your completed paperwork to the Harris County Hospital District Volunteer and Guest Services Intake Coordinator via fax 713-440-5505; or scan and e-mail to volunteer@hchd.tmc.edu or mail to Volunteer Services  1504 Taub Loop  Houston, TX  77030.

HCHD’s School of Diagnostic Medical Imaging Accepting Applications

The Harris County Hospital District’s School of Diagnostic Medical Imaging is accepting applications for its programs of Diagnostic Medical Radiography and Diagnostic Medical Sonography. 

“These unique hospital-based programs provide students the valuable opportunity to train with leading-edge technology at Ben Taub and Lyndon B. Johnson general hospitals,” said Cleveland Black, PhD, administrative director, Learning and Resource Center. 

The deadline for the radiography and sonography programs is March 31. 

Students learn alongside physicians from The University of Texas Medical School at Houston and Baylor College of Medicine at HCHD’s Level I and III trauma centers. 

Interested applicants are encouraged to attend an information session at 9250 Kirby, Suite 1800, Houston, Texas 77054, on the following dates in the radiology classroom: 

Dates and times for the 2012 information sessions are:

• January 11, 5 p.m.
• February 15, 5 p.m.
• March 7, 5 p.m.
• March 24, 10 a.m.

For more information, call 713-634-1550.