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Mindfulness and meditation.

While retreating from the source of your phobia brings short-term relief of the anxiety, it doesn't help you deal with it in the long term. True, some phobias are harder to deal with than others. But the best thing for you to do for your mental health in the long run is to practice anti-anxiety techniques, especially when confronted with a phobia you can't escape.

Deep, controlled breathing is the #1 thing to do. It's the foundation that everything else builds upon. One commonly-recommended breathing strategy is called 4-7-8 breathing: breathe in through your nose as you count to four, then start back at one hold the breath in as you count to seven, then start back at one and let the breath out slowly as you count to eight, and repeat this as long as necessary. Your goal is to clear your mind -- but don't try to force yourself to not think of anything; rather, if thoughts come to your mind, acknowledge them and return to concentrating on counting. This helps to combat the stress response in the body and to focus the mind on something other than the source of anxiety.

It helps to reassure yourself that you are in fact safe where you are. Acknowledge that you are afraid ("don't be stupid" is a very bad kind of thought for this) and remind yourself that your body's fear response does not mean that you're in danger. Obviously this is easier for some kinds of phobias than other -- I don't know what your specific phobia is, but it's easier to say "most clowns aren't murderers" than "that giant spider isn't going to hurt me".

Intentionally exposing yourself to your phobia in a controlled, comfortable setting where you CAN retreat when you can't manage the anxiety anymore is a good way to work on this.

The goal isn't to get rid of the phobia entirely or to dismiss it as meaningless. The goal is to establish that you are in control of your self, and that you can continue to function in the presence of the phobia.