What Does trypophobia Mean
Trypophobia is not a term registered by the Royal Spanish Academy ( RAE ) in its dictionary . The notion alludes to the phobia towards the succession of geometric figures that are very close to each other .
It should be remembered that phobia is an excessive, obsessive and lacking rationality fear that a person experiences of something or someone. In the case of trypophobia, it is not usually officially recognized as a pathology, although many individuals say they are phobic to objects that have many holes or circles together, such as certain fungi and flowers or the honeycombs of bees.
Some experts believe that trypophobia is related to the traditional fear of microorganisms or parasites . The person suffering from trypophobia, when seeing an item full of small holes, may feel itching, itching and nausea. Your image can also cause an increase in the level of anxiety .
One theory holds that this fear is linked to the evolution of the human being . In ancient times, man had to learn to avoid various poisonous animals that, on their skin, had geometric patterns. From that primitive behavior, therefore, trypophobia could come, given the similarity in the appearance of poisonous animals and that of objects where geometric figures are repeated. Trypophobia, in this way, would be present in the genes and would not be acquired.
Despite the doubts of the scientific community about the existence of trypophobia, certain studies affirm that more than 15% of the population experiences this phobia. Therefore it is a fairly common disorder .
While science looks for evidence to decide to believe in the legitimacy of trypophobia or to condemn it to the chest of pseudoscience, the thousands of people who claim to feel this disorder need help, and that is why there are various treatments, some based on therapy and others that are supported by the administration of medications.
Exposure therapy
Through this treatment , the therapist gradually exposes the patient to the stimulus that causes his symptoms, with the aim of helping him control anxiety. There are various tools that the professional uses throughout the sessions, although the most important thing is to gain the confidence of his patient, since exposure therapy only works if he breaks down all his barriers and surrenders completely.
It is not easy for a phobic person to face their fears, even if only in small doses. However, if the therapy works, then with each step the strength of the patient grows and, inversely and proportionally, the object of the phobia weakens. The expected result is the total control of anxiety when seeing any pattern of geometric figures.
Cognitive behavioral therapy
In this case, the objective is to change the thoughts and behaviors that appear before the manifestation of trypophobia. Unlike other therapies, cognitive behavioral therapy focuses on the present , on the way the patient acts at the time of treatment, rather than trying to get to the root of the problem .
Through therapy, the patient acquires a series of skills that allow him to face his difficulties, more precisely his inability to tolerate an image with a high density of geometric figures.
Medicines
First of all, it is important to note that only a psychiatrist can prescribe an anti-trypophobia medication. Among the most common are tranquilizers (used to control the anxiety caused by this and other phobias), beta blockers (to neutralize the effects of adrenaline) and antidepressants (in the most severe cases of trypophobia, to avoid that threatens the normal activity of the patient).