The anuptaphobia It is a specific phobia where the feared element lies in being single. A person who suffers from this psychological alteration presents an extremely high fear whenever he is exposed to his feared situation, that is, whenever he does not have a partner or thinks that he might not have one.
In order to correctly define this anxiety disorder, it is necessary to know exactly what are the qualities that characterize the fear experienced. In fact, all of us can suffer from a certain fear of being single in many moments of our lives..
Especially in those moments when we end a romantic relationship or begin to have problems with our partner, we can feel a certain fear at the idea of being alone and losing the company that we have had for so long..
In the same way, in certain vital stages that are related to commitment, having children or starting a family, we can also be more predisposed to get nervous at the idea of not having a person with whom to materialize these plans for the future..
However, anuptaphobia goes beyond a simple fear of being single, so the fear that is experienced in this disorder must meet a series of characteristics.
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The fear experienced in anuptaphobia is totally disproportionate to the demands of the situation. This means that the individual who suffers from this type of phobia will experience an extremely high fear, which does not respond to a situation that presents a real danger.
This first diagnostic aspect can be somewhat ambiguous since it is often difficult to define when the fear of not having a partner is disproportionate.
However, in general terms, that fear that is experienced with high sensations of terror can be considered as phobic.
The person who suffers from anuptaphobia is not able to explain why he experiences such heightened feelings of fear at the idea of not having a partner.
Although the individual can carry out logical reasoning about the other aspects of his life, it will be difficult for him to find explanations for the fear he experiences regarding his sentimental situation.
The anuptophobic, like any other person who suffers from an anxiety disorder, is not able to control the feelings of fear that he suffers.
Fear takes over your mind and you are unable to reduce or mitigate it no matter how hard you try to introduce opposing thoughts.
People who suffer from anuptaphobia will try by all means to avoid the situation they fear most, that is, being single.
This manifestation of fear can translate into obsessive partner-seeking behaviors or high resistance to ending a romantic relationship.
This anxiety alteration does not appear in isolation or at specific moments, but remains over time.
Thus, while a person without anuptaphobia may experience fear of being single in delicate moments of their life, the individual who suffers from this phobic disorder will present the fear of not having a partner constantly and permanently.
It is considered that the fear that the person experiences does not fulfill adaptive functions, that is, it does not respond to a real danger or allow the individual to adapt adequately to their environment, rather the opposite.
In order to finish distinguishing anuptaphobia from non-pathological fears of being single, it is very clarifying to attend to the clinical characteristics of this disorder.
In general terms, three main areas that are altered by the presence of anuptaphobia can be defined: the physiological level, the cognitive level and the behavioral level..
Anuptaphobia involves a very high and extremely intense fear response. This activation is characterized by the launch of a whole set of physiological responses produced by an increase in the activity of the central nervous system (ANS)..
The main responses are usually increased heart rate, increased breathing and sweating, muscle tension, pupillary dilation, dry mouth, and in some cases stomach pain, nausea and vomiting..
Thus, on a physical level, it manifests itself through the same activation that people experience when we expose ourselves to an element that can be highly dangerous for our integrity..
On the cognitive level, the individual who suffers from anuptaphobia will display a whole series of beliefs about the feared situation, that is, about the fact of not having a partner. These beliefs are usually characterized by a series of negative attributes as well as pessimistic ideas about one's own coping capacity..
Thoughts like I will never find a partner, I will always be alone, no one will love me or I will never be happy are some of those that may appear more frequently..
Finally, the last element that is essential to delimit the presence of anuptaphobia lies in the affectation that fear has on the conduct and behavior of the person.
Fear, fears and all the manifestations that we have discussed so far directly affect the behavior of the individual.
This may vary in each case, although the most common behaviors are usually resistance to separation, obsessive search for a partner and pessimistic or even depressive behaviors when single.
The fear of not having a partner depends on many different factors, most of them referring to the personality characteristics of the individual. Very frequently, anuptophobics have characteristic features characterized by dependency and celotypy..
The high fear of being single can lead to behaviors and beliefs of dependency, since the person may think that he will only be fine if he is with his partner and deposit his stability in the permanence of the relationship.
Likewise, the fear of losing the sentimental partner can lead to a series of behaviors and behaviors of jealousy, which would belong to the behavioral plane of the disorder.
The relationship between anuptaphobia, and dependency and celotypia can be done from both sides of the coin. Thus, the fear of not having a partner can lead to feelings of dependency and jealousy, in the same way that feelings of dependency and jealousy can lead to anuptaphobia.
In those individuals who witness these three responses, an exhaustive psychological study should be carried out to know the personality characteristics and the development of the pathology..
There are many factors that can play a role in developing anuptaphobia. It is argued that there is no single cause for this type of disorder and that its appearance depends on the conjunction of different factors, most of them environmental.
The most common are those that have to do with conditioning during the early stages of life. Especially, suffering traumatic experiences related to commitment and romantic relationships such as having witnessed a bad separation from parents can be important aspects.
Likewise, it is argued that obtaining verbal information during childhood can also be a relevant element. Having been educated in an environment where too much importance is given to life as a couple, the fact of having children or the formation of a stable family can also predispose to the development of anuptaphobia.
The aforementioned personality traits such as dependency or low self-esteem are other risk factors that can lead to the appearance of the disorder..
Finally, it is agreed that the pressure and social rejection that exists on elderly single people can be factors that increase the prevalence of this disorder.
Anuptaphobia is a disorder that can significantly deteriorate people's lives. The individual with this disorder can be exposed to very high sensations and manifestations of anxiety, which can affect their behavior, their day-to-day life, and especially their quality of life..
In addition, overcoming this alteration without the help of mental health professionals is practically impossible. However, as in most specific phobias, the request for help by individuals with anuptaphobia is not usually common..
Most people who seek psychological help to overcome their phobia do so for one of these three determinants:
One of the most optimistic aspects of anuptaphobia is that it can be overcome and remitted if the appropriate interventions are applied.
In the treatment of this disorder, drugs are not usually used, except in those cases in which the anxiety response is extremely high and the use of anxiolytics is required for stabilization.
Thus, the main intervention to be applied in anuptaphobia is psychotherapy. Specifically, cognitive behavioral therapy can provide techniques that are effective for the treatment of anuptaphobia..
The systematic desensitization technique, exposure in imagination, cognitive therapy and relaxation are the psychological treatments that are used most frequently in this type of alterations..
Through these techniques, the patient is exposed to the feared elements and works to avoid the avoidance response, so that little by little the individual becomes accustomed to their fears and develops skills that allow them to face them.
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