The cockroach phobia or blatophobia is an irrational and persistent fear of these insects, being something unjustified and very debilitating, affecting the quality of life of the people who suffer it.
The rejection of this insect can be due to multiple factors: such as their anatomical structure, their ability to transmit diseases, the fact that they feed on putrefaction or that some are capable of flying..
For many people, this phobia can lead to obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), causing a constant picture of insecurity for fear of a cockroach appearing at any time.
Avoid basements or dark places, do not trust summer accommodation or preventive hobbies such as preventing sheets or curtains from touching the floor, limit the daily life of those affected.
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Many people wonder what the technical name for fear of cockroaches is. At the moment the closest thing would be katsaridaphobia, Anglo-Saxon term that has not yet been accepted in our language.
Thus, entomophobia could be the most specific name for Spanish. However, it should be noted that this term covers the fear of all types of insects, either spiders and scorpions (arachnophobia), moths and butterflies (motephobia) or bees (apiphobia).
In turn, entomophobia is within another broader group of phobias, which includes all animals and is called zoophobia. This already ranges from the fear of dogs (cinophobia) to toads (buffonophobia), among others.
As with other phobias, depending on the degree of affection of the person, the symptoms that are experienced can be of a greater or lesser degree. For this, the mental state and other binding characteristics of the individual must be taken into account..
Some of the most common and prominent symptoms for this disorder are:
In this home video you will be able to see some of the symptoms that a girl suffers when she is aware that there is a cockroach in one of the rooms of her home.
As we mentioned before, sometimes the individual can develop Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) which is reflected when he puts all the means to guarantee that these insects are outside his closest circle. To do this, they constantly use insecticides or traps in their homes, carry out constant sweeping or brushing of carpets, rugs, appliances or the bathroom, etc..
The reasons for being afraid of cockroaches will depend on the individual, as with the symptoms. The onset of the disorder can come at any time in your life, so no one is free from suffering from this phobia.
The reason for this is that, like most phobias, they can develop after suffering a traumatic episode, something to which you are exposed for life.
However, the vast majority of these events usually occur during childhood. Very rare are cases that develop in adult stages.
The evolutionary cause is also very present and is considered by the scientific community. Our prehistoric ancestors were programmed to be alert to possible predators or enemies that robbed them while they slept in caves, an ideal place for cockroaches, which love warmth and darkness to live.
Family conditioning is an issue that scientists do not agree to today. While some think that it is linked to genetics and that if you have family members with a phobia of cockroaches or another insect, they will more likely develop that fear, others believe that it is simply a response conditioned by what they observe at home (negative experience ).
For whatever reason, the fear of cockroaches has a certain success in its cure fortunately. Psychology and its professionals play and have played an important role and the methods are increasingly more effective for their repeal.
The first step will undoubtedly be to put yourself in the hands of an expert, who will first verify if your fear of cockroaches is a phobia or is simply a repulsion towards them. If you really suffer from the disorder, you will most likely follow some of the therapies that we expose you below.
Awareness technique by which the affected person will be gradually exposed to their fear. It includes looking at photos of cockroaches, seeing one of them from afar, touching a dead one, staying alone with one of them, touching it while it is alive, etc. It is the most common overcoming method in entomophobia or zoophobia.
It consists of the restructuring of the negative thought that one has about the element that is truly afraid of. Thanks to techniques such as biofeedback or certain relaxation techniques, thoughts and behaviors towards cockroaches will be modified eliminating any trace of terror.
NLP is intended to get to the root of why you are afraid of the cockroach. As we mentioned earlier in the causes section, the reasons may be quite different, but if we approach the origin of the trauma, we will be able to convert the irrational fear into a situation of calm and relaxation..
For this, a combination of psychotherapy, personal development and communication will be carried out that will modify the behaviors or abilities of the individual suffering from the disorder..
Not long ago, virtual reality is occupying a lot of relevance in our society thanks to the high development it is experiencing. But this application is not only used for leisure, but can also be used in the treatment of phobias and other mental illnesses.
Specifically, the Laboratory of Psychology and Technology (LABPSITEC) of the Jaume I University developed in 2009 a system for treating fear of spiders and cockroaches through virtual reality.
This would be similar to exposure therapy, where the patient gradually confronts fear with a therapist, but with the difference that he feels safer thanks to the fact that everything is virtual.
This therapy is only used in very extreme cases, something that is usually rare. If the patient suffers from anxiety, long-lasting or severe panic attacks and unusual reactions that damage the health of the affected person, if antidepressants (SSRIs), anxiolytics or anticonvulsants could be used.
With them, you could improve the state of panic and produce a feeling of calm, but you also risk the possible side effects that derive from taking these drugs.
Are you also one of those people who cannot bear to be in the same place with a cockroach? Tell us about your experiences with these insects!
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