What is Mythophobia? (An Overview)

In this blog we will discuss the causes, symptoms and treatments of Mythophobia.

Mythophobia is an irrational fear of myths or false statements. It is the fear of myths, stories or people making false statements.

The word comes from the Greek word ‘mytho’ meaning “story”, and ‘phobos’, meaning “fear”.

Mythology are tales and anecdotes belonging to certain  religions and cultures. 

The Mythophobes would disbelieve every story. They fear the gods depicted in their mythological fanfare, as they cannot determine if there is an element of fact or not. 

They will avoid all theatrical and movie displays of these mythologies. Additionally to this they fear that they will be lied to and do not believe people very easily, or not at all.

Mythophobia is an intense fear of myths and makes the sufferer avoid contact with cultural events regarding their mythological tales and a mistrust in people is also seen.

Symptoms of Mythophobia

To avoid the experience of anxiety itself the individual may develop Mythophobia, so as to avoid the very cause of the uncomfortable condition.

Even the image of mythological characters brings about the symptoms with an intensity that reels the sufferer. 

• Anxiety at the thought of going to a religious or cultural social gathering (if the religion deals with myths)
• Anxiety at the thought of rejecting opportunities that could lead to positive life changes due to fear of myths and falsehood

Physical Symptoms

These are intense and can begin without any prior warning.

The person suffering from Cherophobia experiences the full physical intensity of either all of these or some of these in combination with others.

• hot flashes or chills
• headaches
• sweating
• trembling
• shortness of breath a choking sensation
• rapid heartbeat (tachycardia)
• nausea
• dizziness
• feeling faint
• numbness 
• dry mouth
• ringing in ears
• confusion 
• hyperventilation
• raised blood pressure

The Psychological Symptoms

During panic attack the person suffering from  Mythophobia may experience the following

• fear of fainting
• feelings of dread
• fear of dying
• huilt
• shame
• fear of losing control
• fear of harm
• fear of illness
• self-blame
• withdrawn
• feeling Of hopelessness
• feeling of disconnect
• confusion
• lack of concentration
• anger
• irritability
• mood swings

Causes of Mythophobia

As with most phobias and anxieties, there is no clear consensus about what causes  Mythophobia.

The most common explanation is a childhood traumatic episode where a child may have experienced an accident that might have involved some mythological characters in a ceremony or a religious ceremony.

They may also be scared of the physical descriptions of each mythological character.

Plus they would have been lied to at a point in their life and now have developed a fear of being lied to again.

People suffering from Mythophobia are also reluctant to meet new people and shy away from most of them, feelings of shame of not being able to adjust and guilt of staying away from an important event is very prominent.

People may also be afraid of losing control because this is something that is not in their hands and not controlled by them, no matter how powerful a person is.

Thus, at the time he is suffering from the symptoms of Mythophobia, he/she feels totally helpless, aggravating their already hiked anxiety.

There are plenty of people with  Mythophobia who cannot even recall the traumatic incident that would have developed this fear.

Scientists believe that a combination of genetic tendencies, brain chemistry, and other biological and environmental factors could cause such fears to develop. 

As is common in specific phobias, the cause of Mythophobia may lie deep in the person’s childhood or its onset may be due to an environmental factor.

Genetics also plays a pivotal role in the cause of developing  Mythophobia.

Other causes can be as follow:

• Learned behavior

• Traumatic experiences

Etiological Models of  Mythophobia

1. Biological (Genetic) Model

Genetics also determines how a person reacts and feels. Therefore, people inherit fears and phobias as well from their families.

The brain cells (neurons) release certain chemicals called neurotransmitters.

Serotonin and Dopamine are two neurotransmitters that in depleted states can cause anxiety like symptoms.

2. Psychodiagnostics Model

If a person has suffered from a traumatic experience in early childhood it can have a severe dire impact on his later life. 

A childhood traumatic experience could be where children experienced a negative impact of events due to a change in their life.

This may leave a long lasting impression. Therefore to avoid this anxiety they start fearing and evading what they fear.

The intensity is more because they know that death cannot be avoided, only the thought of it can be.

3. Behavioral Model

According to this model, irrational fears may be caused through behaviors that are learned by replication.

Children often replicate unique behaviors of their adults, parents or a favorite aunt or uncle.

If a family member is already suffering from anxiety or is scared of one or another thing, then chances are higher that only by observing this, the child may develop fears.

Treatments of Mythophobia

Mythophobia can be treated through different treatments.

These include Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), Exposure Therapy, Neuro Linguistic Program (NLP), Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction MBSR) and forms of meditation.

1) Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT)

In CBT the therapist helps the client to amend his thoughts so that a desirable behavior can be achieved.

This therapy is effective, because if the thoughts or cognitions alter then there will be a lasting impact on behavior.

The therapist helps the client to discover the reason for this thought, his behavior in regards to changes in life. This therapy is goal oriented and short termed.

Therefore, the results are seen soon. It changes the way a person thinks and feels.

CBT does not focus on probing the past to resolve current problems, rather it concentrates on the present situation. 

Our thoughts determine how we act or react to certain stimuli and situations. Therefore, negative thoughts bring about a negative behavior response or an undesirable behavior.

Whereas, positive thoughts propagate desirable and healthy attitude and response.

For the treatment of  Mythophobia, the therapist separates the problem into parts. These may include: thoughts, feelings and actions. 

1. What thought is invoked at the thought of myths?
2. How do you feel when you see mythological  characters?
3. What do you do when you see the mythological characters? 

Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) is a form of CBT and designed by Albert Ellis. According to Ellis, “people are not disturbed by things but rather by their view of things.”

This is what subjective perspective is. 

In Mythophobia, the person thinks of myths and being lied to and gets anxious.

2 Exposure Therapy

It is one of the most frequently used ways of treating patients with  Mythophobia.

In this therapy, the patient is exposed to the source of his fear over a certain span of time.

To begin with the therapy, the therapist exposes the patient to the least triggering stimuli.  

As the therapy progresses and the patient is able to control his anxious feelings, imagery can be used to take the treatment a step further.

In this part of the treatment the patient is asked to visualize/imagine a situation in which he is with mythological gods or characters.

During this process of imagery, one actually feels being in that particular situation or place, experiencing various senses.

Once the person successfully, without feeling anxious clears this step of the therapy, he is then exposed to a real time stimulus.

While the patient is being exposed to different intensities of stimuli during the various stages of therapy, the therapist simultaneously teaches them coping exercises.

These include, breathing techniques or muscle relaxation methods to lower their anxiety, when in an actual fear/anxiety causing situation.

This teaches them how to remain calm when exposed to the fear stimuli.

Before actually starting the exposure therapy, the therapist needs to figure out the intensity of the patient’s fear, as to deduce whether they will be able to undergo this treatment, without any physical or psychological harm caused to them during the exposure processes.

3) Neuro Linguistic Program (NLP)

In this therapy the client is asked to 

1. Access the phobia in a safe environment.
2. Help them to replay the phobia along with happy emotions.
3. Disassociate from the phobia.

4) Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)

MBSR involves being aware of one’s own thoughts, feelings and reducing the interference from around the environment.

We do not pay attention to how we process the various stimuli that affect us. 

We do not process the way our bodies feel and respond, there is no focus on our thoughts and how these thoughts are influencing our emotions. 

In MBSR, the client is ‘woken up’ to actually experience the various senses. ‘Focus’ is the keyword!

5) Meditation

For meditation to be effective during treatment, the mind is cleared off all the clutter of random thoughts.

The mind and body are made to be ‘in sync’ with each other, so that the feared stimulus does not invoke a negative thought.

The client will meditate during the thoughts of death and concentrate on his breathing patterns in the presence of the feared stimulus. 

6) Self-Help Groups

Self Help groups are an effective type of therapy, in which the client does not find himself as a lone sufferer.

These groups are individuals who are afflicted with the same types of phobias. 

They come together to share their thoughts, experiences and their coping strategies. This also helps in developing a ‘sense of I am not the only one’ suffering.

7) Changing Lifestyle

Breaking down the dullness of the daily, helps break down anxiety as well. 

• Take up jogging or go for daily walks:

Developing a walk routine can damper the way our negative thoughts control our behavior.

• Indulging in an exercise regime:

Vigorous exercise like aerobics has proved to reduce or alleviate the symptoms of stress and anxiety.

Exercise helps the mind to cope with stress and stressful situations better.

This is what the American Psychological Association has to say about inducting exercise to eliminate stress or phobias.

• Altering eating and drinking habits:

Cutting down on fatty foods and caffeine can improve self-image, that in turn leads to a raised self-esteem.

This finally diminishes the symptoms of stress to a bare minimum. With high intake of caffeine, the body resembles a ‘fight or flight’ response, thus giving way to anxiety.

• Improving the sleep cycle:

When we get proper rest, our concentration improves. 

8) Psychiatric Medication 

There are a number of medicines that the Psychiatrist can prescribe if the symptoms of  Mythophobia are severe.

Anxiolytics (anti-anxiety drugs)

These should only be taken after the consultation with the doctor and shouldn’t be initiated or discontinued as per personal discretion.

Antidepressants 

These medicines are not only used to treat depression, but also to alleviate the symptoms of  Mythophobia as well as other phobias.

Medicines alone might not be as effective, but if used in conjunction with therapies then the results will be better. 

9)  Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)

This kind of therapy is used to regulate the emotions.

A technique called “half-smiling” is used where the client is asked to lift the corners of his mouth when the feared thought comes to his mind.

Apart from this the mind is to be trained to refrain from thinking about the painful stimulus.

Coping Ahead is another technique in DBT that requires the client to sit quietly and think of the feared situation and strategize what he will do.

We are always here to answer if you have any queries.

Frequently Asked Questions

Phobias A-z

Below is a complete list of all Phobias which we currently cover.

Citations 

• www.psychtimes.com
• www.fearof.net
• www.amazon.com
• www.apa.org
• www.albertellis.com