What is Parasitophobia? (An Overview)

In this blog we will discuss the symptoms, causes and treatment of Parasitophobia. 

An intense fear of parasites is called Parasitophobia. It is a type of specific phobia, part of anxiety disorders in the DSM-5.

One feels extremely anxious when in contact with parasites.  

People suffering from Parasitophobia will avoid any possible exposure with parasites.

They do so by the repetitive action of washing and cleaning, to remove any germs/parasites the object/place has in addition to lower their anxiety.

These people, if assume that they contracted parasites can experience extremely high levels of anxiety, followed by full-blown panic attacks.

Parasitophobia is said to be linked with Obsessive-compulsive Disorder (OCD). This is because, in both cases people fear contracting germs/parasites. 

The repeated acts of avoidance, which include washing/cleaning objects/things are the same in both Parasitophobia and OCD. 

However, in OCD the person does these rituals in order to lower the unpleasant feelings caused by the incompletion of these acts.

In Parasitophobia, one does this to actually get rid of parasites.

The DSM-5 suggests that the anxiety or acts of avoidance produced in Parasitophobia affect one’s social and occupational functioning.

For example, if one is fearful of contracting parasites, they are very likely not to go outside the house because of the fear of contracting parasites.

 They might even avoid physical contact with people, such as hugging or hand shaking due to the fear that they might contain pathogens.

They avoid going to parties, hanging out with friends or family or even eating food from restaurants.

They socially distance themselves from others. One may not go to school or work because of the chances of them getting germs/parasites. This affects their careers and academic life.

The sufferer isolates himself, which can result in him developing depression in the future.

Parasitophobia can also lead to the development of social phobia, in which people avoid coming in contact with others.

Which later can turn into Agoraphobia, people avoid going outside their house or in a social setting.

The DSM-5 also claims that for someone to be diagnosed with Parasitophobia, they should experience anxiety lasting for at least 6-months. 

Parasitophobia is an irrational fear of parasites. It is a type of specific phobia in which one avoids getting exposed to parasites. 

Symptoms of Parasitophobia 

Parasites are  potentially harmful to one’s health and should be protected from. But, someone with Parasitophobia takes this potential threat to a higher level.

They feel traumatized when in contact with parasites (or when they think they contracted parasites).

In extreme cases, one suffers from high levels of anxiety by just thinking about their fear stimuli. 

Their fear is not wholly irrational however, the exaggerated sense of threat and anxiety is what makes the sufferer unable to think logically or rationalize their thoughts and actions.

The anxiety can be so extreme that one has panic attacks.

In Parasitophobia, the sufferer goes into flight or fight mode because of an adrenaline rush. In this state, the body’s physiological responses help one make decisions when in fear causing situations.

They either decide to escape the situation (flight)-faint/experience panic attacks or stay and combat their fear (fight)- control their anxiety in a more counterproductive way.

Physiological symptoms that one undergoes in Parasitophobia are: 

  • Extreme anxiety when allegedly in contact with parasites 
  • Extreme anxiety when thinking about contracting parasites 
  • Frequent handwashing
  • Frequently washing objects that you assume contain parasites 
  • Frequent use of hand sanitizers
  • Frequently taking baths
  • Inability to control anxiety
  • Full-blown panic attacks
  • Avoiding going out of the house (in fear of contracting parasites)
  • Indulging in time consuming activities to protect/prepare for parasites
  • Increased heartbeat
  • Breathlessness
  • Muscle tension
  • Tremors
  • Sweating
  • Hot/cold flashes when in a flight or fight mode (A hot flash refers to the temporary heating up of the body when in a state of fear. And a cold flash means when the body suddenly starts to shiver or cool down, when encountered by a fear stimulus).
  • Nausea
  • Headache
  • Feeling of restlessness

In order for someone to be diagnosed with Parasitophobia, one must experience at least 3-5 of these symptoms, including anxiety. 

Causes of Parasitophobia 

Parasitophobia, like all other specific phobias, has no known cause.

These types of phobias can be a result of a number of factors such as biological (genetics) and or environmental (past experiences or social learning).

Genetics refers to the genes and neurotransmitters in our body.

Someone with a family history of a phobia/mental disorder has a higher chance of having the same or different disorder in the future.

This is because the genes of the parents are transferred to their children, thus any alteration in the genes of one’s parents is inherited by the child.

This genetic tendency to develop a mental disorder/specific phobia can also be referred to as a Diathesis-stress relationship.

According to this, one with a genetic predisposition will not develop symptoms of Parasitophobia until and unless there is some trigger event, instigating anxiety or fear of parasites. 

As mentioned earlier, one can develop Parasitophobia as a result of OCD.

Thus, someone who is already diagnosed with this disorder is more likely to have this irrational fear of parasites. 

An environmental trigger event can be for example, a traumatic childhood experience with parasites.

Someone who developed a health problem by contracting parasites from somewhere might fear them for the rest of their life.

Their fear intensified may be because they had a near death experience due to their illness.

Maybe they heard someone else, in their family or outside, who suffered an illness because they were infected by parasites.

A child might have lived in an area with hygiene issues, therefore, they are more likely to be afraid of going through the same problems they did earlier in life because of parasites.

Parasitophobia can also develop due to the way the media reports news about people dying by suffering from diseases caused by parasites.

The official stats of the ever rising mortality rates (because of parasites) are also a major cause for one to fear parasites.

Thus, Parasitophobia is caused by both a genetic predisposition and environmental trigger events. 

Treatment of Parasitophobia 

Parasitophobia, like all other specific phobias, has no exclusive type of treatment that is specifically designed to treat it.

Like all the other specific phobias, Parasitophobia is treated by a number of different therapies including, Exposure Therapy, Cognitive-behavioral Therapy (CBT) and or medications that lower downs the anxiety or other physical symptoms.

• Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

It is one of the most frequently used treatments for patients with almost all kinds of mental disorders. Parasitophobia is defined as the irrational fear of parasites.

Thus, the therapist helps the patient in replacing these irrational thoughts with more rational ones.

The patients are helped out in analyzing and justifying the way they feel about contracting a parasite.

Therapists assist them in uncovering the reasons behind their fear and later they provide them with alternate, pleasant thoughts.

The patient is told to maintain a thought diary (with ABCD column) which provides them a replacement for every irrational thought they have, when thinking about a particular situation.

The ABCD stands for:

i.      A (antecedents) a situation or triggering event.

ii.     B (belief) the thought that comes to one’s mind when in that triggering situation.

iii.    C (consequences) the symptoms/feelings caused by that event/thought

iv.    D (dispute) alternate, rational thoughts provided by the therapist in an attempt to    dispute/challenge those irrational beliefs.

This last section of the thought diary is what really plays a role in helping the person feel good/less anxious. 

• Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)

MBSR is a meditation therapy, used to manage stress or anxiety. It is an 8-week program which includes group sessions.

Mindfulness meditation and Hatha yoga are practiced in these sessions. Lectures and group discussions are also done to talk about mental health and increase interactivity.

In mindfulness meditation the person is told to, for example, to focus on the sensations felt while breathing or the rhythm of the chest rising and falling during the process.

This distracts the person’s attention from something stressful to something which is neutral and soothing.

For quick and effective treatment, patients are also given a set of home works, for example 45 minutes of yoga and meditation sessions for 6 days a week and to record their results/feelings in a book or diary for 15 minutes a day.

• Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)

This is another effective therapy used to treat Parasitophobia.

It is more commonly used with people suffering from personality disorders, but is also useful with patients suffering from this type of specific phobias.

Coping skills are taught in the DBT group which lasts for about 6-months and can have a number of people (depending on how many join the group).

         i.       Half-smiling is the first module of DBT. It is a technique that is used with patients who are distressed because of their irrational thoughts.

The technique is known as ‘Half-smiling’ because the person is first advised to think about the stimuli that fears or upsets them, and while doing so they are told to lift the corners of their mouths by subtly smiling.

Smiling is not that will help one get rid of these unpleasant thoughts, it is the person’s ability to constrain itself from thinking about those thoughts while half smiling.

       ii.        Mindfulness, the second module, is another technique used in DBT groups which helps the individual in getting rid of those negative thoughts.

Individuals are told to focus on the present and be attentive to what is going on around them at the moment.

This helps in breaking the link between their mind and any negative thought that might come to them then. 

For example, a person is told to focus on his breath or on the smell of a certain food presented to them, making use of their olfactory sense.

      iii.        The third technique or module of the DBT is distress tolerance skills. This module teaches people to calm themselves down in healthy ways when they are distressed or emotionally overwhelmed.

Individuals are allowed to make wise, rational decisions and take immediate action, rather than being captured by emotionally destructive thoughts that might make the situation worse.

Reality acceptance skills are also learnt under this model so that people fully accept reality and later make plans on how to address the problem.

• Yoga/Meditation

They are not just one of the many treatment therapies used for Parasitophobia, instead they are one of the most common ways of relaxation used by many people.

Yoga tends to stimulate the meditative state of one’s mind while the person is in a particular yoga posture.

Through yoga/meditation the mind is diverted towards something more productive and calm, allowing the person to escape the negative, distress causing thoughts.

Out of a number of yoga types, one can benefit from any yoga type/pose they like. Hatha yoga is one of the different types of yoga.

The breathing techniques or the imagery one creates while in a yoga posture are the real factors that makes the person feel less anxious and diverts their mind, away from the thoughts about parasites. 

• Drug Therapy

Drugs are used to reduce the physical symptoms caused by Parasitophobia.

Drugs are very quick in effectiveness, as they start showing progress in the patients’ health at least 2 weeks after the medicine is taken.

This type of biological treatment is usually more effective if the cause of the phobia is only genetic.

However, these drugs/medicines are not to be taken without a doctor’s prescription or consultation.

Two types of drugs are used in the treatment of this phobia:

                    i. Anti-anxiety Drugs

Medicines like Klonopin are anti-anxiety drugs. They are most commonly used with patients who experience panic attacks and also lowers their anxiety by binding to receptor cells of the brain that cause these unpleasant symptoms.

                   ii.         Antidepressant Drugs

These drugs, as the name suggests don’t only treat depression but are also very effective in treating phobias.

Medicines like Paxil reduce the anxious feelings of a person and makes him feel calm. They need to be taken on a daily basis but not without a doctor’s advice.

Whether the cause of Parasitophobia, or any other type of specific phobia is genetics, environmental or both, the best and the most effective way of treating them is by using a combination of both biological treatments (drugs) with cognitive treatment (for example CBT/exposure therapy).

Titles to read 

by Karen Disher Stremke

by John S. March and Karen Mulle Friesen

by Corinne Sweet

by Elena Welsh PhD

by Patrizia Collard

Frequently Asked Questions 

Q1) Is Parasitophobia a mental illness?

It is a specific phobia which coms under the category of anxiety disorders in the DSM-5.

It is lined with Obsessive-compulsive disorder because individuals repeatedly avoid coming in contact with parasites as this instigates anxiety.

Therefore, yes it can be regarded as a mental illness/disorder.

Q3) Do I have Parasitophobia?

The symptoms of Parasitophobia are extreme anxiety when thinking about parasites, repeatedly cleaning and washing objects that might contain germs/parasites, spending a considerable amount of time daily in order to prepare for any contact with parasites Physiological symptoms include, nausea, hyperventilation etc.

Q4) How do you treat Parasitophobia?

It is treated by a number of cognitive therapies which include exposure therapy, CBT, mindfulness and or medication.

Phobias A-z

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

Phobias beginning with A
ABLUTOPHOBIA
Acarophobia
Achluophobia
ACOUSTICOPHOBIA
Acrophobia
Aeroacrophobia
Aerophobia
Agoraphobia
Agoraphobia
Agoraphobia
Agoraphobia
AGORAPHOBIA
Agraphobia
Agrizoophobia
AICHMOPHOBIA
ALEKTOROPHOBIA
ALGOPHOBIA
Alliumphobia
Allodoxaphobia
Amathophobia
Amaxophobia
Ambulophobia
Amychophobia
Anablephobia
Anatidaephobia
Ancraophobia
Androphobia
Anginophobia
Angrophobia
Anthophobia
Anthropophobia
Antlophobia
Anuptaphobia
Apeirophobia
Aphenphosmphobia
Apotemnophobia
Arachibutyrophobia
Arachnophobia
Arsonphobia
Asthenophobia
Astrophobia
Ataxophobia
Atelophobia
Atephobia
Athazagoraphobia
Athazagoraphobia
Atheophobia
Aulophobia
Aurophobia
Automysophobia
Autophobia
Phobias beginning with B
Ballistophobia
Barophobia
Basophobia
Bathmophobia
Bathophobia
Bibliophobia
Blennophobia
Bogyphobia
Botanophobia
Brontophobia
Bufonophobia
Phobias beginning with C
Cacophobia
Cancerophobia
Cardiophobia
Carnophobia
Catagelophobia
Chaetophobia
Chemophobia
Cherophobia
CHIONOPHOBIA
Chiraptophobia
Chirophobia
Chiroptophobia
Chorophobia
Chrometophobia
Chromophobia
Chronomentrophobia
Chronophobia
Claustrophobia
Cleithrophobia
Cnidophobia
Coimetrophobia
Consecotaleophobia
Coprophobia
Coronaphobia
Coulrophobia
Cryophobia
Cyanophobia
Cyclophobia
Cymophobia
Cynophobia
Phobias beginning with D
Decidophobia
Deipnophbia
Dementophobia
Demonophobia
Dendrophobia
Dentophobia
Dermatophobia
Dextrophobia
Dinophobia
Dipsophobia
Dishabiliophobia
Disposophobia
Doraphobia
Dromophobia
Dystychiphobia
Phobias beginning with E
Ecclesiophobia
Ecophobia
Eisoptrophobia
Electrophobia
Eleutherophobia
Emetophobia
Enetophobia
Enissophobia
Enochlophobia
Eosophobia
Ephebiphobia
Epistemophobia
Equinophobia
Eremophobia
Ergophobia
Erotophobia
Erythrophobia
Euphobia
Phobias beginning with F
Fear
Fear of Bald People
fear of eating in public
Fear of Jumping
Fear of life
Fear of Mirror
Fear of Mushrooms
Francophobia
Fruit phobia
Phobias beginning with G
Gamophobia
Gatophobia
Geliophobia
Geniophobia
Genuphobia
Gephyrophobia
Germanophobia
Gerontophobia
Glossophobia
Graphophobia
Phobias beginning with H
Hadephobia
Hagiophobia
Harpaxophobia
Heliophobia
Hellenologophobia
Hemophobia
Herpetophobia
Hexakosioihexekontahexaphobia
Hobophobia
Hodophobia
Homichlophobia
Hoplophobia
Hormephobia
Hydrophobophobia
Hygrophobia
Hylophobia
Hypegiaphobia
Hypengyophobia
Phobias beginning with I
Iatrophobia
Ichthyophobia
Ideophobia
Insectophobia
Iophobia
Phobias beginning with J
Japanophobia
Phobias beginning with K
Kakorrhaphiophobia
Katsaridaphobia
Kenophobia
Kleptophobia
Koinoniphobia
Kolpophobia
Kopophobia
Kosmikophobia
Phobias beginning with L
Lachanophobia
Leukophobia
Levophobia
Lilapsophobia
Limnophobia
Linonophobia
Liticaphobia
Logizomechanophobia
Logophobia
Lutraphobia
Phobias beginning with M
Macrophobia
Mageirocophobia
Mastigophobia
Mechanophobia
Megalophobia
Melissophobia
Melophobia
Merinthophobia
Metallophobia
Metathesiophobia
Metrophobia
Microphobia
Mnemophobia
Mottephobia
Mycophobia
Myrmecophobia
Mysophobia
Mythophobia
Phobias beginning with N
Negrophobia
Nelophobia
Nelophobia
Nephophbia
Noctiphobia
Nosocomephobia
Nosophobia
Nostophobia
Novercaphobia
Nucleomituphobia
Nudophobia
Numerophobia
Nyctohylophobia
Phobias beginning with O
Obesophobia
Ochophobia
Octophobia
Odontophobia
Oenophobia
Olfactophobia
Ommetaphobia
Omphalophobia
Oneirogmophobia
Oneirophobia
Onomatophobia
Ophidiophobia
Ornithophobia
Orthophobia
Ostraconophobia
Phobias beginning with P
Panophobia
Papaphobia
Papyrophobia
Parasitophobia
Paraskevidekatriaphobia
Parenthophobia
Pediculophobia
Pediophobia
Pedophobia
Peniaphobia
Phallophobia
Pharmacophobia
Phasmophobia
Phengophobia
Philophobia
Philosophobia
Phobic Disorder
Phronemophobia
Plutophobia
Pluviophobia
Pnigophobia
Pocrescophobia
Pogonophobia
Polyphobia
Ponophobia
Pornphobia
Porphyrophobia
Psychophobia
Pteronophobia
Pupaphobia
Pyrophobia
Phobias beginning with Q
Quadrophobia
Phobias beginning with R
Rectophobia
Rhytiphobia
Rupophobia
Phobias beginning with S
Samhainophobia
Sanguivoriphobia
Scatophobia
Scelerophobia
Scholiononophobia
Sciophobia
Scoleciphobia
Scopophobia
Scotomaphobia
Scriptophobia
Selachophobia
Selaphobia
Selenophobia
Sesquipedalophobia
Siderodromophobia
Sitophobia
Soceraphobia
Sociophobia
Somniphobia
Soteriophobia
Spacephobia
Spectrophobia
Spheksophobia
Submechanophobia
Suriphobia
Syngenesophobia
Phobias beginning with T
Tachophobia
Taphephobia
Taurophobia
Telephonophobia
Testophobia
Thaasophobia
Thalassophobia
Thantophobia
Thermophobia
Tomophobia
Topophobia
Traumatophobia
Triskaidekaphobia
Tropophobia
Trypanophobia
Trypophobia
Tyrannophobia
Phobias beginning with U
Urophobia
Phobias beginning with V
Venustraphobia
Vestiphobia
Virginitiphobia
Vitricophobia
Phobias beginning with W
Wiccaphobia
Phobias beginning with X
Xanthophobia
Xenoglossophobia
Xerophobia
Xylophobia
Xyrophobia
Phobias beginning with Z
Zelophobia
Zemmiphobia
Zeusophobia
Zoophobia

Citations 

  • www.psychtimes.com
  • www.apa.org
  • www.psychologytoday.com