What Is Philosophobia? (A Summary)

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

Philosophobia is an irrational fear of Philosophy and philosophers. It is a unique fear of one of the disciplines of knowledge.

Philosophy is the general study of fundamental knowledge about existence. It also encompasses the mind, values, reason and language.

Fearing such a domain that is an in depth study is highly irrational, but then the phobias are not based on rationality.

People suffering from Philosophobia may also fear the philosophers who have contributed to the thinking paradigms.

Philosophobia may be related to Ideophobia, where the ideas presented by philosophers as Socrates, Plato and Aristotle to name a few, present a kind of fear, larger than life fear.

Philosophobia is an intense fear of philosophy and philosophers, leaving the person suffering with immense anxiety and experiencing a full-blown panic attack when the thought occurs.

Symptoms of Philosophobia

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders-5th Edition (DSM-V) suggests a number of symptoms one suffers from in all specific phobias, including Philosphobia.

This irrational fear of philosophy is a part of anxiety disorders, thus anxiety is it’s focal symptom.

It aggravates other physiological symptoms, such as heart rate, breathing rate and one’s mood.

These symptoms persuade the repetitive acts of avoidance as mentioned earlier.

Because each individual experiences Philosophobia differently (based on their past experiences), one will suffer from more severe symptoms , as compared to someone else.

According to the DSM-V, anxiety that one experiences in Philosophobia should last for at least 6-months.

Other than this, one should also suffer from 3-5 symptoms for the list mentioned below.

Excessive anxiety when exposed to philosophy
Excessive anxiety when thinking about philosophy
Inability to manage anxiety
Full-blown panic attacks
Avoiding philosophy
Increased heart beat
Breathlessness
Muscle tension
Nausea
Feelings of dizziness/fainting
Feeling depressed
Fear of an impending doom
Excessive sweating
Tremors
Hot/cold flashes
Butterflies in the stomach
Drying up of the mouth
Disorientation
Migraine

Causes of Philosophobia

It is argued that all anxiety disorders, including specific phobias have no real cause.

They are caused by either a genetic predisposition and or environmental factors.

According to the genetic/biological model, specific phobias are developed due to a genetic predisposition.

Someone who has a family history of anxiety disorder has a higher chance of developing Philosophobia.

This is because any alteration in the genes of his parents will be transferred to him.

This genetic tendency to develop a specific phobia is further explained by the Diathesis-stress relationship.

This suggests that someone with a genetic predisposition will develop Philosophobia only in the presence of the correct environmental trigger event.

Those environmental trigger events refer to the past-traumatic experiences associated with one’s fear stimuli.

For example, a student of Philosophy may develop Philosophobia upon failing in the subject and being reprimanded very harshly for it.

The fear or the related anxiety is actually the factor that is to be avoided and is related to the reprimand.

The actual fear of the subject and the theoretical knowledge provided by the philosophers might also seem difficult, conceptually and may also cause Philosophobia.

Treatment of Philosophobia

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

Like all the other specific phobias, Philosophobia is treated by a number of different therapies:

Psychological Treatment

• Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

It is one of the most frequently used treatments for patients with almost all kinds of mental disorders.

Philosophobia is defined as the irrational fear of philosophy. 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 their fear stimuli.

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.

• Yoga/Meditation

They are not just one of the many treatment therapies used for Philosophobia, 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 their fear stimuli.

• Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)

This is another effective therapy used to treat Philosophobia.

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

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 sound of the wind around them, making use of their auditory 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.

• 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, 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.

Biological Treatment

• Drug Therapy

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

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 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

These include medicines like Klonopin.

They are most commonly used with patients who experience panic attacks and also lowers the 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 Lexapro 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 Philosophobia, 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

Science of Yoga: Understand the Anatomy and Physiology to Perfect your Practice

by Ann Swanson

Hack Your Anxiety: How to Make Anxiety Work for You in Life, Love, and All That You Do

by Alicia H. Clark and Jon Sternfeld

Anxiety Relief: A Complete Guide to Eliminate Negative Thinking, Stress, Dерrеѕѕiоn, Anger and Panic Attасkѕ

by Elliot Wood and Bill Franchuk

Prescriptions Without Pills: For Relief from Depression, Anger, Anxiety, and More

by Susan Heitler

Professional counselling

If you are suffering from Phobias then ongoing professional counselling could be your ideal first point of call. Counselling will utilize theories such as Cognitive behavioural therapy which will help you address the fears you are facing.

Weighted Blankets

Weighted Blankets may help you sleep better if your phobias are affecting your quality of sleep. Weighted blankets apply enough weight on you that they make you feel much more relaxed and calm at night.