Trichophobia: why does it arise and how to deal with it?

The fear of human hair is considered one of the most common phobias in the modern world. It is likely that each of us becomes unpleasant when hair gets on clothes or food, but obsessive fear significantly reduces the quality of life. From this article, you will learn about the features of hair phobia, possible causes of its development, symptoms and treatment methods.

The fear of hair is called trichophobia. It is a very common disorder that usually affects women, but it can also occur in men and children. Within reasonable limits, there is a certain benefit from aversion to hair, this speaks of a person's cleanliness.

Some experts believe that a person is afraid of hair loss, because they are associated with something dead, a dead body part. Others think the phobia stems from an increased focus on hygiene in general. However, in the vast majority of cases, this fear is unconscious - a person suffering from a phobia cannot explain to himself why his hair repels him to an extreme degree.

Treatment of any kind of phobia begins precisely with identifying its causes. If you try to get rid of only fear, without thinking about what caused it, the phobia can return or even worsen. The causes of the phobia can be internal and even hereditary. - certain character traits make us predisposed to certain fears.At the same time, often the reasons and external - our life experience and situations in which we find ourselves, can provoke the development of hair phobia.

Psychologists identify many factors that, under an unfavorable set of circumstances, can lead to the development of such a disorder as trichophobia in a person. Let's consider the most common ones.

• Hereditary factor even mental disorders such as phobias can never be denied. Experts are sure that if among the relatives there was a person who suffered from trichophobia, then there is a significant likelihood that his loved ones will also be subject to the same phobia. Thus, fear can be transmitted genetically. However, it is worth noting that such a pattern will not necessarily be at all. If your relative had trichophobia, you can avoid this disorder - heredity gives only a predisposition, and the rest depends on other factors.
• Childhood trauma - this is the most common reason that psychologists tend to consider primarily when dealing with a phobia in a patient. The fact is that it is children who are very impressionable, susceptible to external influences and have a rich imagination for all sorts of associations, including negative ones. If a person experienced a strong fear in childhood, it is usually not forgotten - even if an adult cannot remember the details, these impressions are very well deposited in the subconscious. And it is this phenomenon that very often becomes the cause of the development of a phobia. In this case, the goal of the psychologist is, through conversation with the patient and various techniques, to find the real reason that provoked the fear in early childhood.
• Negative life experience is also very often associated with the development of a phobia. Already in adulthood, a person could experience a certain kind of shock, which was associated with hair. It is in this case, if the shock was negative, the risk of a sudden onset of a phobia in an adult is very likely. Getting rid of it is not easy, because it is associated with real fear, which a person remembers perfectly, but experienced psychologists and psychotherapists successfully solve this problem.
• Imposed fear - this is an interesting reason, which began to be actively discussed only a few years ago. It consists in the fact that a person does not actually suffer from a disorder, but has a lot of contact with people prone to trichophobia. Seeing what irritation and panic the hair of a friend causes, a person begins to behave in the same way, and in the future he may develop a real phobia. Everyone can become infected with a phobia in this way under unfavorable circumstances, but people who succumb to other people's influence and dependence on other people are most susceptible to this.
• Stressful state also often provokes a phobia. In this case, a person's mental resources are depleted - psychologists are well aware that stress negatively affects the entire body and health in general. In a depressed state, all kinds of fears arise that oppress a person even more. If you do not normalize mental well-being, it is very difficult to get out of this kind of phobia.
• Other mental disorders, such as neuroses and psychosis, often become the basis for the appearance of trichophobia. The fact is that in such states the human psyche is extremely vulnerable and susceptible - it is easily irritated and easily panicked. At the same time, reactions to a stimulus become a habit - if a person has experienced an aversion to hair several times in the context of a neurosis, phobias often develop from this.

Each person suffers a phobia in different ways, however, a number of common symptoms that distinguish this disease can be distinguished. Below are the most common ones.

• Panic attacks, uncontrollable gestures and facial expressions often distinguish a phobia from ordinary fear. A person seems to lose touch with reality and cannot control himself.
• Dizziness sometimes appears and it is difficult for a person to stand on their feet. He will try to sit down, lean on his elbows, take someone by the hand.
• Rapid heartbeat and increased blood pressure - another sign. Excessive sweating, uneven breathing, tremors in the voice go along with it.
• Cramps in the lower or upper extremities may also indicate that a person has a real phobia. This is due to muscle overstrain - from fear, a person strains his muscles as much as possible, and the body cannot withstand the load.
• Sometimes fainting is possible at the sight of body hair or food. This symptom does not even depend on the strength of the phobia, but in general on the person's tendency to faint.
• Nausea, vomiting and diarrhea are also symptoms that characterize trichophobia. They make the patient's life very uncomfortable, since they can manifest themselves at any accidental encounter with a hair loss.

At the initial stages of the development of a phobia, the symptoms are often purely psychological in nature - these are obsessive fear, panic, disgust, severe stress, which is accompanied by the release of adrenaline into the blood. Consequently, breathing becomes disordered, and the heart quickens the rhythm. At the same time, in the later stages, physiological symptoms such as convulsions and upset of the gastrointestinal tract are increasingly making themselves felt.

There are many ways to deal with a phobia, but this must be done. If the disease is allowed to take its course, it will only progress and more and more reduce the patient's quality of life. Depending on the degree of development of the phobia, you can choose different ways of dealing with the disorder - try to solve the problem yourself or contact a specialist.

An independent fight against phobia will be effective at the very beginning of the development of the disease. You need to have great willpower, be aware of your fear and enlist the support of loved ones. To fight phobia on your own experts recommend the following measures.

• Breathing exercises can help calm anxiety and improve self-control. Exercise 15 minutes of breathing a day. In a stressful situation, try to pull yourself together and start breathing deeply - this can help not to panic. Over time, calmness will become a habit, and you can easily control yourself.
• Yoga and meditation - also useful practices aimed at calmness and relaxation. You can find yourself a good trainer or practice on your own, but try to do all the exercises correctly and thoughtfully.
• Try natural remedies for soothing for example, herbal teas are helpful. Get in the habit of drinking peppermint, lemon balm or valerian every night - they won't work instantly, but after a few weeks you will notice that you will feel better.
• Sport is also very important for dealing with stress. The fact is that in the process of experiencing negative emotions, a lot of adrenaline is thrown into the blood. Vigorous physical activity will help relieve this tension. In addition, during exercise, endorphin is produced, which is responsible for good mood and positivity.
• Proper nutrition - another important point. Our body is a chemical factory and it works much better if all substances are supplied in sufficient quantities. Overall health will also help combat stress.

Sometimes psychotherapists prescribe medication to combat the phobia. This usually happens in advanced cases, when it is impossible to cope with the disease on your own. It can be different antidepressants, sedatives, and hormonal pills to normalize hormonal levels. All these medicines should be used only under the supervision of a doctor and on his recommendation.

If you see a specialist earlier in the development of your phobia, you probably won't need a pill. To begin with, a competent psychotherapist will try to determine the true cause of your phobia in the process of communication, surveys or tests. It is worth noting that there are always several reasons - usually it is a combination of factors that leads to a mental disorder. The specialist's task is to highlight the dominant causes.

Therapy can be individual - in the process of communication, the therapist will push you to solve the problem, show different ways out and give advice. However, do not expect the doctor to do the work for you. Fighting a phobia is an internal work, you yourself must be aware of the problem and strive to solve it in every way. Then, with the help of a professional, you can quickly and effectively get rid of unpleasant symptoms.

Shows good results in the treatment of phobia group therapy. Thus, patients understand that they are not alone in their problem. They support each other and learn to cope with the phobia together.