Cleithrophobia

Cleithrophobia is a fear of being trapped or locked in an enclosed space.[1] The origin of the word is from the Greek words κλείω cleio, which means to shut or to close[2] and φοβία ,(phobia in English) which implies a persistent fear. Cleithrophobia is also known as clithrophobia or cleisiophobia.[1] This phobia is sometimes confused with claustrophobia, which is a fear of being closed in small spaces. Both these phobias are forms of agoraphobia.

Causes

Phobias are caused as a result of internal feelings combined with external stimuli, which induce a life-changing trauma in some individuals.[1] Certain phobias occur as a result of specific events in an individual's life which act as a trigger and cause this deep-rooted fear over time. Additionally, some phobias do not have any specific cause. In the same way, cleithrophobia could occur due to some traumatic experiences in a person's life or could simply crop up, for no particular reason. The focus of this fear is the feeling of being locked in or being unable to escape from a space.[3] The individuals suffering from this might be able to enter rooms calmly provided that the fear of being closed in and being unable to leave at free will, does not exist in their minds.

Symptoms

The symptoms which are manifested in an individual due to cleithrophobia can be divided into two types, i.e., physical and psychological symptoms. The physical symptoms that occur could be sweating, headaches, dizziness, nausea, tachycardia (rapid heartbeats) etc. The psychological symptoms could be a feeling of dread, losing control or even dying.[4]

Treatment

There are no complete treatments for any phobia as the process involves the person's psychological and behavioral patterns, some of which can never be changed. However, it is possible to reduce the extent of the effects of any phobia by therapeutic treatments, such as hypnotherapy, counseling psychology, Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) etc.[2] Though there are medicines and drugs which can suppress the phobia significantly, it could also lead to lifelong addictions which may never fade as well as withdrawal symptoms, which could affect normal day-to-day functioning and hence, medication should be avoided.[5] The best way to get over a fear such as this is to understand its irrationality and grasp the concept of "mind over matter".

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Cleithrophobia | irika". Irikaw.wordpress.com. 2012-03-01. Retrieved 2014-02-05.
  2. 1 2 "Get the Words > Greek". Getwords.com. Retrieved 2014-02-05.
  3. ↑ "Cleithrophobia - Understanding the Fear of Being Trapped". Phobias.about.com. Retrieved 2014-02-05.
  4. ↑ "Phobias - Symptoms - NHS Choices". Nhs.uk. Retrieved 2014-02-05.
  5. ↑ "Phobias and Fears: Symptoms, Treatment, and Self-Help". Helpguide.org. Retrieved 2014-02-05.
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