Abstract:
This paper includes information on ophidiophobia or an abnormal fear of snakes. It defines what ophidiophobia is, as well as its causes and its treatments. It also includes details on what the effects of ophidiophobia are, and how it impacts a person’s daily life. Ophidiophobia is a type of panic disorder wherein there is extreme fear of snakes and all things that are related to them. Its causes may either be evolutionary/genetic, the experience of traumatic situations related to snakes, as well as cultural factors. It can be treated by applying cognitive behavior therapy, system desensitization, and/or the use of medications. It can impact a person’s life by experiencing anxiety, heart attack, or even death.
This paper includes information on ophidiophobia or an abnormal fear of snakes. It defines what ophidiophobia is, as well as its causes and its treatments. It also includes details on what the effects of ophidiophobia are, and how it impacts a person’s daily life.
Definition, Causes, and Treatments
Ophidiophobia pertains to “an extreme and irrational fear of snakes and all things pertaining to them” (GoMentor.com, 2014). It is a phobia, which is a type of panic disorder, wherein there happens to be “sudden and repeated attacks of fear that last for several minutes [and] symptoms may last longer” (National Institute of Mental Health, 2013, p.2). The panic attacks usually have something to do with “fear of disaster or of losing control” (NIMH, 2013, p.2), even if there is no eminent danger. A person with ophidiophobia may experience panic attacks, and it can lead to anxiety, heart attack, or even death.
There are many things that can cause ophidiophobia. First is evolutionary or genetic issues, since a number of early psychologists insisted that ophidiophobia, which is a kind of fear, started during human evolution when humans used fear for survival. It may have also been the effect of having to inherit the trait from parents and other relatives. Second thing that can cause ophidiophobia is the possibility of experiencing traumatic situation in relation to snakes, such as experiencing snake bites by the person or by another person. Having to witness the danger of being bitten by snakes, can also lead to ophidiophobia. Another thing that can cause ophidiophobia are the cultural factors, since there are religions in which snakes are seen as a bad omen or as a sign of evil and death. They inflict negative beliefs in people, which induce natural fear and cause them to experience ophidiophobia (Healthtopia, 2016).
There are treatments that can be used in trying to relieve a person from ophidiophobia. First is by using cognitive behavior therapy that is useful in treating panic disorders. It allows a person to feel less fearful and anxious by replacing negative thoughts with the more positive ones. Second is by using system desensitization, in which the therapist would analyze the patient’s level of fear, and then control and weaken it by using pictures of images of snakes that are shown to them in a safe environment. They also use a number of relaxation techniques that are useful, such as breathing exercises, meditation, and mental visualization. Third is by using medications that are prescribed to help treat extreme fear and panic disorders, especially the use of anti-anxiety medications, as well as, antidepressants. These type of medications should be taken only for a brief period of time.
How Ophidiophobia Can Impact Daily Life
Ophidiophobia can impact a person’s daily life, in which there is uncontrollable anxiety whenever one is about to witness, or be exposed, to snakes. Due to uncontrollable fear, a person with ophidiophobia can experience anxiety, heart attack, or even death. If this phobia is not being treated the soonest time, it can prevent a person from doing something because of this extreme fear for snakes. The person may experience panic attacks even by just passing by a pet store, especially one that sells snakes. They may be able to prevent themselves from doing social activities with their friends and neighbors, such as going camping or hiking, or going to places where there are usually snakes within the area. If this is not controlled, fear of snakes can eventually lead to a fear of reptiles, until the patient becomes fearful of everything that bites, in the same way that snakes do. Thus, a person experiencing ophidiophobia should have the right treatment the soonest time before the phobia worsens. A certain patient experiencing ophidiophobia mentioned the following lines:
The more attacks I had, the more afraid I got. I was always living in fear. I didn’t know when I might have another attack. I became so afraid that I didn’t want to leave my house. (National Institute of Mental Health, 2016, p.5)
In these lines, it is evident how ophidiophobia can affect the lives of those who experience it, so that it should be treated right then and there before it becomes too immense to control.
References:
GoMentor.com. (2014). Ophidiophobia. Retrieved July 8, 2016 from http://www.gomentor.com/articles/ophidiophobia.aspx.
Healthtopia. (2016). Ophidiophobia: fear of snakes—causes, symptoms and treatment. Retrieved July 8, 2016 from https://www.healthtopia.net/disease/mental-health/phobia/ophidiophobia-causes-symptoms-treatment.
National Institute of Mental Health. (2016). Panic disorder: when fear overwhelms. Retrieved July 8, 2016 from https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/panic-disorder-when-fear-overwhelms/panic-disorder-trifold_107485.pdf.
