Cancer phobia
| Cancer phobia | |
|---|---|
| Other names | carcinophobia |
| Specialty | Lua error in Module:WikidataIB at line 665: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). |
| Symptoms | Visiting doctors excessively, shaking or trembling, sweating, heart beating quickly, fainting, breathing rapidly, crying. |
| Complications | Depression |
| Duration | It may last for a long time. |
| Types | phobia |
| Causes | Direct contact with patients |
| Treatment | interventions, tranquilizers or anti-depressants |
Cancer Phobia (CP), also known as Carcinophopia, is an anxiety disorder characterized by a substantial amount of panic and fear. It results in tremendous feelings of sadness, fear, panic, and distress. In some cases, the phobia can be so extreme that it prevents the the individual from living a normal life.
Signs and symptoms[edit]
Cognitive aspects[edit]
They are so afraid that their family members may get the disease or that they may lose them because of it. They always experience feelings of sadness and distress.[1]
Behavioral aspects[edit]
People living with Carcinophobia visit doctors so much in order to make sure that they are healthy and that they do not have any troubles or health problems. They also tend not to attend any social activities if they are convinced that they have Carcinophobia. They also fuss about what they should and should not eat.[1]
Physical symptoms [edit]
Breathing quickly, feeling lightheaded or dizzy, having a rapid heartbeat, trembling, shaking, crying, sweating, fainting and screaming.[1]
Psychological symptoms[edit]
People living with Carcinophobia sometimes have the signs and symptoms of depression, patients living with Carcinophobia always have thoughts of death. They also lack the ability to differentiate between what is true and what is not.
They also feel very frightened that their family members may have the disease. They always get very nervous if they are suspicious that someone may bring cancer to their home.[1]
Causes[edit]
Genetics[edit]
There is also a high probability of having Carcinophobia if forefathers have the phobia. It passes from one generation to another in some cases. Genetics also plays a role.
Social experiences[edit]
People tend to get cancer phobia if they have a bad experience with it. They may have lost one of their family members. This trigger an extreme feeling of fear and terror of the disease. Cancer phobia also can pass from one person to another. If children experience situations where their family members are very frightened of cancer, they may get the phobia.[2]
Cultural or environment influences[edit]
We all are surrounded by so many talks and gossips about cancer. We are bombarded by so many talk shows which tell us that there are so many people die as a result of having the disease. This creates an environment of extreme fear of the disease. Watching a movie which is about cancer may in some cases lead to cancer phobia.[2]
Psychological factors[edit]
Patients who got cured of cancer recently also tend to get Carcinophobia. They are so nervous and frightened that they may get the disease again. This is because of the trauma they experienced when they got the disease. This may lead to Agoraphobia which is a phobia characterized by refusing to go outside home.[2]
Diagnosis[edit]
Phobia diagnosing methods lack any diagnostic laboratory test. Diagnosis is based on the patient's daily life situations. It's based on the difficulties or troubles the patients experiences in his life due to the phobia. The most important challenge in diagnosing Carcinophobia is distinguishing it from other kinds of phobias.
The patient is extremely frightened or anxious about having cancer. The patient knows that he experiences irrational fear of it. The patient's life, work, and daily routine are affected negatively by his excessive and irrational fear of cancer. The condition may lasts for more than six months. Having some of the cancer symptoms which lack any evidence that they are linked with other kinds of phobias (many kinds of phobias share the same symptoms and signs). It is eventually concluded based on the previous points and the Carcinophobia symptoms that the patient has Carcinophobia.[3]
Prevention[edit]
Cognitive awareness
Encouraging people to watch their environment carefully is necessary for preventing cancer phobia. This includes avoiding any movies, videos, or multimedia which will trigger extreme fear of cancer. TV shows are also encouraged to shed light on the best methods and techniques used for treating Carcinophobia. Talking about cancer regularly in front of children may lead to children living with Carcinophobia. People who feel anxious about Carcinophobia should stay away from people having cancer. They are also supposed to avoid seeing or interacting with patients who are very sick or suffer severe pain or symptoms due to Carcinophobia. All of the previous precautions can alleviate the probability of developing Carcinophobia.
Treatment[edit]
Living with Carcinophobia is not easy. However, there are many strategies and treatments for overcoming the phobia.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)[edit]
It is considered to be the most effective strategy for treating Carcinophobia. It's one of the psychotherapy methods which deal with any phobia and anxiety. It focuses on understanding the negative thoughts which are linked to the anxiety. The therapist organizes talk sessions with the patient. They let them talk about their fears and thoughts. They try to convince them to overcome their fears through changing the way they think about things. The main goal of CBT is to change the negative ideas with positive ones.[1]
Hypnotherapy[edit]
It's one of the safest treatments for treating Carcinophobia. It has long-term results and it's also not invasive. Ericksonian Hypnosis is considered to be the most recent treatment for Carcinophobia. It indirectly sends messages to patients using stories which help patients change their thoughts towards cancer.[3]
Neuro Linguistic Programming therapy[edit]
Neuro Linguistic Programming therapy (NLP) is one of the modern treatments which is used for treating Carcinophobia. It is a technique which is used with many phobias. It helps the patients' unconscious mind to be reprogrammed. It's used to alter patients' behavior towards the disease into not being afraid of the disease.[3]
Medications[edit]
tranquilizers or anti-depression can be prescribed in order to overcome and get rid of the disease. Anti-anxiety or anti-depression medications help to regulate the brain hormones such as Serotonin which is found in the serum and blood platelets. It helps to constrict the blood vessels. It also acts as a neurotransmitter. Serotonin is responsible for regulating our mood.[3]
Self-help techniques[edit]
They can be done in order to help the patient relax.It leads to muscle relaxation which indeed helps. It includes relaxation methods including deep breathing or visualization.[3]
History[edit]
Carcinophobia is a recent kind of phobia which has evolved due to the mass-media which focus a lot on cancer. They portray cancer as a disease which can not be cured and will lead to death.
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "Carcinophobia: Fear of Cancer- Causes, Symptoms and Treatment | Healthtopia". www.healthtopia.net. Retrieved 2017-11-26.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Fear of Cancer Phobia – Carcinophobia". www.fearof.net. Retrieved 2017-11-26.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 "Phobia Diagnosis - Phobias - HealthCommunities.com". www.healthcommunities.com. Retrieved 2017-11-26.
Further reading[edit]
Bourne, E. J. (2010). The anxiety and phobia workbook. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger Publications.
Hovanec, E. M. (2000). Everything you need to know about phobias. New York: Rosen Pub.
External links[edit]
This article "Cancer phobia" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.
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