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Body Phobias

Apotemnophobia – Fear of Amputation

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Apotemnophobia or Fear of Amputation/Afraid One Will Lose Appendages

Does the thought or mention of amputation make you anxious? Do you constantly worry about amputation, even when there is no risk of it?

Or are you afraid of amputees themselves? Do you find yourself turning away at the sight of a prosthetic or avoiding those with amputations?  Is it a source of distress and discomfort to you, disrupting your everyday life?

You may have apotemnophobia, a phobia of amputees and amputation.

If you belong to this group, you’re not alone. Many suffer from different kinds of phobias, and with proper knowledge and care, you can learn to manage your fear and lead a more normal life.

 

 

What Is Apotemnophobia?

Apotemnophobia is the fear of losing a limb or seeing someone who has limb loss. It comes from the Greek words apo meaning away, temnos meaning cut off or remove, and phobos meaning fear.

While many experience a passing fear of losing a limb, a person suffering from apotemnophobia experiences high levels of stress and anxiety at the sight of an amputee. They may go to great lengths to avoid seeing one.

Those with apotemnophobia may avoid hospitals or recovery and trauma centers even if they are in dire need of medical care. The anxiety is so high they are willing to neglect their care rather than risk encountering an amputee.

Some may try to escape from an environment where they spot an amputee or may suffer panic attacks. Others continually worry about encountering an amputee, and refuse to associate with one, even if that person is a relative or family friend.

Individuals with this phobia may avoid going out altogether for fear of encountering an amputee. This fear limits work and social life and may lead to depression or isolation.

 

Apotemnophobia Causes

The exact cause of apotemnophobia is unknown. However, like most phobias, it’s often a combination of several factors resulting in a deep fear of amputations and amputees.

Some of the factors are:

Genetic Predisposition

Genes play a role in the development of mental health issues, including phobias. Having a family history of anxiety disorders brings an increased risk of a person developing apotemnophobia. For those in this category, a traumatic event may trigger the development of the phobia.

Experience

One may develop this fear if they had been in an accident resulting in a limb being at risk of amputation. It could also develop if a person was born with a limb deformity, and their limb had to be removed.

Many studies indicate several psychological effects of amputation, which explains how people with a traumatic past with amputation develop apotemnophobia.

Witnessing an amputee and their daily life struggles can also lead to the development of the phobia.

 

Media

Parents often use stories to educate their kids about the importance of safe play. These stories often involve a child who did not follow the rules and had serious life-threatening injuries or even died. Such stories can leave a permanent mark on a child that can later develop into a phobia.

Amputation is a common topic often depicted in the news and in social media. Sometimes, for people suffering from anxiety, this small trigger alone can lead to the development of the phobia.

 

Apotemnophobia Symptoms

Symptoms of apotemnophobia vary from one patient to the next and depend on the severity of the phobia. While some may experience only a few mild symptoms, the symptoms of others may be severe.

Physical Symptoms

  • Sweating
  • Trembling
  • High blood pressure
  • Palpitations
  • Perspiration
  • Headaches
  • Irregular heartbeat
  • Hot and cold flashes
  • Dry mouth
  • Muscle tension

Psychological Symptoms

  • Anxiety at the thought of amputation
  • Fear of being amputated
  • Fear of dying
  • Panic attacks
  • Confusion
  • Obsession with avoiding amputation

 

Apotemnophobia Treatment

There is no definite treatment for apotemnophobia. However, a mental health professional can choose an appropriate treatment plan that is tailored to your needs by evaulating your condition. But before seeking professional help, consider trying some of these self-help methods first.

Self-Help

Self-help is regarded as the first line of treatment, because it allows a person to tackle their phobia in its early stages. Here’s a list of things you can do to help yourself:

  • Keep a record of your feelings, symptoms, triggers, and episodes
  • Practice meditation and exercise
  • Try relaxation techniques like deep breathing and counting numbers
  • Talk to a family member or a friend
  • Try exposing yourself to pictures of amputees for short durations
  • Educate yourself about phobias, treatment, and more
  • Search for support groups and openly talk about what you are going through
  • Keep an open mind about therapy

Professional Help

In cases where self-help doesn’t seem to be enough, it’s important to seek professional help. Mental health professionals are experts in the field and have years of experience treating phobias.

Therapists help you get to the root of your phobia and guide you through the process of recovery. They may use a combination of therapies so that you have a quick response.

A few of the most common therapies used for apotemnophobia are:

  • Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)
  • Exposure therapy
  • Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR)

Therapists generally treat patients without use of medications. However, in severe cases antidepressants and anti-anxiety drugs may be prescribed for a short amount of time to reduce symptoms. This is especially true when frequent panic attacks interfere with the client’s response to other therapies.

 

How to Cope with Apotemnophobia

It’s not easy living with a phobia. One suffering from apotemnophobia often avoids going out, receiving treatment, or even watching television for fear of seeing an amputee.

Left untreated, this phobia can lead to the development of other conditions. Talking with those you trust is the first course of action. Talking will help people understand what you’re going through. With their support, you can seek the treatment you need.

With proper diagnosis and care, apotemnophobia is treatable, and you can live your life to the fullest.

Related Phobias: Tomophobia – Fear of Surgical Operations

Conclusion

Apotemnophobia, the fear of amputation and amputees, can be limiting. It is a phobia that can cause severe distress and anxiety. However, with proper care and treatment, the phobia is treatable, and you can live a fear-free life.

FearAZ.com is looking for personal stories of any 'fear of' or phobia. If you have an interesting story you'd like to share, we welcome your submission. If the story fits with our content and guidelines, we'll add it to our site.
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Your Fear Goes Up and Down

Are you someone who would rather climb the stairs than take the elevator? You call it squeezing in a workout after being sedentary the whole morning. Or perhaps you claim it's a faster route. These are both typical, normal, and acceptable reasons. But what if you need to be in the conference room on the eleventh floor in five minutes, and you're wearing your business suit and wingtips? Would you still prefer to take the stairs? If your answer is yes, then maybe it's time to take a closer look at your reasons for avoiding elevators. Elevators stir all sorts of emotions in passengers. From the discomfort of closeness to strangers to the sensations in our gut, elevators can be a source of the heebie-jeebies for many, but for some, they can also be a source of terror. Let's dig a little deeper into the latter, and see what this terror is all about and what can be done to manage it. To begin with, does being inside an elevator give you chills or the sweats? Or does it trigger an unpleasant memory? Perhaps you remember movies you've watched where something terrible happens inside an elevator. From Silence of the Lambs, The Shining, Final Destination 2, or the king of all elevator horror films, 2010’s Devil, the elevator becomes witness to something sinister and horrible. And you want nothing to do with any of it. You know that you're not claustrophobic. You can deal with heights just fine, too. And you know that you're not going to be trapped inside. All of these contribute to a fear of elevators—but they don't apply to you. Yet being inside one does something to you. It's hard to explain.

What is the Fear of Elevators Called?

What you have is a fear of elevators, which is called elevatophobia. It is most commonly triggered by an experience of getting stuck inside either due to a power outage or technical maintenance. Hearing about other people's experiences or watching a movie about similar circumstances can prompt a fear of elevators getting stuck with you inside. Usually, claustrophobics and agoraphobics may also develop elevatophobia because the triggers and objects of these fears are related. Claustrophobia is the fear of closed and cramped spaces, while agoraphobia is the fear of being trapped without any means of escape. Put the two together, and the elevator becomes the perfect combination of both phobias. The space is limited and closed, with only one means of entry and exit. You can add another point of access if you consider climbing the cables like they do in the movies, but that certainly isn't ideal.

Symptoms of Elevatophobia

If for some reason an elevator stops due to an outage or some technical difficulty, passengers with elevatophobia may go into full panic mode. Even if the maintenance team advises that it will just be a matter of minutes, by then, the person's mind has become irrational with the fear of the elevator falling, being stuck for hours, or other unpleasant thoughts. You would expect a person to exhibit the following physical symptoms: Additionally, you would be filled with that overwhelming anxiety where you feel that you have zero control over the situation. You start fearing the unknown and are filled with negative thoughts about death and imminent doom. You become irrational and unresponsive.

Possible Complications of Elevatophobia

When the panic sets in, the possibility of emergencies related to pre-existing conditions may make themselves known. This might include serious health crises like heart attacks or asthma attacks. When this happens, fear becomes a medical emergency. Elevator rides do not last long; it's just a matter of minutes or even less. But the fact that a person can escalate from panic to a near fatal medical situation classifies the fear of elevators as a 'hard phobia.'

Trying Some Self-Help Methods

Your fear of elevators can likely interfere with your social and work life and relationships. Not everyone understands that elevatophobia, like most phobias, can be crippling. But don't be disheartened. Depending on the level of your fear and level of control, you can gradually face and manage your phobia. Here are some recommendations you can try:
  1. Make a List of Everything that Entails Riding in an Elevator This is a systematic approach to getting over your anxiety. By following a step-by-step process, you can identify where the fear kicks in at its strongest. You can write a list of steps like pressing the topmost button and waiting to arrive on that floor, watching as the door closes and opens, being alone inside the elevator, or having delays with the doors opening. Now try doing the opposite. For example, face away from the door or occupy yourself with your phone so that you are distracted.
  2. Create Your Fear Ladder Although the name says fear of elevators, it is not the whole process that scares you. There are just phases and parts of the elevator riding experience that cause you to panic. So go back to the list you initially created and label the fear level you feel. You can do it numerically, too, like ten being 'really scary,' six, 'manageable scary,' and one, 'not scary at all.' You can put the corresponding fear levels so you can focus more time and effort into activities that are more scary to you.
  3. Face Your Fear By now, you have identified what scares you the most. You can try repetitive action to minimize your fear and increase your sense of ‘normalcy’. Remember that the longer you expose yourself to your fear, the better you get at handling your emotions. If you are feeling overwhelmed, stop. Pushing yourself too fast and too soon can backfire. Modify your pace and go slower instead.
  4. Talk About Your Fear People by nature, unfortunately, are not quick to offer understanding and support. You need to tell them what's wrong before they can empathize. Talk to someone who you trust and ask for their support, especially in the initial phase of overcoming your fear. If you are too afraid to ride the elevator alone, you can ask them to go with you, and before you realize it, you are on your floor, and there was no indication of panic.
  5. Learn To Be Patient Be patient with yourself and your predicament. This is, after all, your fight against fear. It might take hundreds of elevator ride practices before the fear gets under control. Even then, there might be some hesitations and episodes of nervousness. These are acceptable and expected, so cut yourself some slack and congratulate yourself for every progress.

Seeking Professional Help

Along with self-help, you can always enlist a medical professional's aid to support you with your elevatophobia. Talking to someone who has experience with similar cases can be comforting, because you know that you are not alone, and this situation can get better. Talk to your doctor about the severity of your fears and the symptoms that you experience. Explain how you deal with it in an attempt to control it. An exam and a health history are made to ensure that there are no unrelated or underlying problems that your symptoms might mask. Usually, phobias like this are approached with a combination of psychotherapy and medication. Your doctor will talk about these options with you, and it's entirely up to you, with your doctor's recommendation, what you want to pursue. For psychotherapy, the most common type is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), which aims to help you find different ways of behaving, thinking, and reacting when about to step inside an elevator or when already inside it. With medications, there are beta blockers and benzodiazepines, but note that these can have side effects. Whatever these side effects are, you should promptly share it with your doctor.

Simple Tips to Overcome Elevatophobia

Elevators are not perfect, but their likelihood to malfunction, fall, or get stuck is very low. If you are not fully confident with this information, you can help overcome your elevatophobia by learning common elevator safety tips and basic elevator operations. These should help curb your mild fear until you become more self-assured. In addition to that, here are some of the things that you can do to gradually overcome your fear of elevators—both in getting on and riding one.

Conclusion

Yes, elevatophobia can be a challenge in today's world, but don't allow the elevator to win. Don't let it stop you from taking a job on the top floor or attending a social gathering on the rooftop. Sure, you can take the stairs if you insist and arrive winded and sweaty, with the party about to wrap up. But is this the quality of life you seek? Elevators are designed to make life easier. There are guaranteed ways to help you overcome elevatophobia. Take the first step and seek help. Soon, you’ll see yourself breezing through the floors with those arduous stair climbs little more than a memory.
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