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Situational Phobias

Cremnophobia-Fear of Precipices

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The Fear of Precipices, Cremnophobia

Many people enjoy hiking and taking pictures near cliffs’ edges. It’s exhilarating to feel so close to the sky and the views are incredible. Unfortunately, not everyone shares that joy. While some love sitting on a cliff’s edge, others dread it and may even have panic attacks.

Precipices: a very steep rock face or cliff, especially a tall one.

If you fear steep edges like precipices, you may have cremnophobia or cliff phobia. It is a specific phobia that is often mistaken for acrophobia, the fear of heights. However, those who fear precipices can use the elevator or even ride the Ferris wheel without breaking a sweat. The only exception is cliffs, which is what makes this phobia stand out.

Symptoms of Crembophobia

The symptoms of this phobia are unique for every individual. Some can tolerate looking at cliffs while others start experiencing the symptoms at the mere mention of the words “cliff” and “precipice.” Its symptoms can be classified as physical and psychological.

Physical Symptoms

  • Dizziness
  • Freezing on the spot
  • Gastric problems
  • Heart palpitations
  • High blood pressure
  • Nausea or vomiting
  • Shortness of breath
  • Sweaty hands
  • Vomiting

Psychological Symptoms

  • Detachment from reality
  • Mood swings
  • Morbid and irrational thoughts
  • Nightmares about cliffs
  • Panic attacks
  • Refusal to go to any outdoor activity that involves cliffs
  • Severe anxiety
  • Unexplained aggression
  • Urge to flee and hide

Causes of Cremnophobia

Experiencing something traumatic or witnessing something unpleasant associated with cliffs can make you think of cliffs as something negative. For example, if as a child, you nearly fell or slipped near a cliff or saw someone did, these tragic incidents can create a negative imprint in your memory.

You can also develop cremnophobia if you watched a documentary or a movie about cliffs and someone got hurt from these steep edges.

Sometimes, the people you grow up with can also unknowingly pass on their fear to you. If you grew up in an overly cautious environment where extreme outdoor activities were avoided, you can carry that apprehension as you grow. It can develop into cremnophobia.

Treatment of Cremnophobia

It is never too late to get treatment for your phobia. As long as you are determined to manage your fear, you can. Never underestimate the power of your mind because you’ll be surprised at how certain treatments can make you look at cliffs differently.

You can always try DIY treatments at home or enlist the help of professionals. You can even do both.

Examples of Self-Help Treatments for Cremnophobia

#1. Find Your Motivation

You should always have a reason for doing something. Knowing why you want to overcome your phobia is imperative.

Do you want to scale mountains? Do you have friends who often explore cliffs and don’t want to feel left out? Or maybe you just want to watch TV shows with cliffs without feeling extreme anxiety?

Whatever your reason, it will keep you going even when things become difficult.

#2. Learn To Control Your Breathing

Calm yourself by learning to breathe deeply and slowly. One of the most common symptoms of panic is hyperventilation so learning how to control it is a huge step. Focus on controlling your breathing through breathing exercises, meditations, and yoga.

#3. Become Part of Self-Help Communities

One of the advantages of social media is the self-help communities that you can join for free. This is one way to get in touch with other people who have similar challenges. Knowing that someone else is going through the same thing as you can be comforting because it means you are not alone. You can learn from other people’s experiences and have a support system, even if it’s online.

Examples of Professional Treatments for Cremnophobia

Consulting a psychiatrist or psychologist can be a smart move if you want a medical approach to your phobia. Usually, professional treatments start with counseling and conversations with your doctor. From there, you may be recommended therapies like:

#1. Exposure Therapy

This is a common form of therapy for most people with phobias. The goal is to gradually expose you to the object of your fear. In your case, you may be shown pictures of cliffs and watch films with steep terrains before going on a short hike and being a few meters away from a cliff. This is a long process but an effective one.

#2. Psychotherapy

This therapy aims to slowly alter your thinking, reaction, and behavior towards the object of your fear. Though you have a negative perception of cliffs, you can have healthier perspectives with psychotherapy.

#3. Medications

There are cases when your doctor will prescribe medicines to help manage your symptoms. This is not a treatment plan for everyone and is only recommended on a case-to-case basis. Depression medications and drugs for anxiety are usually prescribed but always remember they often come with side effects that your doctor will discuss with you. Make sure you understand them.

Living With Cremnophobia

Living with an irrational fear of cliffs can be limiting, especially if your cremnophobia is severe. You may avoid many situations that could be beneficial for you. Movies and shows with cliffs, images of cliffs, and climbing natural terrains are all experiences that most people aren’t afraid of.

If you’re living with cremnophobia, know that you don’t have to keep embracing your fears. You can do something about it by trying some of the therapies suggested in this article. By getting help today, you can begin your journey to a life with more freedom, courage, and beauty.

Let Us Conclude

Precipices can be scary but they offer amazing views and memorable experiences. Whether you’re afraid of actual cliffs, images of cliffs, or both, you can get over your cremnophobia.

Don’t let your fear of precipices get the best of you. Even if you are unable to overcome your phobia completely, you can still lead a full and satisfying life. With time and therapy, you can enjoy a hike without batting an eye at Mother Nature’s ravines and steep edges.

 

 

 

 

Sources:

https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/phobias/treatment/

https://www.healthline.com/health/phobia-simple-specific

https://www.kickfear.com/blog/fear-of-driving-off-a-cliff-is-natural.html

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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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