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Sexual Phobias

Hedonophobia – Fear of Experiencing Pleasure

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Do you feel guilty about being happy?

It may sound unusual, but there are those who feel intolerant of happiness. They avoid the flow of good feelings out of fear of consequence.

Some may even worry that experiencing joy or excitement could possibly lead to pain.

They practice self punishment for feeling what humans strive to feel: pleasure.

If this sounds like you, then you may have a condition called hedonophobia, or an extreme and unusual fear of pleasure.

Hedonophobia appears in different ways for different people. Some who struggle with hedonophobia may worry strictly about themselves. Others may worry about themselves in comparison to the rest of the world.

If they receive a promotion or buy a new home, they can’t bring themselves to feel the excitement. Instead, they feel guilt for getting the good stuff when others are struggling. They might even have resigned to the thought that being happy when the rest of the world is in pain, is. . . well, selfish.

Do you feel you are doing something wrong by enjoying life? Do you fear happiness or panic at the thought of participating in activities that could bring you pleasure? If so, read on to learn about hedonophobia and what you can do to finally stop running from happiness.

What is Hedonophobia?

Hedonophobia is the extreme, illogical, and unpractical fear of experiencing pleasure. It is a behavioral dysfunction that robs the sufferer of even the simplest of good feelings.
This mental disorder might have come about as a result of childhood trauma, or a default disposition to unwarranted guilt and anxiety.

Growing up around people with unbridled hedonism could also lead to Hedonophobia in a child. In this case, the phobia sufferers take the opposite of extreme and abhorred pleasure.
People with Hedonophobia feel that no matter how happy they are, something or someone will come in and drag the rug from under their feet. As a result, they feel it would be best to avoid indulging in pleasure altogether.

In a world where the ‘pursuit of happiness’ is a popular ideal, having the opposite reaction to it can seem to be absurd. Hedonophobia sufferers are well aware of this. They know they are not acting normal and are missing out on a lot, and can even admit that they would rather not continue this way.

But like in other cases of phobia, people with Hedonophobia feel helpless in their malady. The mind holds power, and they are convinced that there is danger in feeling happiness, excitement, or pleasure. They also tend to develop a natural fight-or-flight reaction towards any of these things.

When severe, Hedonophobia can also have serious effects on a person’s quality of life.

Symptoms of Hedonophobia/the Fear of Experiencing Pleasure

Like other phobias, Hedonophobia manifests in several physiological and psychological symptoms. These symptoms include:

● Chronic constipation
● Depression
● Insomnia
● Anxiety
● Apprehensive anxiety
● Nausea
● Diarrhea
● Hypertension
● Mood swings
● Persistent melancholy
● Panic attacks
● Feeling numb
● Hyperventilating
● Pessimism
● Jittery
● Migraines
● Social isolation
● Lack of adrenaline
● Breathing problems
● Heart Disease
● Excessive sweating
● Guilt

Self-help for Hedonophobia/the Fear of Experiencing Pleasure

There are many reasons why you may be experiencing a fear of pleasure. The first step is to confront the problem from the source. Identify, if any, what experiences, traumas, or disappointments while growing up have led you to believe that pleasure of any form is harmful. This identification is the first step in your journey of healing, and if you can unravel the reason behind your anxiety and trauma, with the right help, you can find ways to stop it.

Another way you can help yourself manage your symptoms is through exercise which is a proven way to alleviate stress. You do not need to exercise rigorously, just light and consistent aerobic sessions can also do the trick. Exercising helps you release the body’s feel-good hormones which add a whole new level of positivity to your day.

Engaging in Yoga and other meditation activities can also help you take your mind off your triggers and focus on more relaxing thoughts and experiences. Yoga is an activity that requires the concentration of both your body and mind. It involves various poses that help stretch the body’s elasticity as well as controlled breathing practices for a better form and fewer stress episodes.
Incorporating meditation and relaxation into your self-help routine can do wonders for your growing chronic health symptoms, such as hypertension, migraines, and heart diseases all caused by phobia.

It increases your ability to be more mindful and present at the moment which is something you lose out on when you are prone to panic and anxiety. Visualizing yourself positively experiencing pleasure is another thing you can add to your meditation. This can help you cope better with your symptoms throughout your treatment and therapy.

This brings us to the most important aspect of your self-help journey, which is enlisting the help of a professional for treatments. The treatment for such phobias can come in different forms, ranging from short-term to long-term. But getting a professional involved and committing to the process is an essential step in overcoming your phobia.

Professional Help for Hedonophobia

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

This is the most popular treatment used for such disorders. It involves reorienting the patient’s mind to question harmful and toxic thoughts about pleasure and replace them with more balanced, realistic, and practical views. People with Hedonophobia are taught to see that the reactions do not match the trigger at all. They are then equipped with the mental tools to correct their thinking and overcome extreme symptoms.

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy

This is a long-term strategy involving lessons such as half-smiling, mindfulness meditation, and coping ahead. It is a procedure used to equip patients with healthy coping mechanisms to properly manage their symptoms and navigate real-life triggering situations. DBT is usually used for patients with personality disorders but it has also proven to be effective in treating other forms of disorders and phobias, including Hedonophobia. It is a long-term procedure with even longer-term benefits for the patient.

Exposure Therapy

This is a therapeutic procedure that involves gradually and consciously exposing the patients to the source of the trigger. The goal is to help them get used to their object of fear until they are desensitized toward it. Exposure to the object of fear is first conducted in a controlled environment by the therapist until the patient becomes capable of confronting their fears in real-life situations.

Hypnotherapy

This involves a form of alternative medicine procedure known as hypnosis. The hypnotherapist places the patients in a subconscious state of mind using guided relaxation and intense concentration. While in this subconscious state, the hypnotherapist administers a procedure known as “posthypnotic suggestion”. It simply refers to the fact that since the brain is calm, it is more open to receiving suggestions or rather, can be ” tricked” into believing certain things.

In the case of a hedonophobia sufferer, the therapist may tell the patient how much they enjoy having fun, all the pleasurable activities one can enjoy without fear or harm. They may even convince the patient in their dream-like state of mind that their phobia is now a thing of the past and they can begin to enjoy or experience pleasure from now on.
With this, they gain a sense of confidence which allows them to face their triggers even when their minds come out of subconsciousness.

Conclusion
Everyone deserves to cherish their wins, experience fun, and embrace all the little pleasures of life. By now, you must be aware of how hedonophobia has robbed you of quality life, making you feel helpless in front of life’s simple pleasures. Inculcating the self-help tips above into your lifestyle, along with the professionally prescribed therapies, will help set you on a different, more fulfilling path.

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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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