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Situational Phobias

Katagelophobia – Fear of Embarrassment

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Katagelophobia: An Embarrassing Issue?

Do any of the following scenarios cause you excessive fear?

  • Sneezing in public, and a huge mess makes its way out of your nose?
  • An unexpected, noisy release of flatulence?
  • A huge, red zit smack dab on the end of your nose, shining for all to see?
  • Someone opening the bathroom door while you’re sitting on the throne?
  • Clogging the toilet at your date’s apartment?

Have you ever been in a situation where you worried you would be rejected in a job interview or by a person you admire—or worse yet, an old flame?

The list of embarrassing moments is endless and can easily fit into most peoples lives.

We’ve all been mortified with embarrassment. We’ve all been laughed at, and we’ve all had moments when we wished we could crawl into a hole and close the lid. Most of us deal with these little bumps in the road by laughing along with the crowd or pushing the memories into the back of our minds.

Some of us, however, are scarred for life by these common, meaningless events. There are those, possibly even you, who live in complete fear—near terror—at the thought of falling victim to another embarrassing moment.

Imagine not being able to confront basic social situations without bone-chilling anxiety.

If you happen to fit this profile, then you may have an excessive fear of embarrassment. Yes, you may have a phobia that is inhibiting you from achieving your goals of living a normal, fulfilling life.

Let’s dig deeper into this phobia. After all, the key to controlling it, is understanding it.

What Is the Fear of Embarrassment Called?

The fear of embarrassment is called katagelophobia, and it’s more common than people realize. Sometimes, this nagging fear of being embarrassed or ashamed may even prevent people from visiting their health care professionals, going to church, or going out on a date.

Having a strong fear of embarrassment can cost you a great deal in life, especially if you are otherwise a competent person and deserving of opportunities. If you ever reach a point where you have difficulty facing situations that put you at risk of embarrassment, it might be time to address the problem.

Embarrassment and failures are the salt of life. They may cause grief, but it’s something everyone must eventually overcome to succeed in our careers and live healthier, fulfilling lives. The first step to solving a problem of this magnitude is to acknowledge it and then to better understand its triggers and roots.

Unpacking the Fear of Embarrassment

It’s time to put the fear of embarrassment under the microscope and examine its features.

Embarrassment is a phenomenon we all experience, but some of us are more sensitive to it than others. Embarrassment and some of its friends—shame, humiliation, and the like—are not necessarily a bad thing. If anything, when they exist in appropriate moderation, they’re actually useful tools in guiding us to become better people.

Human beings are social creatures, and we’re wired to judge each other. But when this fear reaches an extreme point, it is far more harmful than beneficial. Having or experiencing such a fear can be quite destructive.

If you are trying to assess yourself or learn more about katagelophobia in order to relate to others more comfortably, here are some interesting notes:

  • People who fear being ridiculed tend to avoid revisiting those individuals or even inanimate objects associated with past experiences of being ridiculed or degraded.
  • People with a fear of getting embarrassed are more self-conscious than others and look uncomfortable or nervous all the time. This fear has a tendency to manifest as social anxiety, likely because they are closely linked.
  • People who fear embarrassment struggle to make meaningful, long-lasting connections with others. This deprives them of intimacy and makes them feel hopeless and disconnected all the time.
  • People who fear embarrassment are reluctant to chase opportunities at work or in college and bolster their careers.

What Causes Katagelophobia?

Like most phobias, katagelophobia is usually rooted in traumatic experiences during your most impressionable years. These traumatic experiences include bullying, mockery, and ridicule—all denigrating experiences many of us have likely shared but at varying degrees.

Like we said earlier, not all of us experience embarrassment in the same way, because our sensitivities differ. Some people can laugh off an embarrassing experience, learn from their mistakes, and resume life with the same level of confidence.

But for others, such experiences might be interpreted more heavily. This is especially true if you are a habitual overthinker. For such people, the experience of bullying or humiliation doesn’t end with that day but continues to live on in their head, stigmatizing them and making them extra self-conscious.

Such debilitating fear is a pathway to catastrophe, because you are only human and you are going to make more mistakes. If you can’t deal with the unpleasantness of even a little judgment, your life and world will become smaller and revolve around this anxiety.

Katagelophobia Symptoms

Phobias need to be taken seriously. Left unchecked, they tend to grow and get worse over time, stopping you from achieving a higher quality of life. Phobias are also well-known pathways to anxiety and depression.

Knowing what the symptoms are and finding the right time or way to intervene is the key to overcoming the fear of embarrassment.

Physical Symptoms

Due to the strong link with anxiety, the physical symptoms of katagelophobia are more or less the same:

  • Sweating, trembling with hot flashes or chills
  • The sensation that there are butterflies in your belly
  • Tightness in the chest
  • Need to go to the restroom often
  • Confusion or disorientation
  • Nausea
  • Feeling faint
  • A rise in blood pressure

Psychological Symptoms

In extreme cases, it’s possible for a person with katagelophobia to experience a panic attack, especially if they’re overwhelmed. The fear of embarrassment is complex and usually nests in deeper fears and psychological troubles, such as:

  • Fear of loss of self-control/composure
  • Feeling shame, guilt, humiliation, low self-esteem
  • Feeling disconnected from others and constantly withdrawing into yourself
  • Depression, hopelessness, dread
  • Confusion and mood swings
  • Social anxiety
  • Strong intimacy issues
  • Frustration

Self-Help with Katagelophobia

One way or another, if you are dealing with this, you will have to find a way to overcome it. It is not that easy of course, we know.

Since trauma is often the root of origin for most phobias, learning how to come to terms with your traumatic experience is arguably the most effective way to address your problems. It may require having to relive it for an uncomfortably long period of time and viewing it from different perspectives.

Some psychologists suggest trying out this mental exercise where you stop seeing yourself as the protagonist in your worst phobia and see yourself as an observer instead. Basically, you can be your own shrink, but you’ll do an even better job, because you are the one who has lived your experiences.

That said, please do not take any medications without consulting a doctor or licensed psychiatrist first. If your case requires medication, seek professional help to learn your dosage requirements.

 

Seeking Professional Help with Katagelophobia

Many reputable psychologists claim that embarrassment is not a basic emotion, but that it springs from a combination of simple emotions that combine to form a complex one. In other words, your fear of embarrassment is interwoven with either social anxiety, loss of dignity, low self-esteem, and possibly even more conditions.

This is why it’s such a difficult ordeal to overcome your fears and also why there is no shame in seeking professional help; none whatsoever. It’s always better to ask for help from someone trained to help you alter your inner mechanisms.

The most common form of treatment psychologists administer is simply talking your way through it. They help you identify your own patterns, things you’re currently doing that are unhelpful, and understanding your complicated feelings better.

Coping with Katagelophobia

Not all phobias can be cured, but they can certainly be managed with some effort. The one thing that always helps is knowing more about your condition, seeking others that might be experiencing the same thing, and finding strength in solidarity.

Another important thing: Never underestimate the multitude of psychological benefits that eating healthy and staying fit and active can bring. Sometimes, a bad diet is the only thing actually keeping you down.

In Conclusion

It’s okay to stutter during a presentation. It’s completely fine if you accidentally left your zipper open after a trip to the loo. It’s not the end of the world if you were rejected from a job interview. Most of the time, they’re not rejecting you because you are incompetent but rather because you don’t meet a specific requirement of theirs.

Learning you’re not special and that everyone deals with embarrassment at all levels may seem like a harsh lesson, but—if anything—it’s full of joy. It will free your mind from its self-imposed constrictions and help you grow and understand others better.

Never be ashamed to seek help. Help exists because there are millions just like you.

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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