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Situational Phobias

Xenoglossophobia – Fear of Foreign Languages

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Let’s Talk about the Fear of Foreign Languages, or Xenoglossophobia

Does the sound of people conversing in a foreign language send you into a state of panic? Has the thought of taking language lessons filled you with dread? Do you break into a sweat thinking about your foreign language lessons?

If you answered yes, you may be suffering from a fear of or an aversion to foreign languages, also known as xenoglossophobia.

Living with a fear of foreign languages can make it difficult for you to travel to or live in culturally diverse environments. This phobia can leave you feeling overwhelmed when even listening to a foreign language.

But that doesn’t mean you can’t change your situation.

With professional treatment, you can overcome this phobia. Begin by getting a proper diagnosis. Once that happens, move to better understand the root cause of your xenoglossophobia. Read on for more.

What Causes the Fear of Foreign Languages?

Xenoglossophobia causes can range from genetic or environmental factors to experiencing trauma. Most often, it’s a combination of different factors that causes one to become averse to foreign languages.

Sometimes, those with xenoglossophobia have a family history of mental illness or they themselves have a mental illness. Such conditions increase the risk of developing a phobia. Likewise, an individual who has undergone a traumatic event, such as a robbery or assault involving a person speaking a foreign language, are also at a greater risk of developing phobias such as xenoglossophobia.

Foreign language anxiety can also result from environmental factors, such as growing up with a parent or relative who suffers from an irrational fear, or a negative experience in a foreign language class.

 

Everything You Need to Know about Xenoglossophobia

Xenoglossophobia is a rare phobia on the irrational fears list. While xenoglossophobes suffer from foreign language anxiety, their fear can take many forms.

It can develop into a fear of others badmouthing them in a foreign language or a fear of performing poorly in a language class and being ridiculed. A xenoglossophobe may also believe that one’s language is better than other languages. It all depends on the cause behind their irrational thoughts regarding foreign languages.

Now, you may be wondering, “Is foreign language anxiety normal?”

Foreign language anxiety is uncommon. Recognizing xenoglossophobia in an individual often depends on where that person resides. For example, someone living in a culturally diverse region might recognize their symptoms more easily than someone residing in regions with low cultural diversity.

Looking for the symptoms of xenoglossophobia may make the condition easier to recognize.

 

Symptoms of Xenoglossophobia

Different people suffering from xenoglossophobia exhibit different types of symptoms. The occurrence and severity of symptoms also vary based on the cause of the fear.

Here are some common symptoms of xenoglossophobia that will help you diagnose yourself or someone you know.

Physical Symptoms

  • Nausea
  • Dry mouth
  • Dizziness
  • Sweating and trembling
  • Rapid heartbeat
  • Headaches
  • High blood pressure
  • Feeling faint
  • Difficulty breathing

Psychological Symptoms

  • Confusion
  • Anger
  • Irritability and mood swings
  • Feeling helpless
  • Fear of being judged/ negative evaluation
  • Low self-esteem
  • Fear of losing control
  • Fear of dying
  • Panic attacks

These symptoms may occur when one is around others speaking foreign languages or when thinking about foreign languages. These situations can act as triggers that bring an onset of either physical or psychological symptoms, such as panic attacks.

Prolonged exposure to triggers may also cause a person to relocate to a region where they won’t be exposed to triggers or foreign languages.

 

How Do You Deal with Xenoglossophobia?

What causes foreign language anxiety in one person may not have the same effect in another. And that’s why there’s no one cure-all treatment for xenoglossophobia.

However, there are ways to deal with and treat foreign language anxiety. It typically involves a combination of self-help along with professional treatment.

Self-Help — What Can You Do to Help Yourself?

Self-help can be your first step toward overcoming your fear of foreign languages. Here are some self-help solutions that can get you started on the path of recovery.

Meditation

Meditation is an easy way to relax your mind and body. It is also effective at reducing anxiety, including anxiety related to fear.

Exercise

Similar to meditation, exercise also helps reduce anxiety. Exercise also gets you moving, which improves blood circulation and decreases muscle tension, all of which can help prevent anxiety. From tennis and yoga to swimming and running, there are plenty of exercises you can pick up.

Healthy Diet

Poor diet and even mild dehydration can contribute to your anxiety. If you want to better cope with your phobia, a healthy, nutrient-dense diet is necessary.

Reducing Caffeine

A major culprit behind anxiety is caffeine. Caffeine in any form can cause anxiety to worsen. Whether it is coffee, tea or soda, reducing caffeine consumption during your treatment will benefit you.

 

Professional Help for the Fear of Foreign Languages – Available Options

Professional help for xenoglossophobia often involves different types of therapies. Take a look at some of the available options for xenoglossophobia treatment.

Exposure Therapy

Exposure therapy works by putting the patient through increasingly stressful scenarios involving the subject of their fear in a controlled environment. It aims to reduce the person’s panic response when encountering triggers.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

CBT is a psycho-social intervention therapy that helps improve the sufferers’ mental health by working on negative patterns of thinking. It encourages movement away from irrational thought patterns and responses and towards development of more rational and measured responses to ones triggers.

Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)

MBSR is a type of meditation therapy that involves mindfulness training to help reduce anxiety, increase self-esteem, and improve emotional regulation.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)

DBT is a type of talk therapy that helps patients with regulating their emotions in response to fear.

 

Learning to Cope with Xenoglossophobia

Curing xenoglossophobia is a long journey, but learning the different ways to cope with this fear can make getting through it a whole lot easier.

Remember to rely on any kind of social support you can access, including friends and family. Be easy on yourself and accept mistakes as a part of the process. If you’ve already come this far, you’ve made huge progress.

As long as you keep practicing self-help techniques and keep getting professional help, you’re on the right track.

 

The Takeaway

Understanding the why, when, and how behind your phobia can help you learn to cope with it better.

Follow the steps mentioned above, and it will be only a matter of time until you, too, can watch foreign movies, take that foreign language class, or go on a trip abroad!

SOURCES:

https://optimistminds.com/xenoglossophobia/
https://blog.lingoda.com/en/what-is-xenoglossophobia/
https://www.daily-sun.com/printversion/details/460658/Xenoglossophobia

 

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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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