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Other Phobias

Zuigerphobia – Fear of Vacuums

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The Fear of Vacuums: It Sucks!

Scared of a vacuum? Does the sound of a vacuum have you running out of your house? Chances are you’re suffering from zuigerphobia.

Phobias like zuigerphobia, or fear of vacuums, are difficult to deal with and even harder to explain to others. But don’t give up.

If you feel anxious or troubled in the presence of a vacuum cleaner or if the loud noise of a vacuum cleaner startles you, you’ve come to the right place. Read on to learn more about the fear of vacuums—its causes, how to tell if you have it, how you can treat it, and helpful ways to cope with your fear.

Everything You Need to Know about Zuigerphobia

Zuigerphobia is a type of specific phobia, an intense and irrational fear of an object or situation that may not pose any actual danger. Although you probably know a vacuum cleaner can do no harm, the thought of one sends a sense of panic and dread down your spine. This often occurs because of a negative experience you’ve had with a vacuum cleaner.

Causes of Zuigerphobia

Various studies have estimated that around 15 percent of people in the United States suffer from a specific phobia, which may arise at any point in their lives. Although specific fears are commonly found among adults and adolescents, young children, including infants, may also be upset by the loud noises and sound that is associated with a vacuum cleaner. This may later result in a full-fledged vacuum phobia.

A fear of vacuums may develop corresponding to other sound-related phobias or mental health issues. The most common ones include phonophobia, the fear of loud sounds; misophonia, a mental disorder that causes intolerance of certain sounds; and other mental health disorders that cause sensitivity to sounds and noises.

Some with zuigerphobia are unable to manage their response to loud, uncomfortable noises. They may lack the skills to control their reactions to the sound and may start to perceive a vacuum cleaner as a source of imminent danger. Besides kids, the fear of vacuums is also commonly observed in pets. The response of a pet is similar to the reaction of a human when they are exposed to vacuum cleaners.

What Is Zuigerphobia Like?

Zuigerphobia inhibits you from feeling comfortable and at ease in any situation or circumstance that involves a vacuum cleaner or a loud noise similar to that of a vacuum cleaner. Adults may lose the ability to function correctly in a crowded environment. They may struggle to socialize in loud, noisy groups. Children with zuigerphobia may have a hard time concentrating in a talkative classroom or actively participating in activities that involve large groups and chatter.

Symptoms of Zuigerphobia

When you are suffering from zuigerphobia, or any specific phobia for that matter, just the thought of the source of your fear, in this case, a vacuum cleaner, can send shivers down your spine. Let us take a look at some common symptoms of zuigerphobia.

Mental/Emotional Symptoms

  • Extreme anxiety
  • The desire to immediately escape or run away from the situation
  • The feeling of being trapped or feeling claustrophobic
  • Difficulty in completing routine activities
  • Difficulty in concentrating or focussing
  • Mood swings, irritation, and bad temper
  • Lack of mental and physical control over the body

Physical Symptoms

  • Heart palpitations
  • Choking sensations
  • Excessive sweating
  • Nausea
  • The feeling of “going crazy”
  • Feeling dizzy and light-headed
  • Infants may end up crying and screaming
  • Heat flashes and chills throughout the body

How Do You Treat Zuigerphobia?

The earlier you get to the root cause of the issue, and the sooner you start the treatment process for zuigerphobia, the less intense and enduring the fear will be.

Deal with zuigerphobia as you would deal with any other fear or phobia. If the fear is in its early stage, self-help and meditation can work wonders. However, if your phobia is interfering with your everyday life, then seeking the help of a mental health professional is recommended. A therapist may work on gradually desensitizing you to vacuums in a professional setting before applying it to the real world.

Zuigerphobia Treatments: How You Can Help Yourself

Because zuigerphobia most commonly develops in children, treatment requires special and proper attention. Zuigerphobia can be easily confused with other mental issues and disorders that involve loud sounds. Therefore, before treating a child for zuigerphobia, make sure the condition is diagnosed by a professional.

One of the most popular and successful treatment methods for zuigerphobia is desensitization, which is based on the principles of cognitive-behavioral therapy. Through this therapy, you begin to change the pattern of your fears through mindful practices. You gain more control of your behaviors by understanding your feelings and thoughts more fully.

Through desensitization, you are gradually exposed to the vacuum. This is one of the most effective treatment options, especially for young children, and doesn’t necessarily require direct help of a therapist.

Here are the steps to follow for the desensitization process:

  • Unplug the vacuum cleaner and let your child play with it.
  • Transform the vacuum cleaner into a fun character. Develop stories around it and narrate them to your child.
  • Given time and preparation, turn the vacuum cleaner on. Before you turn it on, make sure to inform your child about it and give them the option to remain in the room or not.

How to Cope with Zuigerphobia

Coping with zuigerphobia is as complex as dealing with any other fear. However, it’s not impossible. The most unfortunate fact about the fear of vacuums is that even infants are at the risk of developing it. If you’re an adult, you can try self-help methods, reach out to others to discuss your fears, or try to overcome your fears by learning other coping techniques.

If your child is afraid of a particular object or is fearful of loud noises, comfort them and help them feel safe. Try to talk with them and discuss what they are feeling. Be supportive of their feelings, no matter how irrational you may think they are. Schedule an appointment with a children’s counselor. Be patient with them, listen to them, and help them through the process of overcoming their fear.

Final Words

Most specific phobias, including zuigerphobia, are considered irrational. However, they can be as threatening and dreadful as any other phobia. If you feel the overpowering need to steer clear of vacuum cleaners, don’t be too hard on yourself. Just because an everyday object has negatively affected your routine, that doesn’t mean you’ll feel this way forever. Practice mindfulness, seek advice from competent sources, and treat your phobia promptly.

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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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