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Hello, dear readers of the site! Chrematophobia is the panicky fear of money. And today we will try to figure out why exactly it occurs, as well as in what forms it manifests itself. And, most importantly, how it is treated.
What is it like?
The term chrematophobia comes from the Greek word chremato, which translates as money, and, accordingly, phobos — intense fear. A person with this type of phobia is terribly afraid to touch money.
This may be due to the fear of catching some kind of infection, because there are a huge number of microbes, fungi and so on on banknotes. There is even a disorder of mysophobia — a panicky fear of dirt.
One way or another, chrematophobia gives its owner a lot of trouble. Because the need to make some kind of purchase is not a joyful event for him. On the contrary, it provokes a panic attack.
And if in stores he can still pay with a credit card, then in public transport, for example, he is not able to pay for himself.
Because fear is irrational — which means that the fob is not able to control it, no rational arguments will help to overcome oneself and force one to touch coins or banknotes.
Although some manage to find a way out of the situation — they wear gloves. But this does not help everyone. Yes, and with some forms of manifestation of a phobia, a person is even afraid of credit cards.
Symptoms
Behavioral
Fob may refuse to use money at all. And at the same time work, receive bonuses, enjoy them. But don’t use it. Often they entrust their financial matters to close relatives.
Who buy food, medicines, pay bills and so on. Tight for those who do not have surrounded by people who could be trusted.
They experience impotence and horror when it comes time to calculate finances. Therefore, if there are no helpers, they are left without a livelihood. The money seems to be there, but you can’t touch it.
Therefore, visits to birthdays, corporate parties and just meeting friends in a restaurant or bar are prohibited for them. After all, they are not able to purchase a gift or pay a bill.
And, it often happens that all these events do not arouse interest, and even vice versa, inability.
In general, gradually refusing to spend your time and resources on spending time with loved ones leads to isolation and a feeling of total loneliness. When it seems that in the whole wide world no one cares how they live and feel.
Therefore, a characteristic sign of the manifestation of a phobia is also depression. In especially severe cases, it leads to attempts to commit suicide, just to stop feeling anxiety and torment. Which, unfortunately, ends successfully.
Somatic
In a panic attack, the fob develops dry mouth, shortness of breath, nausea, dizziness, and vomiting. He loses control over his behavior and emotions, so he often behaves quite noisily, attracting attention.
Suppose he cries loudly and begs for help. Trying to escape to a secluded place, or to the toilet room, in order to urgently wash his hands from dirt, if he happened to touch the banknotes with them, he crashes into the walls of people passing by.
Often falls, as tremors in the legs and inability to adequately perceive the environment make it impossible to be careful and accurate.
Due to frequent and shallow breathing, hyperventilation of the lungs occurs, causing him to begin to suffocate. The level of oxygen in the blood is significantly increased, which leads to a feeling of suffocation.
Stomach or chest pain, suggesting thoughts about an upcoming heart attack. What frightens even more, respectively, the above symptoms only intensify.
It turns out a kind of vicious circle, when it is impossible to relax and calm down.
It can also throw in sweat, heat, no matter what the temperature is in the room. A person in a moment of panic will be incredibly hot even outside in the cold.
The pressure rises, therefore, the skin changes its color. Sometimes there is a nervous tic, this is when some kind of facial muscle begins to twitch with a certain frequency.
Causes
Stereotypes
Certain stereotypes about rich people have developed in society, and not all of them, unfortunately, are positively charged.
For example, it is generally accepted that honest labor does not earn big money, which means that such a person must have made someone unhappy. And who knows, maybe he took his life, just to get his way.
And not everyone wants to seem greedy and cruel. Is not it? Therefore, subconsciously a person perceives money as an evil that spoils even the purest soul.
Accordingly, he does not want to have anything in common with them, preferring to refuse the benefits that could be provided with their help. Than in their own eyes to seem unscrupulous nonentity.
Education
If a child was a frequent witness to scandals between parents that arose on the basis of lack of money, he could quite unconsciously consider that if it were not for money, then everything in their family would be fine. Why will gradually begin to experience disgust and fear towards them.
By the way, fairy tales add confidence in the chosen position. Remember, in them, almost everywhere, rich heroes were portrayed as greedy, unprincipled. And for the sake of money, they were ready for anything.
And it also has an effect on hyperbole. When parents did not give the child pocket money, believing that he could not cope with the purchases on his own.
Accordingly, not knowing how to handle finances, growing up, he initially experiences slight discomfort when he gets into stores. And over time, becoming a victim of awkward situations, this discomfort will increase until it turns into a phobia.
Other types of phobias
The development of chrematophobia can also be provoked by completely different types of phobic disorders. We have already mentioned mysophobia, a person, terribly afraid of dirt and knowing how much it is usually on banknotes, will really panic at the sight of money.
But some people are also afraid of responsibility. And, as you understand, a certain financial situation imposes certain obligations.
From which it is easier to refuse, if only to live in peace. This phobia is called hypengiophobia.
And it is somewhat similar to decidophobia — an irrational fear of making decisions.
After all, having some amount, you need to make a choice how to deal with it, save it, spend it, hide it, or even give it away. After that, think about who to give it to, where to put it, what exactly to spend it on … In general, it’s not at all easy.
Treatment
It is almost impossible to overcome this disorder alone, relying on willpower, thoughts and something else.
Therefore, it is recommended to contact a qualified specialist. At least in order to confirm or exclude the presence of a diagnosis of chrematophobia.
The difficulty lies in the fact that visiting a doctor is not always free. Accordingly, even if the fob admits that he has problems and decides to go for help, he will face difficulty at the first stage. How to pay an invoice?
So it is important to enlist the support of someone close to you who can go to an appointment and deal with this issue.
The psychiatrist will prescribe medications that will help get rid of unnecessary anxiety, worry and tension.
These are sedatives, antidepressants, possibly tranquilizers. If a person is simultaneously tormented by insomnia or nightmares, then sleeping pills are in the complex.
During therapy, you will have the opportunity to explore what exactly provoked the development of a phobic disorder. This is necessary in order to understand what to work with and what limitations to overcome.
Cognitive-behavioral and Gestalt therapy are mainly used for treatment. Also in the question of how to work out your limitations that have arisen against the background of irrational fears, hypnosis and group work are of great help.
Completion
And that’s all for today, dear readers. Psychology is an interesting science, so subscribe to site updates to learn more about what types of mental illness exist.
For example, peniaphobia, it is also associated with money, but it consists in the fact that a person is terribly afraid of being poor, therefore he does not scatter finances, but accumulates them. Denying yourself the slightest pleasures and essentials.
Take care of yourself and be healthy, happy!
The material was prepared by a psychologist, Gestalt therapist, Zhuravina Alina