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We are glad to welcome you, dear readers of the site! Cynophobia is the panicky fear of dogs.
And in this article we suggest you find out what exactly provokes its development. And also how you can diagnose a phobia and recover from it.
What is it like?
About 3,5% of people on the planet are cynophobes. Mostly these are children and individuals under 30 years old. The appearance of dogs is frightening, the likelihood of being bitten, possibly to death. As well as the need to undergo treatment for rabies.
The object of a phobia can be both the animal itself and various objects with its image, stories, films and other paraphernalia, which, one way or another, reminds of it.
Canine phobia, as this disorder is also called, if left untreated, usually progresses to such forms that a person literally needs emergency hospitalization.
For example, if depression occurs, then, having tried to cope with it on their own and losing the fight, the fob will simply decide to commit suicide.
And not only a decision, but also actions, which, unfortunately, in many cases are completed successfully.
How is it diagnosed?
Not every person who is afraid of dogs can be called a cynophobe. There are pseudocynophobia, that is, a false fear.
Demonstrating to others his fear of the so-called friends of man, the false cynophobe realizes his sadistic needs.
That is, it kills homeless animals, scatters poison, which is eaten by domestic dogs during a walk. Swears with the owners if their pet is without a muzzle, believing that he has the right to commit violence in this case.
There are also people who, due to religious beliefs, try to avoid encounters with dogs.
For example, in Islam, dogs are considered «dirty» animals, along with pigs. And if they meet them, they step aside so that in no case do they have to come into contact with such an unclean animal.
So, this is not such a disorder as canine phobia (another name for fear).
So what will help determine whether a person has a phobia or not? A true cynophobe does not show aggression towards the object of his fear. And he doesn’t even experience it.
Do you know why? Because he is terribly afraid. Therefore, he tries, on the contrary, to avoid any mention of him, not to mention direct contact.
To avenge bites, bark at night — you need to think about it, look for options, remember unpleasant moments. And the fob at the mere thought of a dog will shake and choke, because such intense horror seizes him.
Symptoms
Behavioral and cognitive
- Derealization. This is such a phenomenon in which a person does not understand what is happening, everything that surrounds him seems mythical, fictional. For example, he decides that he is simply sleeping and having a bad dream.
- Obsessive ideas and as a result, insomnia, nervous exhaustion, depression.
- Loss of control over their behavior at the time of the onset of a panic attack. Fob is crying loudly, calling for help. He rushes to people, even complete strangers, and begs to be saved from a bloodthirsty creature, which, for example, stands quietly in a muzzle next to the owner.
- If he sees a dog on the street, he crosses to the other side of the road so that he does not have to be near it. And if for some reason it turned out that she passes by him, she literally becomes numb with horror and waits for her to finally disappear from view. Afraid that at any moment he would become a victim of an attack.
- The perception of reality is distorted. Consciousness becomes tunnel. Therefore, in the head, basically, only the thought of how to escape, survive an encounter with an animal, or how to get to a safe place as soon as possible is pulsing.
Somatic
- In a panic, the fob’s breath spirals, so much so that thoughts arise about imminent death due to suffocation. The fact is that with an excess of oxygen in the blood, which is inevitable if you breathe often and superficially, as happens at the time of living the horror, there is dizziness and a feeling that there is not enough air at all. That is why in American films, to calm down, people breathe into paper bags that they always carry with them for such cases. If such a life-saving remedy was not at hand, do not be discouraged, a method that is quite accessible to almost every person will also help — inhaling the carbon dioxide that we emit. You just need to bring your palms to your mouth.
- Throws in heat. Moreover, a person can literally sweat completely in a minute. Even being outside in winter when the temperature is below freezing.
- Stomach pain, vomiting, nausea or diarrhea.
- Unpleasant sensations in the region of the heart, pulling, pressing, “shooting”. It seems that he had a heart attack due to anxiety and now he will definitely die if they do not provide emergency medical care.
- Tremor of the limbs. It happens that the chin trembles, the voice breaks, and the speech itself accelerates so much that it becomes completely unclear to others what they want from them and what they are trying to convey.
- In some cases, the fob becomes overly active when it sees a dog — it runs away, screams and cries. In others, on the contrary, it becomes numb and cannot even move. Depends on the type of personality and reactions to stimuli.
- The pressure rises, the heartbeat accelerates.
- The skin either becomes crimson red or deathly pale.
Causes
Psychological trauma and negative experiences
Naturally, the most basic reason for the manifestation of cynophobia is the traumatic situation of an attack by a dog, and maybe a whole pack of dogs. They could not even bite, but only bark, thus scaring half to death.
The psyche of children is not yet able to withstand stress, so any fear threatens to manifest itself as a phobic disorder in the future.
So, if in the presence of the baby the pet began to behave aggressively, for example, defending the territory, and for him this turned out to be a surprise, then the reaction is quite predictable.
Education
If, from birth, parents scare the baby with dogs, not allowing them to stroke and, in general, approach them, then it is likely that he will really beware of them, despite the absence of aggressive behavior.
For example, on a walk, an anxious mother drives away any animal, frightening it, throwing branches or stones at it. The child will assume that this is normal and will repeat after her.
After all, parents are authoritative figures in the lives of young children, thanks to whom they learn to contact the outside world.
Heredity
If a close relative suffered from any kind of mental disorder, this means that such a person is at risk. One day, his psyche may not be able to cope with the load and phobias, or other diseases will make themselves felt.
Features of personality
Receptive, vulnerable and impressionable personalities, and after watching the news about the attack of pets on owners or bystanders, can be so frightened that they begin to bypass them.
Treatment
Do you know how to get rid of kinophobia? Be sure to go to the experts. Which one depends on the severity of the course of the disorder.
Suppose, if you lead an active social life, and your phobia does not bring changes to it, but only occasionally inconvenience in the form of anxiety at the time of being near a dog, then psychotherapy is quite enough.
If you stopped sleeping at night, are afraid to leave the house and literally suffocate just by hearing the word «dog» — a visit to a psychiatrist is inevitable.
You should not be afraid, if you do not pose a threat to yourself and the people around you, as happens with depression with suicidal tendencies, affects, then you do not need hospitalization.
Depending on the condition, you will be prescribed medications that will help restore peace of mind.
Typically, a psychiatrist prescribes antidepressants for depression, tranquilizers and sedatives for increased anxiety. Also sleeping pills if you have nightmares or can’t sleep at all.
Consultation with a psychiatrist is also necessary in order to exclude the presence of other mental disorders. For example, cynophobia can be one of the main features of schizophrenia.
The most effective areas of psychotherapy in the fight against phobias are hypnosis, neurolinguistic programming, cognitive behavioral therapy and gestalt.
You have the right to choose directly the approach that is more attractive and suitable.
Recommendations
In order not to think about the question of how to stop being afraid of animals, it is better to take care of your health in advance, not only physical, but also mental.
- It happens that others advise radical methods, which, most likely, will bring more difficulties than good. This refers to the offer to buy a pet and get used to it while it is small and does not pose a threat. Except, of course, damaged bitten things. Be careful if you choose this method. Because if it does not work, even at home you will no longer feel safe. And this will only increase the development of kinophobia without giving an answer on how to overcome it.
- Add foods to your diet that trigger the release of serotonin, the hormone of pleasure. So you at least a little unload your nervous system.
- Sport. Do exercises, do push-ups, run, swim — in general, everything that you are allowed for health reasons. Loads help to cope with anxiety and relieve stress.
- Meditate and practice breathing techniques to relax.
- Communicate with those who do not seek to upset you or anger you, hurt you. If there are toxic people in your environment, minimize contact with them.
- Find a hobby that brings you pleasure. Such activities will help to realize the accumulated energy, relax and improve the quality of life.
Completion
In general, being afraid of an aggressive or large dog is a completely natural reaction of a person whose self-preservation instinct works perfectly.
Walking through the park and meeting an animal that has bared its teeth and is planning to attack — who doesn’t get scared here? There are a lot of such people and situations, so it cannot be argued that this is a manifestation of kinophobia.
Fear is irrational — this means that a person freezes in horror, even if there is a creature nearby that is incapable of causing harm.
For example, a puppy or a very small individual. Usually, for most, they cause tenderness, but not panic.
And that’s all for today, folks! Subscribe to site updates, so you will be guaranteed to receive daily a portion of fresh, and, we hope, interesting information for you.
Suppose you knew that there are individuals who, under no pretext, agree to go to the beach? Since there are fish there, more terrible than which for them there is nothing in the world?
Take care of yourself and be happy!
The material was prepared by a psychologist, Gestalt therapist, Zhuravina Alina