Fear of bees (apiphobia): causes and symptoms

Bee stings can be painful and unpleasant, and no one likes getting one. However, some people develop an irrational fear of these insects, which causes tremendous discomfort and anxiety in their presence.

The simple sound of a buzzing can cause a state of panic and fear so intense that the person wants to leave the place immediately as a result of irrational thoughts. This extreme and unreal fear is known as apiphobia, and in this article we will delve into its symptoms, causes, and consequences.

What is apiphobia

The word apiphobia comes from Latin, because "apis" which means bees; and from the Greek, "phobos" translates as fear. This phobia is also known as melisophobia, since bee in Greek is "melissa".

Apiphobia is a phobic disorder and therefore an anxiety disorder. Its main symptom is extreme fear, discomfort and anxiety, which cause the person to try to avoid bees at all costs. This phobia is usually related to the fear of other flying insects such as wasps or hornets.

Many people have been bitten by these insects or have family or friends who have suffered bites on their own flesh. But the bite of these insects, which can be painful, does not pose a health risk, unless the person who suffers the bite is allergic or receives multiple simultaneous bites.

Apiphobia does not necessarily pose a serious problem for the person, especially in those cases in which there is hardly any contact with bees or wasps. Nevertheless, it is necessary to go to a specialist in cases in which these symptoms persist and affect the life of the subject. For example, it can be a serious problem for those who live near a forest or their neighbor owns a hive of bees. In such circumstances, your apiphobia needs treatment.

Causes

Like the rest of phobias, this condition is usually directly associated with a previous incidence with bees. In other words, to a traumatic event. The most common cause is being stung by bees, which can lead to learning fear irrational by classical conditioning, a type of associative learning that we explain to you in our Article: "Classical conditioning and its most important experiments”

This phobia usually develops in childhood, although it can also occur at any age.

Now, there are other possible causes that do not have to do with being stung by a bee or wasp.. For example, when someone in our environment has been stung. When this happens, apiphobia can be acquired by vicarious conditioning. In addition, since we are little, they teach us to be afraid and to be away from bees, this extreme behavior can lead some people to develop irrational beliefs around these insects Television and movies also play a role in developing these beliefs.

Some experts also affirm that we are biologically predisposed to suffer from phobias, as this emotion has served the human species to survive for centuries. This has caused that phobias do not respond to logical arguments, but are primitive and non-cognitive associations.

Symptoms and signs

The symptoms are common in the different types of phobia, what varies is the stimulus that causes it. These symptoms can be cognitive, behavioral, and physical. They stand out from them:

• Extreme and irrational fear of bees (even when they are not present). Even a thought, image or talk about bees can trigger fear
• Anxiety, anguish and general malaise.
• Thoughts of death
• Complete avoidance of places where bees can be found and bee hives are found. For example, forests or caves.
• Lack of concentration
• Confusion
• Panic attacks accompanied by signs such as sweating, shaking, racing heartbeat, dizziness or fainting, nausea or vomiting, shortness of breath, abdominal discomfort.

Treatment and therapy

In many studies, psychological therapy has been shown to work especially well for treating phobias. Specifically, cognitive behavioral therapy, which is aimed at modifying those thoughts or behaviors that cause discomfort to the patient.

Most of the time, fear of bees is related to irrational beliefs, so trying to replace this negative image of bees can help. Nevertheless, relaxation and exposure techniques are the treatment par excellence in the case of phobias.

Exposure therapy is characterized by frequent sessions in which the person copes with the feared stimulus progressively. Likewise, psychologists also teach different forms of relaxation such as exercises for the release of muscle tension, mental visualizations and breath control. The psychologist can also teach the patient relaxation techniques so that they can use them simultaneously during the exposure. It is what is known as the technique of systematic desensitization.

In severe cases of anxiety, anxiolytics and antidepressants can be used to control feelings of fear in a person. However, they should never be administered without medical supervision and without being part of a treatment that includes psychotherapy.

Other therapeutic methods such as Mindfulness and the Acceptance and commitment therapy have been shown to be effective in treating phobias.

New technologies applied to the treatment of phobias

New technologies have allowed patients to be exposed to the phobic stimulus without it being present. This is possible thanks to virtual reality and augmented reality. Studies show that these types of techniques are very effective. At present, mobile applications have even been developed to treat phobias.

• We tell you about it in our article: "8 apps to treat phobias and fears from your smartphone”