Katsaridaphobia (fear of cockroaches): symptoms and causes

Phobias are irrational and disproportionate fears before stimuli or situations that generally they are not harmful, or if they are, they are not harmful enough to generate those high dose of fear. There are thousands of different phobias. In this article we will know one of them, katsaridaphobia, which consists of intense fear of cockroaches.

We will know what exactly this phobia consists of, what are its typical symptoms, its most frequent causes and the treatments that are usually used to treat it. In addition, we will review the types of phobias proposed by the DSM-5 (Diagnostic Manual of Mental Disorders).

• Related article: "Types of Phobias: Exploring Fear Disorders"

Phobias: what are they?

Typical symptoms of a phobia (called a simple or specific phobia) include this intense fear coupled with great anxiety when the stimulus is presented (or even when imagines), avoidance of the stimulus in question (or coping / resistance with high levels of anxiety) and an impairment of the global functioning of the individual suffering from the phobia.

The diagnostic criteria to consider that you have a specific phobia according to the DSM-5 (Diagnostic Manual of Mental Disorders), also include that anxiety, fear or avoidance exists for at least 6 months or more.

Types

There are phobias for practically all possible stimuli, objects or situations. Specifically, DSM-5 classifies specific phobias into 5 groups, depending on the type of stimulus that is feared:

• Phobia of animals
• Phobia of natural environments
• Phobia of blood-wounds-injections
• Situational phobia
• Other types of phobia

Katsaridaphobia would be classified as an animal phobia, since the stimulus that is feared in this case is cockroaches (a type of insect).

Katsaridaphobia - what is it?

Thus, katsaridaphobia is a specific type of phobia for which cockroaches are feared. Cockroaches are also called "blatodeos", and they are a type of flattened-bodied insects, which are usually between 3 and 7.5 cm long. Termites, for example, are also included in the group of "blatodeos" or cockroaches.

Irrational fear of cockroaches is related to our ancestors' survival attempts when they were exposed to animals that could pose a threat; in this case, however, katsaridaphobia is more related to the fear of stimuli that generate disgust, like many other phobias related (fear of small insects, ants, rotten food, mice, decomposing bodies, etc.).

In this way, although we "know" that cockroaches cannot cause us serious harm (since they are usually very small and harmless), people with katsaridaphobia they feel such an inordinate sense of disgust at them that they even panic when they see them, they are near or touched (especially if they appear in their houses, rooms, etc.).

This "fear or rejection of disgust" is also related to the fear of contamination or contracting some type of disease, and it is for This is because the origin of katsaridaphobia, as we will see later, may also be related to survival mechanisms ancestral.

• You may be interested: "Types of Anxiety Disorders and their characteristics"

Symptoms

Symptoms of katsaridaphobia, as a specific phobia that it is, are the following:

1. Intense fear or anxiety

The main symptom of katsaridaphobia is an intense fear or anxiety of cockroaches. Like all specific phobias, fear is limited to a specific and well-specified stimulus, object or situation (although this delimitation can vary from one phobias to another); in this case, the specific phobic stimulus is cockroaches.

Simply witnessing a cockroach can be feared; Usually we find this type of insects in the field, in the home itself (under the bed, between cabinets or furniture, etc.) or in other contexts.

2. Avoidance or resistance

The second symptom of katsaridaphobia is an avoidance of situations that may involve seeing or approaching a cockroach. Avoidance is also extrapolated to the very situation of seeing them, that is, we see them and we have to run because we cannot “bear” that fear or anxiety.

If avoidance does not occur, there is an active resistance to the stimulus, with immediate and exaggerated fear or anxiety; that is, the presence of cockroaches is faced or resisted but with a great feeling of discomfort.

3. Disproportionate fear or anxiety

Very similar to the first symptom, in katsaridaphobia the individual manifests a disproportionate fear or anxiety; This means that they occur in the face of an unreal danger or a danger that is not serious enough to explain these symptoms.

Besides, also they are disproportionate symptoms in relation to the sociocultural context in which the person with katsaridaphobia is found.

4. Persistent fear or anxiety

In addition, this fear or anxiety of cockroaches persists over time, at least for 6 months. This period of time is essential to elapse with symptoms in order to be diagnosed with katsaridaphobia, according to the DSM-5.

5. Major discomfort

The above symptoms end up causing a remarkable discomfort in the person, which affects the functioning of her daily life, interfering with it. In this way, either there is significant discomfort, or deterioration occurs in one or more areas of the patient's life (labor, social, personal ...)

Causes

The causes of katsaridaphobia, as we have advanced, are believed to be related to a survival mechanism ancestral to stimuli that produce disgust (since this mechanism helped prevent the contraction of diseases, for example). This ancestral mechanism is extrapolated to other stimuli (other types of insects, spoiled food with unpleasant odors, etc.).

On the other hand, it is known that cockroaches usually live in dark and warm areas. It is likely that a person who develops katsaridaphobia has found himself in low light situations and that a cockroach has brushed his skin, causing him an uncomfortable or disgusted feeling. This situation can lead to such a high feeling of disgust that it ends up causing katsaridaphobia itself.

In both cases, katsaridaphobia originates as an adaptive and therefore evolutionary response of the organism. Thus, we know that our ancestors had evolutionary mechanisms that allowed them to be alert to animals or even cockroaches, when they slept in caves or in dark places.

Finally, katsaridaphobia too can be caused by vicarious experiences (observing another person with a phobia of cockroaches suffering), traumatic experiences with the insect or even the fact of having a genetic predisposition to suffer this type of phobia.

• You may be interested: "Vicarious learning: observing others to educate ourselves"

Treatment

Treatments for katsaridaphobia include psychological therapy; As in most of the specific phobias, techniques of exposure to the phobic stimulus and of systematic desensitization (DS), together with cognitive restructuring techniques.

Thus, katsaridaphobia can be overcome. For example, if we use systematic desensitization or exposure techniques, we can gradually present images or photos of cockroaches to the patient. Progressively, the phobic stimulus will become more and more so for him (the therapist will elaborate a hierarchy of items previously with the patient); the next step may be for the patient to approach and even touch a dead cockroach.

Afterwards, the same can be done with a live cockroach. Ideally, the last items of SD or exposure techniques will include situations where the patient must remain in a room or room with the cockroaches without running away and without experiencing anxiety (or having tolerable levels of the herself).

The ultimate goal is for the patient with katsaridaphobia to stop experiencing the symptoms of fear and anxiety when they see cockroaches, and that your body does not react over-reacting to such situations or stimuli, thus decoupling the phobic stimulus from the physiological symptoms.

Bibliographic references:

• American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. Fifth edition. Washington DC: Author.
• Pérez, M.; Fernández, J.R.; Fernández, C. and Friend, I. (2010). Guide to effective psychological treatments I: Adults. Madrid: Pyramid.
• Tortella-Feliu, M. (2014). Anxiety Disorders in DSM-5. Notebooks of psychosomatic medicine and psychiatry. Ibero-American Journal of Psychosomatics, 110: 62-69.