Cymophobia (fear of sea waves): symptoms, causes and treatment

There are as many phobias as there are objects or situations in the world.. There are phobias that are more common than others, and some that are really strange. In this article we bring you cymophobia, which consists of the intense and irrational fear of sea waves.

The phobia of water is quite common, since, although it is an element that may be harmless, it can also cause damage or harm (accidents, drowning, etc.). In this article we will tell you what cymophobia is and what its symptoms, causes and treatments are.

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

Cymophobia: the irrational fear of waves

Cymophobia is a specific phobia, that is, an anxiety disorder. It is characterized by an intense, disproportionate and irrational fear of sea waves and wave movements.

Cymophobia is related to other similar types of phobia, such as aquaphobia (fear of water), bathophobia (fear of depths), thalassophobia (fear of large bodies of water) and ablutophobia (intense fear of daily toilet water).

Although it is true that the phobia of water is a fairly common phobia (especially in childhood), the phobia of waves is less common. It could be said that cymophobia is a variant of the phobia of water.

This fear of sea waves can be explained by the fear, even more internal, of being devoured by one of them (for example while surfing, or in "normal" situations of bathing in the sea).

fear of water

As we said, the phobia of water is a fairly common phobia, especially among children. Actually, it is not so "strange" to suffer from a phobia of water, since it is a stimulus that can become threatening, or that can cause damage (think of drowning, for example).

In addition, in the news it is very common to hear news of people drowning on beaches and swimming pools (especially small children).

In the case of cymophobia, fear occurs in water as an environmental element (ie sea water, for example). Specifically, fear occurs before the waves of the sea. It is curious because water is an element that can arouse both fascination, curiosity and admiration, as well as fear.

Symptoms

The symptoms of cymophobia are the same as those of a specific phobia. Those that we propose are found in the DSM-5 (in the diagnostic criteria of a specific phobia). Let's see them in detail.

1. intense fear of waves

The main symptom is a fear, anxiety or intense fear at the possibility of seeing or “touching” waves. The waves and their wave movements arouse this fear, which also translates into physical symptoms (tachycardia, sweating, tension, dizziness, nausea, hyperactivity, etc.). and psychological (irrational ideas associated with waves).

2. Interference

In order to diagnose cymophobia as such, this fear associated with the phobia must interfere with the individual's life. That is, the person's day-to-day life is affected by said fear. This translates, for example, into stop making plans that involve seeing sea waves (avoidance).

3. Avoidance

So, in cymophobia the person avoids his anxiety-triggering stimulus: waves. This implies that they stop going to the beach even though they may feel like it, and that if they have to expose themselves to the stimulus, they resist it with high anxiety.

4. 6 month duration

In order to be diagnosed with cymophobia, as in all specific phobias, the duration of symptoms is required to last at least 6 months.

Causes

The causes of cymophobia can be diverse. Let's see the most frequent below.

1. Traumatic experiences with the waves

One of the most likely causes of cymophobia is the fact that having experienced a traumatic situation with the waves, such as: getting hurt by a wave (surfing, for example), having drowned in one of them, having been about to die, etc.

2. vicarious conditioning

He vicarious conditioning It implies seeing other people receiving certain consequences (generally negative) as a consequence of their actions. In the case of cymophobia, we could think of a lifeguard who sees people who are about to die drowning in the waves every day, or who simply hurt themselves with one of them.

Evidently, You don't have to be a lifeguard to "learn" this phobia through vicarious conditioning.; People who simply see other people getting hurt with them can also develop cymophobia.

This includes watching news of people drowning (even if it's without waves); In the end, they are fears related to water (especially sea water), and they end up fearing the sea itself, or the water itself, and as an extension, the waves.

3. personal vulnerability

Vulnerability to suffering certain mental disorders has been studied a lot. This has also been done with anxiety disorders, finding that There are people who show a certain individual vulnerability to suffering from an anxiety disorder.; this can be extrapolated to specific phobias, in this case cymophobia.

Thus, there are people who, due to their personal, genetic, endocrine, etc. characteristics, are more likely to develop a disorder of this type. If we also have first-degree relatives with cymophobia, it could be that our probability of suffering from it also increases (although a priori there are no studies to determine this).

Treatment

What treatment(s) is/are available for this phobia? As in all specific phobias, in psychotherapy we can talk about two main (and first choice) treatments.

1. cognitive therapy

Cognitive therapy allows the patient to adjust his catastrophic thoughts to reality. These thoughts in cymophobia are usually of the type: "I will hurt myself", "this wave will make me drown", "the sea is not a safe place", etc.

With the cognitive therapy (through cognitive restructuring techniques) you can work with these types of thoughts, so that the patient has more adaptive, realistic and reliable thoughts. Although water can cause tragedies, it is about making the patient understand that this is not always the case.

Through cognitive therapy (along with behavior therapy) it is also sought that the patient acquires coping strategies to deal with situations of high anxiety caused by waves. This is also done through the following treatment (exposure techniques).

2. Exposure

In the exposure therapy, the patient with cymophobia is gradually exposed to the feared stimulus, that is, waves (through a hierarchy of items ordered from least to most anxiety that they generate).

The first items may involve seeing seawater from afar, and progressively include and address items that involve more interaction with the feared stimulus.

Bibliographic references:

• American Psychiatric Association –APA- (2014). DSM-5. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Madrid: Pan American.

• Horse (2002). Manual for the cognitive-behavioral treatment of psychological disorders. Vol. 1 and 2. Madrid. 21st century (Chapters 1-8, 16-18).

• Pérez, M., Fernández, J.R, Fernández, C. and Friend, I. (2010). Guide to effective psychological treatments I and II:. Madrid: Pyramid.