Nyctophobia in adults: what it is and how it is treated in psychotherapy

Throughout the history of humanity, the night has fascinated the members of our species, and it is not uncommon for millennia to have been associated with magical phenomena; in many cultures, those hours of darkness have served as the inspiration for all kinds of stories and fantastic stories through which tried to explain reality, or at least, the parts of it that could not be understood due to the relatively little development scientist.

However, for some people, the night can be a generator of deep discomfort, anxiety, irrational fear and even terror. In these cases we are facing a case of nyctophobia or fear of the dark.

Although it is more common among boys and girls, this emotional disturbance can affect people of all ages, and in the most problematic cases it is necessary to go to a psychologist as soon as possible. Thus, in this article we will focus on the phenomenon of nyctophobia in adults, taking into account that this discomfort is usually overshadowed by the importance of its version that occurs in the childhood period.

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What is nyctophobia?

Nyctophobia or irrational fear of the dark is a phobic-type anxiety disorder characterized by a series of physical and mental symptoms. psychological that the person experiences every time they are in dimly lit places, whether at home or in any other scenery.

Fear of the dark is a fairly common fear in young children, which generally occurs between the ages of 2 and 7; however, in some people this disorder can worsen and persist through adolescence and adulthood, remaining as a phobic disorder, or it can even appear in adults who had not suffered from this problem in previous years.

The appearance of nyctophobia can be due to a wide variety of factors; some of the most common tend to be traumatic experiences that happened overnight or that involve dark settings, or an excessive fear of the dark during the childhood stage that maintains. However, it is not necessary that these kinds of events have occurred. Sometimes, phobias appear without an apparent cause (something that is actually due to a combination of many causes of a more discreet nature than a traumatic experience).

Nyctophobia can be intensified by a wide variety of catalysts., among the most frequent in which a person with this disorder can be found is the fact of having to pass the night alone, meeting in dark places in the city, going to the movies or to the theater where the lights are off, etc

Symptoms

As indicated, nyctophobia presents in the person a series of physical and psychological symptoms of discomfort that can affect their physical and psychological health to a greater or lesser extent.

The main psychological symptoms of nyctophobia are typical of the rest of specific phobias; extreme anxiety, general malaise, tremors, dizziness, racing wrists, cold sweats, feeling loss of control over the body, the emergence of catastrophic beliefs, sweating, excessive agitation, insomnia, or blockage mental.

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Characteristics of nyctophobia in adults

The fear of the dark is usually associated with childish behavior; Now, if something characterizes irrational fears, it is precisely that they do not depend on the knowledge we have about how the world works, and that is why adults can also suffer from it despite having much more information and experience than adults. little ones.

In this sense, there are two aspects that characterize nyctophobia in adults and that we must add to the rest of the experiences and symptoms that we have already seen. On the one hand, the most common thing for these people is that, from an intellectual point of view, they know that technically they are not in danger by being in the dark, at least technically; however, they feel they are not safe, beyond what their more rational and analytical side dictates. So much so that with the passing of the minutes they often generate "exceptions" in their mind about why the rules according to which reality works do not apply to their specific case.

On the other hand, adults who suffer from nyctophobia find themselves with the added problem that they are embarrassed to talk about their problem, precisely because in the collective imagination that is an experience that only young children live. In other words, probably if they suffered from any other type of phobia they would have less qualms about talking about it and recognizing that it is serious enough to have to go to therapy.

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How is nyctophobia treated in psychotherapy?

Nyctophobia can be treated in psychotherapy by a qualified professional, who performs in the initial moment a previous personal interview accompanied, if necessary, by a series of tests psychological.

Once the patient's profile and the levels of irrational fear he suffers have been thoroughly evaluated, the psychotherapist will proceed to intervene from cognitive behavioral therapy, one of the most used in anxiety disorders.

This way of intervening in patients helps the affected person to change their maladaptive thoughts about the dark for more positive ones that allows you to realize the irrational fear you suffer from, and at the same time, helps you develop behavior patterns that go along the same line of overcoming fear.

In addition to that, the intervention may also include relaxation techniques, mindfulness techniques, virtual reality techniques, and the Exposure or Desensitization Technique. These techniques allow the person gradually come into contact with the source of your irrational fear to the point where you get used to being in the dark and your symptoms gradually weaken.

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Are you looking for professional psychological support?

If you want to start a psychotherapy process to overcome a phobia, contact me.

My name is Ignacio Garcia and I am a psychologist specializing in intervention in anxiety disorders.