Cynophobia: Symptoms, Causes and Treatments

The Cynophobia Is an extreme fear of dogs, much greater than would be considered normal. Some people with this phobia can suffer from severe panic attacks when they encounter a dog.

If you have this phobia, the terror in the presence of a dog or even simply at the mention of something related to the canines (in the most Extreme), can cause you symptoms such as: extreme anxiety, sweating, tachycardia, desire to flee, weakness and dizziness.

Cynophobia

In some cases, cynophobia manifests itself as an irrational fear towards all dogs whereas in other cases, the person only fears closeness Of dogs of certain breed or color.

What is the cause of this extreme fear? Many times the phobia begins to be generated after a traumatic event related to a dog, of course. In most of these cases, the event occurs during childhood, and the fear generated in that instance remains in time and is getting worse.

Although it is also true that this does not occur in all people. Other people with cynophobia do not remember any traumatic events that might be the Cause of its terror. And of course, not all people who have experienced this kind of experiences end up developing a phobia.

There is another mechanism that is capable of generating a phobia, and it is by imitation or learning. For example, if when you were a child your mother was terrified of being Near a dog, it is possible that he transmitted that fear to you and that is why you have cynophobia today.

Once the phobia is installed, it will not go away if you do not receive treatment; Even though you try to reason and think that your fear is totally irrational, this does not Is sufficient to deactivate the mechanisms that trigger the symptoms of cynophobia.

How to know if you have cynophobia or if your fear is"normal"

barking dog

It is normal to be afraid in some situations, because this fear is what has allowed the species to survive.

Imagine if a person were not afraid to cross a poisonous snake for example, he would not walk away and probably die from the bite.

This adaptive fear includes a set of sensations and responses of the body that are considered normal when you are in a situation of danger real.

What happens in phobias is that this intense fear and the responses of the organism to this sensation occur in situations that do not represent a Real danger.

Then in the case of the cynophobia appears the paralyzing terror, the extreme anxiety, the sweating, the tachycardia and the desire to flee, before the Presence of any harmless puppy.

If you begin to avoid situations in which you could cross a dog, just to avoid these nasty symptoms, then you probably have Phobia to dogs.

You can say that it really is cynophobia if:

  • Fear is disproportionate. Clearly superior to what would be considered normal for the situation.

  • Avoid real or anticipated situations, in which you could meet a dog.

  • There is no logical explanation for this extreme fear (irrationality).

  • Terror surpasses your ability to control.

  • When you come across a canine, you feel discomfort, suffering.

  • Sweating, tachycardia, nausea.

  • Weakness, dizziness.

  • You want to run out

  • Extreme anxiety, panic attack (in the most severe cases of cynophobia).

If you have many of these symptoms, you are likely to have cynophobia. But do not worry, if you seek professional help, you can safely overcome this fear.

Treatments for cynophobia

Child with dog

Specific phobias related to a well-defined object or situation can be addressed through Cognitive therapy Behavioral And gradual exposure therapy.

In this type of therapies it is to banish the irrational fear, to instate new thoughts and new behaviors before the situations that represent A stimulus, and gradually expose the person to the cause of their fear, so that little by little they associate new positive experiences, leaving behind the Negative emotions associated with it.

1-Phase exposure therapy

Exposure therapy can be done with real dogs or with pictures of dogs. However, the more real the exposure, it is likely That better results are obtained.'

But if the cynophobia is very intense, at the beginning you will not be able to bear the idea of ​​having a dog in front of you, and in these cases you start with images of dogs. Many patients are so terrified that they threaten to give up treatment if they are forced to be around a dog.

That is why it is important to progress little by little in the exhibition, without ever minimizing the fear that the patient feels, which is real, even if it is irrational.

How long should the exhibition last?

Exposure to dogs

The duration depends on how the treatment is planned, according to the intensity of the phobia presented by the patient.

Some experts believe that prolonged exposure leads to better results compared to short-term exposures. An exposition It can be considered prolonged when it lasts for at least 60 minutes.

It should be noted that during this time the patient must be supported permanently by his therapist. This will help you To control anxiety already Change negative thoughts Irrational behavior associated with dogs by other more rational and positive thoughts.

How is this therapy applied?

First, once the patient feels moderately prepared for exposure, he must commit to not escape until the anxiety Disappear.

The patient is then encouraged to approach a dog as much as possible, and stay there until the anxiety subsides.

When this happens, the patient is asked to move closer, until anxiety decreases again.

In this way, the brain"understands"that there is no real danger and therefore, the symptoms related to fear decrease or disappear.

And so, the patient can stop avoiding situations in which he could meet a dog, because he is able to control his anxiety.

2-Relaxation Techniques

Woman meditating

If your anxiety level is very high, Progressive muscle relaxation , Breathing techniques, yoga or meditation Can be very useful.

The Relaxation techniques Increase adherence to the treatment of gradual exposure and also facilitate habituation to phobic stimulation, Especially when the exhibits are brief.

3-Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

As already mentioned above, in this type of treatment attempts are made to change the person's thinking patterns with cynophobia, trying to To differentiate the unrealistic ideas from the realistic ones, distinguishing between the possible and the probable.

If you have cynophobia, your mind makes an exaggerated and irrational estimate of the danger of being near a dog, which is not Adjusts to the reality of the situation.

Through cognitive behavioral therapy the patient can better control these thoughts and reactions and access to expose himself to phobic stimulation with Lower degree of anxiety.

On the other hand, the more informed you are about cynophobia, the more likely you are to understand that your fear is irrational, and this way, you Expose yourself to the stimulus by feeling less anxiety than before.

4-Exposure through virtual reality

Advances in technology now make other treatment options available for extreme fear of dogs and other phobias, In addition to the actual exposure.

A very good example of this is the so-called"virtual reality". When you put a virtual reality device in front Of your eyes (as if it were a helmet or a pair of lenses), you see images projected in three dimensions, which then become your new "reality".

For the treatment of cynophobia, with this type of devices you can gradually expose yourself to the proximity of a dog, without being really close to one.

This therapy has the following advantages:

  1. Your therapist and you do not have to move to a context where there are dogs.

  2. The context can be manipulated much better than in the actual exposure. It is possible to avoid unexpected stimuli, for example, that the dog barks or Gruna, if the patient is not yet ready for this type of exposure.

  3. With virtual reality, the patient's safety and privacy are guaranteed, ensuring the confidentiality of the treatment. In other words, Nobody has to know the treatment you are following.

However, the virtual exhibition can never replace the actual exhibition. Sooner or later you will have to see and be with a dog live and in Direct, if you want Overcome your fear .

But do not worry, the therapist will be able to guide you along this path, advancing little by little, as you overcome your fear.

Another disadvantage of the virtual exhibition is that it is expensive.

5-Pharmacological treatment for cynophobia

Several pills

For specific phobias, there is in fact no particular pharmacological treatment. It is known that drugs that help control the Anxiety may be useful, as the symptoms caused by cynophobia decrease.

If the patient presents other disorders besides the terror to the dogs, the appropriate treatment can help secondarily to diminish this fear irrational.

However, some experts Anxiolytic medications Exposure treatment because it interferes with the Habituation (natural decrease of anxiety) to the phobic stimulus and this could decrease the effectiveness of the treatment.

However, other professionals believe that a pharmacological treatment in the dose and at the right time is capable of enhancing the beneficial effects Cognitive behavioral therapy and gradual exposure.

A Real History of Cynophobia

Benefits of smiling

A girl as young as three began to have symptoms of cynophobia shortly after an unknown dog climbed into the back seat of the Truck he was in and barked at.

Although the dog did not attack her, this fact, added to the mother's own fears towards the dogs, caused cynophobia in the girl.

She began to have dreams in which the dog bit her, and her nightmares grew worse over time.

Every time they went to the park and saw a dog, he took his mother's hand and carried her away. But avoid the cause of the fear of Girl did not solve the problem.

So her mother set out to investigate to find a way to combat her daughter's fear. Read information about exposure therapy Gradual and decided to try to apply this therapy to eliminate the phobia of his daughter.

He began by showing him pictures of dogs, reading stories where the canines are the protagonists and continued to see animated cartoons with dogs.

Then she took her on vacation to a snowy mountain, where dog-drawn sleigh rides were offered. Families also had the Playing with the dogs if they wished.

And after seeing that their parents felt totally relaxed in the presence of the dogs, and that they played with them, the girl's cynophobia disappeared to always.

As you can see, cynophobia can be overcome. You do not have to feel embarrassed to consult a professional, specific phobias are quite common. Did you know That Michael Jackson also had a phobia of dogs? And that Woody Allen suffers from many phobias at the same time?

You do not have to live your life always with fear. Follow the treatment indicated by the psychotherapist and you will see that after having overcome cynophobia, the Life will make you much more fun.


Loading ..

Recent Posts

Loading ..