Astraphobia
The Astra phobia is an anxiety disorder in which the affected phobic to lightning and / or thunder react. The word is derived from the ancient Greek words ἀστραπή astrape ("lightning") and φόβος phobos ("fear, terror"). Astraphobia is a nature phobia in the DSM-5 . Astraphobia is the most common nature phobia among young people.
Symptoms
The common symptoms of anxiety disorders are also the common symptoms of astraphobia (tremors, dizziness, sweating, etc.). People with astraphobia also tend to obsessively watch the weather and avoid bad weather.
Children and young people
In children and adolescents, nature phobias are often expressed in physical symptoms and depression. You will also experience more comorbidities and lower life satisfaction.
causes
A general anxiety can be intensified by observational learning and traumatic experiences about astraphobia.
diagnosis
A doctor must make the diagnosis using the phobia criteria in the DSM-5 . One has to be extremely afraid of a specific object or situation (lightning and / or thunder). It almost always has to cause fear and is avoided or tolerated. The fear is inappropriate and lasts longer than six months. It must also cause impairment in social, professional, or other important functional areas and is not a symptom of any other mental disorder.
treatment
In the short term, distraction techniques can reduce anxiety. In the long term, cognitive behavioral therapy is recommended. Virtual reality (VR) exposure therapy is also increasingly used for anxiety disorder and astraphobia.
See also
Individual evidence
- ^ A b American Psychiatric Association: Anxiety Disorders . In: Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.) . Washington 2013, ISBN 978-0-89042-555-8 , pp. 197-202 .
- ↑ a b c d Astraphobia (Fear of Lightning and Thunder) . In: Irena Milosevic, Randi E. McCabe (Eds.): Phobias: The Psychology of Irrational Fear . ABC-CLIO, Santa Barbara 2015, ISBN 978-1-61069-576-3 , pp. 36-37 .