Spectrophobia is the fear of seeing a mirror or mirror image. Another type of this phobia is eisoptrophobia. This fear arises in a person when he sees his image in the mirror.
A person may sometimes experience fear from mirrors, be afraid of his own reflection in the mirror. But such manifestations occur only occasionally and do not cause panic and neuroses in people. Eisoptrophobia and spectrophobia are constant panic reactions.
When a person experiences the following symptoms like:
- Trembling and tremor;
- Labored breathing;
- Dizziness, fainting;
- The emergence of fear of death;
- Hot flash or chills;
- Feeling of suffocation;
- Feelings of unreality of events or objects;
- Fears of loss of control;
- Numbness in the whole body or parts of it;
- Chest pain;
- Nausea;
- Dry mouth.
If at least two signs appear during anxiety or stressful situations, then this will already be a manifestation of a phobia.
Statistics say that 500 million people around the world have some kind of mental disorder. Each of 4 teenagers has phobias that appeared earlier in them. Even in childhood, about 5% have mental disorders, in old age – 10% . According to statistics, eisoptrophobia and spectrophobia are among the most common phobias among people.
The consequences of the disease are a person’s isolation and wariness, constant nervousness. Such people cannot lead a normal life when they are constantly afraid of seeing a mirror or their reflection. They are insecure, full of complexes and aggressive. This condition must be treated independently or with the help of doctors. It all depends on the severity of the disease.
Spectrophobia – fear of mirrors
Fear of mirrors develops for various reasons. There are several forms of violation. For example, a person may only avoid his own reflection. Eisoptrophobia is the fear of seeing yourself in the mirror. This problem is often associated with body dysmorphic disorder, i.e. lack of acceptance of one's own body.
Another violation has been identified. Spectrophobia is the fear of any mirror surfaces. Anything that can give off a reflection will frighten a person. This form is more dangerous, it is more difficult for a person to exist with it.
Catoptrophobia is another name for the fear of mirrors. Sometimes it is associated with fear of ghosts or the other world. A person is afraid of seeing something paranormal, so he avoids reflections.
The essence of fear
The fear of mirrors is called eisoptrophobia. This is an irrational fear that does not allow a person to perceive a mirror as an object of daily use. For the victim of a phobia, the mirror is a symbol of what scares him the most. Fear of one’s own image manifests itself at any age; the basic prerequisites for the development of a phobia in adulthood can be laid in childhood.
Fear of one's own reflection is a denial of oneself, a denial of one's role, appearance, and actions. People who find it difficult to come to terms with the past have a hard time coming across reminders of the present. They avoid any contact with calendars and mirrors. The psycho-emotional state of the victim is important. How resistant is she to difficulties and psychological stress? If a person is not ready to confront difficulties, he rejects himself. He cannot objectively assess the situation.
Fear of one's reflection comes from denial of one's own appearance.
Reasons for development
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It is impossible to say unequivocally why this or that phobia develops. Psychoanalyst Ferenczi identified two reasons for the development of phobia: fear of self-knowledge and flight from exhibitionism.
Every person should know not only his soul, but also his body. Due to various disturbances of perception, a person may be afraid to see his bodily embodiment. Sometimes he subconsciously feels disgust towards him.
Sometimes a person considers reflection to be a form of exhibitionism, i.e. sexual deviation. He may not call his behavior fear, but this will not prevent him from avoiding reflections.
With pathological low self-esteem, a person perceives himself negatively. Therefore, any reflection will provoke self-criticism. In this case, the patient will prefer not to deal with what causes him unpleasant feelings.
Impressionable people may be prone to believing in superstitions. In magic, a mirror is a passage to the other world. Therefore, patients will avoid looking into it.
Features of the violation
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Before choosing a treatment method, you need to have a good understanding of what spectrophobia is. With such an illness, a person cannot act consciously, since fear is of an irrational nature.
In severe cases, uncontrollable panic attacks appear
A phobia of mirrors often occurs against the background of childhood trauma. At night, shadows or other unclear silhouettes can be seen in the reflective surface. The child’s imagination completes the picture, and he sees monsters. The feeling of fear remains with him until adulthood.
Important! A room of distorting mirrors can cause fear, as distorted pictures can seriously frighten a child.
Spectrophobia in English is called spectrophobia. This disorder rarely develops against the background of sexual trauma. With it, a person is afraid to see the reflection of his naked body, because... perceives him as someone else's.
Mirror phobia can be called differently. With eisoptrophobia, a person is afraid not only of mirrors, but also of any reflective surfaces: shop windows, puddles, glass, sunglasses, etc. Even a smooth, varnished desktop surface can cause a panic attack.
Sometimes a phobia is combined with other disorders. For example, a patient may consider some part of the body to be ugly, so he will prefer not to see it again.
Psychological help
Without touching on the subtleties of each direction, we will briefly describe in what cases what type of therapy will be effective.
If “fear of display” is related to childhood trauma, then psychoanalytic psychotherapy is the best solution. Work in this direction is lengthy and requires effort on the part of the client, but the result is complete relief from the phobia.
Eisoptrophobia associated with an acquired cosmetic defect requires long-term and complex work not so much with fear, but with the acceptance of one’s new physical self. Here the effect will be achieved within the framework of the cognitive-behavioral approach, in which a person will consciously rework himself and his attitudes. Moreover, here the client will come to work directly with his fear and “enemy” - the mirror.
Eisoptrophobia, which has developed against the background of sexual dysfunction, requires the interaction of a psychotherapist and a sex therapist, so it is better to undergo a course of treatment in a clinic. As a rule, a psychologist works directly with the client’s fear and self-esteem, while a sexologist works with the client’s intimate sphere. It is important that the psychologist has access to the results of sescological treatment and examination.
In all cases, group therapeutic work can be a useful addition to the main therapy, as well as a supportive means. As a rule, within a group, people openly work through and experience their fear “together” with others, which helps consolidate the achieved result.
Author of the article: Borisov Oleg Vladimirovich, developmental psychologist
Development of esoptrophobia
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The fear of reflection in the mirror does not appear overnight. Often the disease develops against the background of general dissatisfaction with life and the accumulation of inferiority complexes.
The disorder develops gradually over a long period of time
The person may not notice that their behavior has changed. He begins to quietly avoid mirrors, cover them with cloth or remove them from the apartment. Anxiety and restlessness will increase gradually. The patient will have an obsession that the reflection brings something bad.
Any disorder has a name, this is important for diagnosis. Treatment depends on the correct diagnosis. Phobias often develop in childhood, but can make themselves felt in adulthood.
In this case, any stress or traumatic situation will serve as a catalyst for the problem. People with a high level of sensitivity are more prone to rapid development of the disorder.
Essentially, the spectrophobe is afraid of himself. He doesn’t want to think about old age, because the reflection will remind him of inevitable changes. He may be confused by the future, since thoughts about this period will only cause negativity. A mirror always gives an impartial reflection, forcing a person to see his real self.
Treatment of phobia
Being afraid to see your reflection or the world around you in mirrored surfaces and experiencing real fear is not normal for a healthy person. If an adult or child is afraid to contact mirrors and see any reflections in the mirror, then he is hostage to a phobia. This means that he should not ignore treatment.
Drug treatment
The tablet must be taken whole, without chewing
A doctor suggests that a patient with spectrophobia undergo a course of medication if his condition is approaching critical. This therapy is useful in case of development of depressive symptoms. We are talking about frequent panic attacks, sleep disturbances and constant worries.
We must remember! Only the specialist observing him can make decisions about the need to prescribe medications to a patient with a phobia.
If you are afraid of reflections, it is recommended to carry out drug therapy based on the following drugs:
- Sleeping pills (Zolpidem, Piclodorm, Clomethiazole).
- Sedatives (Dormiplant, Persen, Passifit).
- Tranquilizers (Mebikar, Midozolam, Amizil).
- Antidepressants (Deprim, Heptral, Paxil).
Drug therapy is selected by the attending physician based on the indications and individual characteristics of the patient’s body.
Psychological help
Modern psychotherapy offers several methods for solving the problem associated with fear of reflection. Each of them is effective and useful in its own way for a patient with such a mental disorder.
The following psychological methods help cure spectrophobia:
- Psychoanalysis. Effective if the pathology is directly related to mental trauma received in childhood.
- Cognitive-behavioral method. Used when the phobia is caused by body defects.
- Group work. Patients share personal problems with each other and try to solve them together. Thanks to this therapy, a person feels powerful support, which helps to cope with the phobia.
Sometimes a sex therapist is involved in treatment. He studies and treats phobias resulting from sexual dysfunction.
Symptoms and signs of the disease
Spectrophobia can manifest itself in varying degrees, it all depends on the severity of the disorder. At the initial stage, problems may appear only when the room is dark or at night.
Important! All symptoms are conventionally divided into psychological and physiological.
In his own apartment, the patient may be afraid of meeting the object of fear. If the disorder becomes severe, he will remove all mirrors and potentially reflective surfaces from the home.
It’s more difficult to leave the apartment. On the street you can see glass surfaces that will create reflections. Some stores are equipped with mirrored display cases. In sunny weather, any water can create the same effect.
When confronted with the object of their fear, the patient experiences a panic attack. From the psychological side, it manifests itself as restlessness, anxiety and a desire to hide somewhere, to run away. At such moments, a person is not aware of his actions.
During a panic attack, the patient exhibits inappropriate behavior. He may scream, cry, become hysterical, or try to break the mirror.
From the physiological side, a panic attack manifests itself:
- Increased pressure;
- Rapid heartbeat;
- Heavy sweating;
- Tremor of the limbs;
- Dizziness;
- Nausea;
- Vomiting;
- Headache, etc.
Symptoms may not appear all together; sometimes a panic attack is accompanied by minor disturbances. In severe cases of spectrophobia, a person experiences derealization, i.e. he feels like an outside observer of what is happening.
If left untreated, fear of mirrors can lead to serious problems. In this case, the violation will cause the development of diseases of the central nervous system and cardiovascular problems. Neuroses, stress, pressure surges will lead to early stroke and heart attack.
Sometimes spectrophobia is a consequence of a problem with the body, rather than the cause. With a high level of anxiety, a person is especially impressionable, which can lead to various disorders.
If left untreated, the disorder will only progress and lead to complications.
A phobia of mirrors develops against the background of suppressed emotions. In this case, they will accumulate and eventually break through in moments of stress. Therefore, it is important to monitor your condition and identify violations in a timely manner.
Advice from psychologists
Psychologists have developed separate tactics that allow you to cope with spectrophobia. They are selected depending on its variety. For each individual case, it is necessary to select a separate therapy that will be most beneficial for the patient.
If a person is afraid of reflective surfaces
You need to try to set your thoughts in a positive way
Severe fear forces a person to remove all mirrors from his own home, which can lead to a panic attack. But this is a difficult problem to solve. First of all, the patient needs to calm down and try to remove negative thoughts from his head.
During treatment and after completion of the course, you should avoid reading books and watching films in the genre of horror or mysticism, which may involve mirrors.
A person must realize that mirrors cannot cause any harm to his health. Only after this will he be able to cope with the phobia.
If fear arises before the reflection
You need to make it a habit to smile at your own reflection every time you pass by a mirror. At the same time, you should not frown or make grimaces. It won’t hurt to give yourself a couple of pleasant compliments that will help you get into a positive mood.
It is necessary to constantly increase the duration of contact with the reflection in the mirror. You should start from a few seconds and increase this time to a couple of minutes. The longer a person manages to look at the reflection, the weaker his fear will be.
If there is a fear of mirrors in a dark room
This fear in most cases is caused by the fear of meeting evil forces that may be lurking in the dark. Getting rid of it is quite problematic. First of all, a person needs to realize that most of his fears are meaningless and far-fetched. This means you shouldn’t give in to them again.
If the phobia is strong enough, then it is better to avoid unnecessary looks in the mirror. However, you still need to try to convince yourself that these products are safe for life.
If you have a fear of taking photographs
As a rule, a person with spectrophobia experiences fear not of the camera itself, but of the future result of the photo shoot. This applies to people who have physical disabilities that are difficult to hide under clothing.
A person will be afraid to be photographed and look at himself in the mirror if he has had bad experiences while taking photos in the past.
Self-hypnosis helps to cope with a phobia. You need to try to convince yourself that future photos will turn out very good and beautiful. These thoughts alone make you feel better, become more confident in your own strengths and capabilities.
Spectrophobia can hardly be called a dangerous disease. Despite this, it brings many problems to a person, so it is in his interests to try to get rid of the obsessive fear of reflections. A competent psychotherapist can help you cope with this difficult task.
If a patient with a fear of reflections in different surfaces is determined to achieve a positive result, then he will be able to achieve it. Without the desire to recover and the help of a qualified specialist, a person is unlikely to be able to free himself from the strong fear that accompanies him everywhere
Treatment methods
To get rid of spectrophobia, it is better to use an integrated approach. It consists of combining drug therapy and psychotherapy. Only a combination will achieve good results.
Traditional approach
To normalize the functioning of the nervous system, the doctor prescribes B vitamins, tranquilizers, and antidepressants. These medications help restore peace of mind, reduce anxiety and improve sleep patterns.
In the correction, the main role is given to psychotherapy. During it, a specialist analyzes the patient’s life and helps him discover the cause of the disorder. After this, you can change your attitude towards her.
Cognitive behavioral therapy differs in that it works on childhood attitudes. The roots of a phobia may lie in poor upbringing or trauma. In this case, a specialist helps you rethink your behavior.
Another therapy option is gradual habituation to fear. Little by little the person is shown the object of his fear, with each session the interval of the meeting increases.
Important! The training process should be carried out under the supervision of a specialist.
Sometimes a psychotherapist can talk about a phobia in an exaggerated form. After he receives an emotional response from the patient, he shows him that there is no danger in fear.
Self help
When faced with an object of fear, a person needs to close his eyes, slowly inhale and exhale. Repeat 10 times, this will calm the nervous system and prevent it from getting out of control.
Following a daily routine will help maintain the functioning of the body at a high level.
At the moment of panic, you can count the rosary or forcefully switch your thoughts to something monotonous, for example, listing irregular verbs in English.
Spectrophobia poses a serious threat to human health. Therefore, when it appears, you need to immediately begin treatment. The sooner a problem is identified, the faster it can be solved.
Symptoms
Very often, what others consider to be excessive modesty, reticence, and shyness turns out to be not at all what it seems.
The main symptom of social phobia is trying in any way to avoid getting into situations that cause anxiety. In addition, there are four types of manifestations of this anxious-phobic state when in society:
1. Physiological:
- heavy sweating;
- trembling in the limbs;
- accelerated heartbeat;
- nausea;
- the face turns red or pale;
- impaired coordination;
- labored breathing.
2. Cognitive:
- confusion of thoughts;
- inability to concentrate;
- “emptiness” in the head;
- excessive demands on oneself;
- constant mental simulation of the situation.
3. Behavioral:
- an irresistible desire to quickly leave and hide;
- tension at the reflex level;
- avoidance of all contacts, visual and tactile;
- awkwardness.
4. Emotional:
- tearfulness;
- irritability;
- mood swings;
- panic.
A person suffering from this pathology is very demanding of himself. Even though he is brought up, educated and cultured, such an individual still believes that a fiasco and condemnation await him. Knowing, for example, that he will have to be in public, he assumes failure and thinks through ways of retreat in advance. At the same time, even in ordinary conversations it seems to him that the interlocutor is unkind to him and disdainful of his person.
When speaking in front of an audience, a social phobe, for fear of losing face and appearing more significant, may tell untrue stories and lie. His fear is revealed by his blush, lowered eyes, and crossed arms over his chest.
When the traumatic situation passes, the individual suffers for a long time and conducts a “debriefing” of his actions, considering them ridiculous and deserving of criticism, of which he is terrified. Such self-analysis is destructive, prevents you from doing anything during the day and prevents you from sleeping at night.
A social phobe worries and feels discomfort at a doctor’s appointment or among colleagues. This leads to the fact that he behaves very ridiculously, constrained, and says stupid things. The individual avoids strangers appearing in the social circle and may leave the room with people without explanation.
The patient, noticing this reaction, for example, tries to arrange his life so as not to find himself in certain situations again. Gradually he withdraws into himself and isolates himself. This leads to loneliness and depression. And it’s good if at a certain moment a person understands that this state of affairs is a very big problem, and it’s time to turn to a specialist for help.
