Fear of water, hydrophobia: what is it, types, causes, symptoms - how to overcome hydrophobia for adults and children?

Hydrophobia is one of the most common phobias today. Fortunately, with proper treatment, in most cases this disease goes away.

Despite all the achievements of mankind, man still remains a vulnerable being, who is inherently afraid of certain things and conditions. Today, there are a huge number of phobias that in one way or another prevent people from living a full life. One such phobia is the fear of water.

Fear of water: what is it?

• The fear of water has its own scientific name, which sounds like “hydrophobia” or “aquaphobia”. It’s worth noting right away that hydrophobia is usually understood as a completely uncontrollable, sudden fear of water.
• At the same time, a phobia can manifest itself in different ways in different people, for example, someone is afraid of swimming in a river, someone is afraid of drinking water, someone is afraid of objects in the water or even the temperature of the water. Fear of water occurs in children, as well as adults.

What is hydrophobia

Hydrophobia (aquaphobia) is the fear of water. It occurs 3–4 times more often among children than among adults. For most people, aquaphobia manifests itself as a fear of swimming. However, depending on the causes and stage of development of the phobia, people may be frightened by the sight of a river or a trickle of water, the sound of rain, or the feeling of drops on their body. For some, even taking a shower, washing your face and washing your hands becomes an alarming event. And some are even afraid to take a glass of water.

It is important! Most often, aquaphobes experience fear of swimming. They feel like the water is suffocating them. A person is afraid of choking or drowning, or getting entangled in algae.

Fear of water: types

Now let's look at the types of fear of water. Among the main ones are the following:

• Bathophobia . In simple words, this is a fear of depth. There are people who are not afraid of water as such; they calmly enter rivers and seas, swim where they see the bottom below them (or know for sure that there is one below them).
• However, as soon as such people swim a little further than the shore, buoys, etc., they begin to panic about the depth, the lack of bottom under their feet. This fear, like all others, can arise for various reasons, for example, a person could have previously drowned. This is definitely etched in the memory and as soon as the situation becomes similar to the one that happened earlier, the person begins to feel panic. By the way, it is precisely because of panic and all-consuming fear that in such cases people drown, and not because of the inability to swim, etc.

Not in depth

• Potamophobia . This fear does not arise at the sight of “calm” water and manifests itself only if a person sees its stormy flow. The phobia also manifests itself at the sight of strongly seething water, whirlpools, waterfalls, strong river currents, etc.
• Limnophobia . This fear arises from the sight of lakes, swamps and ponds, as well as from the awareness of what they may hide in their depths. Despite the fact that the water in these reservoirs is “calm,” it seems to a person with such a phobia that it is fraught with many terrible mysteries, to the point that a person may believe in the existence of some kind of monster at the bottom, etc.
• Most often, this fear is formed in early childhood, due to bad jokes, when someone suddenly grabs their legs in the water, when a child falls out of a boat and experiences fear, etc.
• Thalassophobia . This phobia manifests itself in the fear of sea and ocean water. A person is afraid to swim in the sea, the ocean, he is afraid of big waves in these bodies of water, he is afraid of sharks that can attack. This phobia can also manifest itself in the fear of sailing on ships on the sea or ocean.
• Psychrophobia . This is not just a fear of water, but a fear of cold water, as well as cold in any of its manifestations.
• Ablutophobia . Another very specific phobia is the fear of bathrooms, bathing, bathing, washing and washing. One way or another, people are afraid of contact with water. Most often, small children suffer from this phobia and constantly cry hysterically as soon as their parents put them in the water while swimming.
• Ablutophobia is considered one of the most terrible phobias, since people sometimes, due to their fear, completely neglect personal hygiene, as a result of which they become ill with various ailments.

You can also identify several “weather” phobias, which are also associated with the fear of water.

• Chionophobia . As it turns out, not everyone likes snowy weather, their favorite games of snowballs and the process of making a snowman; there are also those who are simply afraid of snow. People suffering from chionophobia are afraid of snow, snowfall, blizzards, snowballs, afraid of getting stuck in a snowdrift, etc.
• Ombrophobia . This is a fear of rain. People with such a phobia are afraid of getting caught in the rain, being flooded due to rain, etc.

Fear of rain

Rabies is dangerous!

1. Definition. Brief historical information about the disease

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Rabies is an acute infectious disease of animals and humans caused by a virus that affects the central nervous system and is always fatal. Synonyms: hydrophobia, lat. -rabies, hydrophobia.

Rabies was known to people long before our era and is described in various ancient books. Already in Egyptian papyri, Indian sacred books Vedas, Greek and Roman sources, and then in the Bible, rabies was told about rabies, which is transmitted to people from enraged animals (wild and domestic). The dangers of this disease were written about in the Middle Ages, the Renaissance and later. The first mentions of human disease with hydrophobia in Belarus date back to the beginning of the 19th century, although it is known from ancient chronicles that cases of human rabies were noted earlier on the territory of the republic. Officially, the first case of hydrophobia in a person in the republic was registered in 1923.

Currently, rabies is widespread throughout the world. The only exceptions are Antarctica and the island states of Oceania. In the territory of the Republic of Belarus in recent years there has been a significant increase in the number of animals with rabies.

2. Who can get rabies?

Rabies affects almost all species of terrestrial mammals, primarily carnivores (families canines, felines, mustelids, raccoons, etc.). Wild and domestic birds, rodents, and bats can also get sick. Every year in our country hundreds of cases of the disease are recorded among wild (foxes, raccoon dogs, wolves, etc.) and domestic (dogs, cats, cattle, horses) animals. There have been isolated cases of hydrophobia with fatal outcomes among people.

The source of rabies is a wild animal that became infected in the natural environment, as well as a domestic animal that was attacked by another sick animal (wild or domestic). Humans become infected from sick animals.

3. How does infection occur?

The causative agent of rabies is a specific virus contained in the saliva of a sick animal.
Human infection occurs through a bite and penetration of saliva from a sick animal into the wound. Having penetrated through damaged skin, the rabies virus spreads along the nerve trunks to the brain and spinal cord. This is where the virus multiplies and accumulates mainly. Then it penetrates the salivary glands and is released with saliva into the external environment. The virus appears in saliva 1-7 days before the first clinical signs of the disease. Therefore, you can become infected with rabies through a bite inflicted by an apparently healthy animal. Infection can also occur if saliva gets on the mucous membranes of the eyes, nose, mouth, or damaged skin. Scratches caused by claws are very dangerous: animals often lick their paws, so a sufficient amount of virus remains on the claws for infection. You can also become infected when cutting up the carcass of a sick animal, as this often results in cuts to the fingers. Unusual routes of infection should be mentioned. In recent years, the literature has described isolated cases of human infection through intact skin, by airborne droplets (in laboratory conditions, in a cave with millions of bats), through the placenta during pregnancy, and during organ and tissue transplantation. Cases of infection through the digestive tract have been described, so far only for animals. As for humans, to date there is not a single case of human illness known after consuming meat or milk of sick animals.
This is due to the fact that the rabies virus rarely penetrates the blood and glandular organs.
In addition, the virus is unstable in the external environment; it dies under normal pasteurization regimes, and when boiled, it dies instantly. The most dangerous bites are those caused by rabid wolves, foxes, raccoon dogs and
other wild carnivores and bats. Dog and cat bites are somewhat less dangerous. Cases of human infection after contact with a sick farm animal (cow, horse, goat, sheep, pig) are rare. Poultry, although they can get rabies, are not capable of infecting humans due to the lack of salivary glands. Unlike domestic birds, birds of prey (for example, falcons) can infect humans. However, these birds are very rare in the natural environment and the likelihood of their contact with humans is negligible. The possibility of infection of a person as a result of a bite inflicted by a rodent: rabbit, hare, squirrel, muskrat, rat, hamster, mouse cannot be ruled out. However, no reliable cases of human infection from these animals have been described in the world literature.

4. What damage is considered the most dangerous?

The period from the bite to the onset of the disease (latent or incubation period) averages 30-50 days in humans, although it can last 10-90 days, in rare cases - more than 1 year. Moreover, the further the bite site is from the head, the longer the incubation period. Consequently, taking into account the localization (location) of the damage, bites to the head, face and neck are especially dangerous. The category of severe (dangerous) injuries also includes bites on the fingers, because these parts of the body have many nerve endings. Bites to the forearm, shoulder, and torso are considered less dangerous. The incubation period lasts the longest for a bite on the legs.

6. What should you do if you are bitten by an animal?

The duration of the incubation period (i.e., the period preceding the onset of symptoms of the disease) in animals ranges from a week to several months (sometimes years), but already 5-10 days before the onset of the disease the animal is infectious. A characteristic sign of an animal disease in the first stage should be considered a change in behavior: an angry animal becomes affectionate, unreasonably animated, tries to lick the owner’s face; good - angry, irritable, does not respond to the owner’s call, hides in dark corners. The animal refuses its favorite food, but swallows inedible objects (wood, stones, etc.), and sometimes there is increased sensitivity to light and noise. Body temperature rises slightly. If we talk about wild animals, then for those who are sick, such a change will be the desire to make contact with a person: a healthy wild animal will never voluntarily go to a person and will run away whenever they try to get closer. The initial stage of the disease is replaced by the second stage - the stage of excitation, in which the animal’s irritability increases and aggressiveness occurs. An animal can attack or bite for no apparent reason. Next comes the third, paralytic stage, very characteristic of the appearance of the animal: the fur is tousled, the lower jaw droops, the tongue falls out, saliva flows from the mouth. On the 8-10th day the animal dies.

When talking about the clinical manifestations of rabies in animals, one should dwell in detail on the behavior of sick dogs and cats, because
most often encounter these animals .
Rabies in a dog.

In the initial period, the dog becomes depressed, responds reluctantly to calls, and lies down more.
The appetite is sluggish, indifferent to water (but, as a rule, there is no hydrophobia). It must be emphasized that hydrophobia (fear of water) is not a characteristic sign of rabies in dogs. This is very important, since some people, seeing that a dog is not afraid of water (drinks water, swims across a river, etc.) consider it healthy and, if bitten, scratched or salivated by such a dog, do not take protective measures or seek medical help .
By the end of the 2nd day of illness, anxiety and irritability often appear; the sick dog tries to go to some distant corner (under the porch, bed, etc.). Signs of clouding of consciousness occur, she barks for no reason, her voice becomes hoarse, dull, gasps for air and makes other involuntary movements, which never happens normally. Sometimes, as a result of itching at the site where she was bitten by a rabid animal, she chews on the healed wound. It is typical for the dog to swallow inedible objects: chips, stones, etc. As a result of growing excitement, the dog runs away from home, running up to 50 km a day. Along the way, she silently attacks people and animals. The period of excitement lasts 3-4 days, after which attacks of convulsions and paralysis occur. Dogs die on days 6-8 of illness. It should be remembered that the described picture of rabies in dogs is not always observed. But in any case, the animal’s normal behavior changes dramatically, which should alarm the owners and be the reason for inviting a veterinarian. Attempts to treat a dog that allegedly choked on a bone often resulted in rabies.

Rabies in a cat.

Rabies is more severe in cats than in dogs. The first signs of the disease come suddenly and are expressed by increasing anxiety and agitation. The meowing becomes hoarse, dull, the look (very characteristic!) is frightened, cautious. The cat refuses food and avoids its owners. The next day, the cat becomes aggressive, with particular anger it attacks dogs and humans. Excitation lasts 1-2 days, and then paralysis develops. Death occurs within 2-5 days. A characteristic feature of bites from a sick cat is a spasm of the masticatory muscles, as a result of which, after a bite, such a cat can be extremely difficult to tear away from the wound.

It should be emphasized that in case of any illness in the animal, and especially when symptoms of rabies appear, you should immediately contact the nearest
veterinary station. Under no circumstances should you self-medicate an animal - this is deadly!
6. What should you do if you are bitten by an animal?
It is very important to teach the child (his parents) to properly provide first aid to himself and others in case of a bite.
If a child or adult is bitten, scratched, slobbered by any animal, even an apparently healthy one, much less a neglected or wild one, or if there is a suspicion that it has rabies, you should immediately:

1) intensively wash the wound with soap and water for 10-15 minutes, which will wash away the animal’s saliva. It is recommended to wash deep wounds with a stream of soapy water, for example, using a syringe. There is no need to cauterize wounds.

2) apply a sterile bandage to the wound.

You should be warned about the danger of sucking the wound with your mouth.

After this, you must contact the nearest trauma center or any medical institution (clinic, hospital, medical center) as soon as possible. If possible, it is necessary to collect as much data as possible about the bitten animal (description of the animal, its appearance and behavior, presence of a collar, circumstances of the bite, etc.). If the animal is domestic (dog or cat) and has been vaccinated against rabies, then you must take with you a veterinary certificate confirming the vaccination or a registration certificate with a mark on the vaccination.

7.
What will you do with an animal that has bitten you?
It is very important to indicate that simultaneously with contacting a doctor about a bite, it is necessary to take measures regarding the bitten animal (it must be tied up, isolated) and call a veterinarian for consultation. Appearingly healthy pets (dogs or cats) are subject to veterinary supervision for 10 days from the date of the bite. A sick animal must be euthanized. It is impossible to save him. As the disease progresses, the behavior of such an animal is uncontrollable. It is important to prevent human infection.

8. What measures do you know to prevent rabies in animals?

Should a person, caring for the safety of his life, refuse to communicate with animals? Not a single mechanical toy can replace human communication with a living creature of another species. They give us their love and affection, heal us, make us kinder and more humane. We must always remember that animals need care and supervision; they, like people, are susceptible to many diseases. In order to prevent rabies in domestic animals, the Rules for keeping them should be followed:

within three days, register the purchased animal and report it to the veterinary station;

It is mandatory to vaccinate your pet (over 3 months old) against rabies every year; it is better to do this in the winter and spring, especially before going outdoors;

walk animals in specially equipped areas or vacant lots, take dogs outside on leashes and muzzles (this will protect the animal from possible contact with sick wild or stray animals and eliminate the possibility of your animal biting anyone);

You cannot bring dogs and cats to shops, catering and consumer services establishments, schools and preschool institutions, public buildings, parks, squares, stadiums, markets;

minors are prohibited from walking dogs of potentially dangerous breeds;

Under no circumstances should you leave or abandon your animals unattended on the streets, squares, markets, entrances and other places, including in the country.

The best way to prevent rabies in wild animals is to vaccinate them by placing baits containing the vaccine near their natural habitats.

9. Are there any treatments for rabies?

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Unfortunately, to date, a person with rabies cannot be cured. Treatment is reduced to alleviating the general condition of the patient. In this regard, the prevention of rabies becomes extremely important in the fight against this disease. It includes the fight against sources of infection (animals with rabies) and the prevention of the disease in humans.

10. What preventive measures are there if you are bitten by an animal?

All kinds of recommendations for the prevention and treatment of rabies - the destruction of enraged animals, cauterization of bitten areas in people with a hot iron - did not produce any effect. Almost every person bitten by a rabid animal was doomed to death. Until the 80s of the 19th century, people did not have a reliable means of protection against this terrible disease.

The great French scientist Louis Pasteur has the honor of creating a vaccine against rabies, which was successfully used for the first time on July 6, 1885. Then, thanks to vaccination, a boy bitten by a rabid dog was saved. And some time later, in a French village, children playing were attacked by a rabid dog. Defending them, fifteen-year-old shepherd Jean Jupille accomplished a real feat. He managed to tie the dog's face with a belt whip and kill it with his wooden shoe. But the boy's entire body was covered with wounds. Barely alive, Jean was brought to Paris. Pasteur saved the hero.

To this day, vaccinations remain the only reliable means of protecting people after being bitten by an animal sick or suspected of having rabies. These include the administration of a vaccine and, if necessary, immunoglobulin.

What you need to know about preventive vaccinations:

-if the doctor prescribed vaccinations, they should be started immediately;

- you should never skip the next vaccination;

-the course of vaccinations prescribed by the doctor must be completed in full;

-a person who is vaccinated is not dangerous to anyone;

- during vaccinations, you should not drink alcoholic beverages for 6 months after their completion; you should avoid overwork, hypothermia, and overheating.

Along with vaccinations, on the recommendation of Belarusian scientists, antibiotic prophylaxis is also carried out.

11. How to avoid being bitten or salivated by unknown animals?

Children are more likely to suffer from animal bites, so it is necessary to constantly educate them and try to avoid unnecessary contact with animals, especially wild and/or stray ones:

You should not play with unfamiliar dogs, cats and other animals; it is better to stay at a safe distance from them;

should not be picked up at the dacha, in the forest, etc. wild animals. Hedgehogs and small rodents can also carry rabies. Incorrect or inappropriate behavior of a child who, due to his age, will not be able to correctly assess the situation, can lead to aggression in any animal, especially a sick animal;

It is better not to pick up homeless stray or sick animals, but if you do, then find an opportunity to quickly vaccinate the animal and show it to a veterinarian;

You should not take an animal “for the summer holiday season”: by throwing it away, you increase the risk of rabies in the given region. It is better not to send children under 12-14 years of age to walk a dog on their own, especially if it is a large and/or aggressive breed of animal. The child may not be able to cope with it, and in the event of a non-standard situation, he may not be able to adequately explain the essence of what happened.

REMEMBER

are very dangerous .

The saliva of wolves, foxes, and raccoons is permeable and contains a large amount of virus.

But you also need to be careful with your pets.

A dog is a good friend and helper of a person, but 85% of people who sought medical help for bites suffered precisely because of improper keeping of domestic

Homeless, stray and unsupervised dogs are especially dangerous. Proper keeping of pets is one of the most important conditions for preventing rabies infection.

If you notice any changes in the animal's behavior,

Take him to your veterinarian immediately.

Rabies is a relatively rare disease, and medicine does not have the means to treat it. However, highly effective vaccines

protecting people from this disease. Therefore, after an animal bite, you should wash the injury site with soap and water, treat it with iodine tincture and consult a doctor.

Only a doctor can determine the need for vaccination. Unauthorized interruptions in vaccination, termination and reduction of the course of vaccinations prescribed by a doctor are unacceptable, because In such cases, the development of immunity is delayed and there is a risk of disease. During
vaccination, it is strictly forbidden
to drink alcoholic beverages, because alcohol reduces the body's overall resistance and often causes unsuccessful vaccinations. You should follow a normal sleep and rest schedule, spend more time in the fresh air, and it is not recommended to overwork or overcool.

Need to know

that the saliva of animals becomes infectious 10 days before the onset of the disease. Therefore, if a person is bitten by an animal, under no circumstances should he be killed within the next 10 days, i.e. the period required for veterinary observation.

If during this time the animal remains healthy, vaccinations against rabies are not carried out.

• If you are bitten by any animal, immediately contact the nearest medical facility.
• Avoid unnecessary contact with wild and stray pets.
• Timely vaccinations will protect you from rabies.
• Animals are vaccinated against rabies in all veterinary institutions free of charge.

The material was prepared by the head of the department of hygienic education I.V. Varada.

Fear of water: causes of phobia

Do you need to fight this phobia? Of course, it is necessary, since this is not just the fact of the presence of some kind of disorder, it is constant torment and restrictions. However, you need to fight not with the fear itself, but with the reasons that caused it.

Fear of water can occur for the following reasons::

• Due to the stress experienced by the baby during childhood during bathing. This applies to older children and adults. Sometimes, due to inexperience, young parents do not properly teach their children to bathe. They suddenly lower him into the water, pour water on his head so that the child begins to think he is suffocating, dunk him under water, and choose the water temperature incorrectly. This is deposited in our subconscious, and even if the child experienced all these unpleasant sensations before the age of 1 year, in conscious life they can manifest themselves as hydrophobia
• A little less often, but it still happens that hydrophobia occurs due to a previously received burn from hot water, from boiling water. Despite the fact that the injury was received precisely from contact with hot water, a person may begin to be afraid of water in principle
• Most often, fear of water occurs after a person has drowned . Every time a person who has previously drowned finds himself in a similar dangerous situation on the water, his mind becomes clouded, panic and hysteria begin. This is why people who once drowned very often do not even enter bodies of water.

Occurs in drowning people

• Also, the fear of water can appear due to the fact that a person saw someone drown, how someone was drowning, they pulled him out of the water, but could not save him, or after the person himself tried to save the drowned man, but could not . In this case, it is perhaps the hardest thing to overcome fear.
• Overly suspicious people may begin to experience fear of water due to watching films that showed water disasters, for example, severe floods, huge waves, shipwrecks, etc. The same applies to small children who are suspicious due to their age. Sometimes adults make a huge mistake by telling their children “interesting” tales about merman, various monsters and monsters that live in swamps, rivers and can harm people. Children project these stories onto their lives, after which they are naturally afraid to go into the water, swim, swim, etc.

Expressed in suspiciousness

• Well, and, of course, it is quite logical that fear of water can appear due to the fact that a person has suffered from the elements . This applies to cases when a person survived a flood, when “big” water destroyed his house, took the lives of his loved ones, etc.

Treatment of hydrophobia

Hydrophobia can be either constant or periodically occurring. It may not bring any discomfort or lead to persistent personality and behavior disorders. Depending on the severity of the symptom, methods of psychotherapy, art therapy, hypnosis, auto-training, meditation are used to treat hydrophobia, and in cases where hydrophobia interferes with social life, they resort to the help of a specialist - a psychiatrist.

As a rule, a 2-3 month course of psychotherapy helps to overcome or dull the fear of water, in which the origins of the symptom are analyzed, worked through and rationalized: childhood psychotrauma, drowning, experienced water disaster, etc. In addition, a psychotherapist may prescribe a course of antidepressants that reduce anxiety levels. In advanced cases, the entire array of pharmacological drugs is used: antipsychotics, tranquilizers, anxiolytics.

Fear of water: how does phobia manifest itself in children and adults?

• A person who suffers from hydrophobia does not always experience fear and discomfort. Most often, this only happens in case of contact with an irritant - water.
• For some, in order for some signs of fear of water to appear, it is necessary to go into the water, for some it is enough to just see it, for others it is enough to think about it.

Most often, a person suffering from such a phobia exhibits the following symptoms:

• The first and main sign of a fear of water is avoiding contact with bodies of water. A person constantly, sometimes even unconsciously, looks for all sorts of reasons why he cannot go to the river, go to the sea, sign up for the pool, take a shower, etc.
• If we talk about a child, then fear is manifested by a reluctance to bathe in the bathroom, constant crying during bathing, which is not justified. That is, in order to understand that this is hydrophobia, the parent must exclude all other factors that can provoke crying, for example, the child is sick and because of this does not want to swim, the water is too hot or cold, they did not take their favorite toy into the bath, etc. d.

May even be afraid of the bathroom

• Upon direct contact with the irritant, a person experiences a panic attack . It is accompanied by severe dizziness, numbness of the arms and legs, shortness of breath, nausea, rapid heartbeat, and the feeling that the heart is beating right in the mouth. A person experiencing a panic attack often cannot stay in one place, he has an obsessive desire to run somewhere, to do something, but he does not understand what exactly. You may feel the urge to go to the toilet, and your arms and legs may tremble.
• Also, due to a sharp increase in pressure, a person may bleed from the nose.
• dry in your mouth , “spots, stars,” etc. may appear in front of your eyes.

How to recognize a phobia

The fear of water does not always have a mental cause. There are often accidents that result in people drowning. Then, on a physical level, the body remembers the situation and all the visual and tactile objects associated with it.

Unlike rabies, hydrophobia does not have symptoms such as delusions, photophobia and hallucinations. A phobia of water is not fatal. It's just a mental disorder. It’s better not to joke with rabies; if you have the first signs of it, you should definitely consult a doctor.

Aquaphobia includes psychological and vegetative symptoms.

At the mental level, the following symptoms exist:

• a person does not like it when water comes into contact with his skin;
• he is afraid of depth and open waters;
• the individual panicky does not want to swim or bathe.

Also, if there is snow or a thunderstorm outside, the phobia of water manifests itself in the form of a fear of leaving the room. The rarest cases include anxiety regarding the use of liquids inside the body.

At the physical level, water phobia manifests itself as follows:

• a person feels sick;
• dizzy;
• constant headache;
• pressure rises.

Please note that fear of water can cause profuse sweating.

If left untreated, an aquaphobe may experience panic attacks if they go far into the water. Seizures and other somatic symptoms often occur. A person’s consciousness tends to turn off in such situations; he no longer controls his thoughts and actions. At this moment, life may be at risk. It is important to overcome your phobia of water at the earliest stages.

Fear of water - how to overcome fear: treatment methods for adults

• For many people suffering from hydrophobia, it seems that it is simply impossible to overcome this fear. In fact, all problems are only in our heads and it is possible to recover from this phobia. Another thing is that this process requires great desire, perseverance and perseverance. Also, a person must understand that this process is time-consuming.
• It is worth noting that the fear of water can be either permanent or temporary, occurring periodically. Depending on how negatively the presence of a phobia affects a person’s life, a method of getting rid of it is chosen.
• Most often, treatment consists of working with the head, personal experiences, and stressful situations that have occurred in the patient’s life. Drug treatment is used quite rarely and more as an additional therapy. In this case, the doctor may prescribe sedatives , which will relax the person, calm his nervous system, and eliminate the symptoms of panic attacks.
• The main work on a phobia lies in the psychological impact on it. Please note that it is not the phobia itself that needs to be eliminated, but the reasons that provoked its appearance.

It is important to overcome fear.
That is why working with a psychologist or psychotherapist in this case gives the most positive results:

• First, the specialist finds out what triggered the fear of water, analyzes these reasons, and only after that chooses the most effective way to combat them. And, of course, methods of work are always individual, since what works well for some may be completely useless for others.
• Sometimes specialists resort to the “visualization” method. Initially, a person is shown various pictures with the source of his fear, he is taught to control his state (breathe calmly, listen to the heartbeat, reason adequately).
• After a person copes with this task, the psychotherapist moves on to the next stage, direct contact with water. In this case, a person is taught to understand what specifically frightens him, he pronounces all the sensations that he feels upon contact with the irritant, after which he is taught to control himself in the water, and is helped to get rid of panic and stress.
• Sometimes a person suffering from this phobia is asked to write a list of all the unpleasant and dangerous situations related to water that have ever happened in his life. After this, it is worth considering each situation, analyzing your state at this time and your actions. Next, understand what exactly you did wrong and understand exactly how you should have acted. After this, you need to assess the real risks in current situations, because often there are simply none. For some, this kind of self-analysis helps quite well.
• Experts also recommend that patients imagine themselves in a “stimulating” situation (at depth, in water, near large objects in the water) and try to adjust their perception of the situation. Also at this time, it is important to work with manifestations of the phobia: adjust your breathing, try to remain calm, etc.
• Hypnosis is considered to be the most effective way to combat phobias . Thanks to this effect on consciousness, the specialist finds out the true reasons for fear, instills in his patient that in fact there are no real reasons to be afraid of water, that water cannot harm him in any way.
• Such treatment helps the patient stop constantly thinking about his phobia, relieves him of the fear, anxiety, panic and hysteria that he feels when he sees the source of the fear. Over time, a person begins to look differently at what previously caused him discomfort and fear, and begins to see the positive in the source of fear.

Hypnosis can help

• In our case, the patient begins to understand that water can bring not only anxiety and troubles, but also pleasure , that you can enjoy swimming, bathing in the water, and having a great time with friends by the river. Gradually, a person’s thinking completely changes and the phobia, as a rule, recedes

It is worth understanding that treatment with hypnosis is completely painless and safe.

• However, we are talking only about the case if we are talking about a highly qualified specialist, and not a charlatan, of whom, unfortunately, there are a lot.
• Based on this, try to find a good specialist, read reviews about him and his work, estimate the cost of services (the services of a qualified specialist are not cheap) and only then seek help

Treatment for adults

The manifestation of hydrophobia is observed not only in children, but also in adults. Some people at one time could not overcome the fear of drowning, others never learned to swim. In some cases, such fears are associated with the fear of being ridiculed; sometimes the water space causes trauma to a person on a mental and physical level.

If a fear of water arises in childhood, the help of a psychotherapist is often required. Memories can be located deep in a person’s subconscious and have a direct impact on reality.

Psychologists advise performing special exercises. For example, on a piece of paper you can write down all your fears that were associated with water or that you currently have. Then you can write about how other people would act to cope with such a phobia, or why such fears may be unfounded. It is important to have a positive attitude towards any situation. The phobia of water disappears if you give your mind rational reasons why it is stupid to be afraid of water, especially if there have been no real accidents in your life.

Another exercise is to simply imagine the situation of contact with water. It is worth trying to regulate your breathing and heartbeat. Next, it is important to analyze the situation, what exactly is scary about it. If necessary, you can ask close people to be nearby. The phobia of water does not disappear immediately. Sometimes this requires years of training, it all depends on how quickly a person is ready to part with his fears. There is no need to complicate the situation, you need to look for a way out of it.

There are cases when hydrophobia is treated exclusively with hypnosis. This is usually associated with difficult childhood memories. Psychotherapists are not always able to independently determine the causes of fears. At the end of the session, specialists prescribe a set of exercises and techniques that should help the patient get rid of the fear of water and water space. It is important to trust the psychotherapist and follow his instructions, and also not to be afraid of internal changes. Any mental problem has a solution.

Fear of water: how to get rid of hydrophobia for children?

• It is important to clearly understand that such a problem cannot be ignored under any circumstances. If your baby begins to be afraid of water, then there are serious reasons for this. First, you can try to figure them out yourself.
• Also, at the initial stage, you can try to rid your child of this phobia on your own.

To help your child say goodbye to his fear of water, follow these recommendations:

• First, eliminate the irritating factor . That is, there is no need to forcefully bathe the baby, put him in the bath, combining this with moralizing and statements that this is not scary at all. You must understand that if before the baby swam without problems and enjoyed it, but now he whines and gets out of the water screaming, it means that you missed something and now this “something” has to be recognized.
• Try to calmly find out what scared the child. Perhaps someone scared him in the water, maybe he stumbled and drank some water, getting scared, maybe he heard from someone a story about a monster that lives in the bathroom, river, sea, and can eat him. There are a lot of options, but, as in the situation with an adult, before eradicating fear, you need to understand what triggered its appearance.

Find out the reasons

• Next, act according to the situation, do not scold the baby for his fear, do not criticize, do not make fun of him. Firstly, tell him that there is nothing and no one in the water who would pose a danger to him, refer to the fact that the imam’s father (any person of authority for your child) is not afraid of water.
• Offer to go into the water together, do not drag the child into the depths. Show by personal example that you are not afraid of water and enjoy swimming. Let your child know that you will always be there for him and will help if necessary. Don't force them to do something (dive, go deeper, etc.) if the child doesn't want to.
• If possible, sign up for a pool class together. There you can learn to swim together, play at a depth where the child is comfortable, plus the pool has clean and clear water, and this is a calming factor for a child who has such a phobia.
• If a very tiny baby is afraid of water, try turning the entire bathing procedure into a game . Take soap bubbles and lots of toys to the bath, to the river, and distract your child with games. Try splashing, splashing, invite the child to splash you, while you, of course, should laugh so that the baby understands that this is not only not scary, but even fun.

Turn it into a game

• fairy tales can help get rid of such fear . Read to your child fairy tales about brave sailors and fishermen who were not afraid of water, helped others, etc. The main thing is that the fairy tales are good and do not have a scary plot with water
• If your attempts do not bring the desired result, be sure to contact a specialist. Child psychologists can help you and your child solve this problem.
• Remember that you are primarily responsible for your child, and due to his age, he will not always be able to ask for help himself and go where he can get help.

Hydrophobia symptoms

Hydrophobia is manifested by symptoms of two groups:

• Vegetovascular reactions;
• Mental reactions.

Vegetative-vascular reactions are caused by an imbalance in the autonomic (autonomous) part of the nervous system. The autonomic system consists of two parts: sympathetic and parasympathetic. The sympathetic nervous system operates primarily on adrenaline. And its evolutionary significance is manifested in the instant reaction of mobilization of the entire organism.

Due to stress, a threatening or unpleasant situation, the heart begins to beat at a high frequency, blood flows to the muscles of the lower extremities, the frequency and depth of breathing movements increases - all this helps to escape from the threat. At the same time, the functions of organs that do not take part in the “escape”: the urinary and digestive systems stop to some extent or completely.

The sympathetic and parasympathetic parts are in a state of dynamic balance; they simultaneously influence all organs and systems. The result is something averaged, with the heart contracting at a rate of 60-80 beats/min , a person breathing at a rate of 12-18/min, etc.

With hydrophobia, the sight of water, contact with it, and the memory of it contribute to the immediate release of adrenaline into the blood by the adrenal glands. It causes phenomena of physical discomfort: a person suddenly begins to tremble, breathe deeply, the skin becomes pale or red, there is a feeling that it is necessary to run somewhere, that for some reason there is little air indoors or outdoors, and the heartbeat quickens.

A sharp increase in pressure causes dizziness , there may be spots in front of the eyes and nosebleeds. The pupils dilate, the upper limbs go numb, and the mouth becomes dry, which is caused by the lack of need for saliva during the “flight” reaction.

Normally, all these reactions help protect the body from aggressive factors, but since with hydrophobia this all begins in a state of rest, the person perceives the situation as dangerous - because the body reacts to adrenaline, although objectively there are no threats.

This condition can be classified as vegetative-vascular dystonia, namely sympathoadrenal crisis. Since the half-life of adrenaline is 1-2 minutes, all symptoms disappear after 5-10-15 minutes, after which you feel tired, want to go to the toilet and eat - a sign that all body systems have started working. This is a universal reaction to stress, including hydrophobia.

Why does rabies cause a fear of water?

Many people wonder how rabies and fear of water are connected in principle? In fact, there is nothing in common between this disease and hydrophobia in the sense in which we perceive it.

• People with rabies are really very afraid of water. Moreover, they are so afraid that they cannot even stand the sight of it, they cannot hear it dripping. The rooms in which there are people suffering from rabies are arranged in such a way that in no case should the patient be disturbed even by the thought of water.
• In such wards there are no washbasins or sinks, the heating system is turned off or works in such a way that you cannot hear the sound of water. The dropper is wrapped with cloth so that the patient does not see that he is being injected with liquid and does not hear the slightest dripping.
• The slightest contact with water leads the patient into a state of terrible panic and hysteria . The person becomes ill and hallucinations may appear.

Hysterics

• Experts say that even a simple glass of water can cause a person to experience convulsions, and spasms of the larynx and pharynx can even lead to death.
• Why is this happening? Because the virus that causes rabies attacks the nucleus of one of the cranial nerves. At the same time, a person begins to perceive any irritating factors more acutely. There is also a thirst center , which is responsible for our desire to drink.
• During this illness, due to increased sensitivity to irritants, this center does not work entirely correctly and any attempts by the patient to drink water end in the occurrence of spasms of the upper respiratory tract. Actually, this provokes suffocation of the patient.
• From all of the above, we can conclude that such hydrophobia does not need to be treated, since it does not make any sense. In this case, hydrophobia (in combination with other characteristic manifestations of the disease) is a confirming fact that the person has rabies.

If you suffer from a fear of water, be sure to consult a specialist; after getting rid of your phobia, your life will sparkle with new bright colors.

Symptoms and types of hydrophobia

Each of the named fear varieties of hydrophobia has its own name:

• dipsophobia – fear of drinking water;
• bathophobia – fear of deep bodies of water;
• Ablutophobia – fear of hygiene procedures in the bathroom;
• potamophobia – fear of fast currents, whirlpools;
• Thalassophobia – phobia of the sea;
• limnophobia – fear of lakes;
• anthlophobia – fear of floods;
• chionophobia – fear of snow;
• Ombrophobia – fear of getting caught in the rain.

All varieties have similar psychophysiological symptoms.

On a psychological level

The main indicator is fear of water in any of its manifestations. How else does aquaphobia manifest itself on a psychological level:

• increased anxiety when drinking, entering water, approaching water, or at the thought of contact with water (depending on the stage);
• delaying hygiene procedures;
• reluctance to wash and bathe;
• increased excitability, nervousness on the beach and in other places near water;
• making up excuses to avoid going swimming or getting caught in the rain;
• panic when drops of rain or snow hit the skin;
• obsessive negative thoughts about possible tragedies.

A person tends to fantasize and come up with unfavorable scenarios for the development of events.

On the physical level

Physical signs are nonspecific:

• tachycardia;
• hyperhidrosis;
• breathing problems;
• hypertension;
• feeling of dry mouth;
• convulsions;
• clouding of consciousness;
• dyspnea;
• tinnitus;
• tremor of the limbs;
• frequent urination;
• muscle aches;
• icing of extremities;
• dizziness;
• disorientation.

What is aquaphobia?

The term "aquaphobia" describes a type of anxiety disorder that involves an intense fear or aversion to water. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that in 2015, 264 million people worldwide had at least one anxiety disorder. Anxiety disorders include a group of conditions associated with feelings of fear and anxiety. Specific phobias, including aquaphobia, are a type of anxiety disorder.

As with other anxiety disorders, the severity of aquaphobia varies. Some people may be afraid of deep bodies of water or fast-moving rivers, while others may be afraid of any body of water, including swimming pools, hot tubs, and regular bathtubs.