Do you feel distressed, anxious, uncomfortable or even repulsive at the sight of irregular patterns or holes and bumps? If yes, it could be a special type of phobia called Trypophobia. Though it is still not officially recognized as a mental disorder, if present in excess, people identified with symptoms of trypophobia have to be taught to manage it.
Research has shown that trypophobia can be associated with fear of infectious diseases. The sight of a honeycomb or a lotus pod is associated with parasite infestations, infections, and decomposition.
Almost 16% of the population is supposed to have trypophobia.
Here are some ways to deal with this fear and anxiety. If you need to talk to your medical practitioner about it, please take his/her opinion also into consideration.
- Being mindful of your thoughts. There is no better way to nip a thought than do it in the bud.
- Deep breathing exercises and meditation. This will further help in being mindful.
- Physical exercises to take care of anxiety. The good hormones produced will have a good impact on the body and the mind.
We don’t always like to seek or suggest medication, but just in case persons need that support medically there is also Anti-anxiety meds.
- Anti-anxiety medication if you have been prescribed to it can be another form of dealing with trypophobia. Talk to your physician about it. Therapy sessions or chat with your counselor. Distracting your mind with other interesting thoughts. If one set of thoughts can cause pain, another set can erase that pain.
Being aware of the kind of thoughts you are experiencing, can help you replace them and hence reduce the anxiety and pain caused by the sight of something like an irregular pattern.
Like with any other condition, a healthy diet, sufficient sleep, enough exercise, and active social life can help in containing and arresting most of the phobias that human beings experience. A physically active body and an alert mind is the key to a successful and stress-free life.
