Man needs shelter as a basic necessity. How, then, is it possible to be afraid of houses? Let’s talk about Eicophobia.
Domatophobia, synonymous with the terms “Eicophobia” and “Oikophobia,” is the fear of houses or staying in a home.
Domatophobia and Other Phobias
There are rare cases when persons experience a combination of other phobias and situations like this are called “Complex phobias.”
It is believed that most phobias cause or give way to the development of specific other phobias.
For instance, a person with domatophobia is likely to develop the fear of being left alone; this can be vice versa as well; however, scientists are not very sure about which would come first.
Causes of Domatophobia
There are a range of causes that trigger someone to develop domatophobia. The following are the most outstanding ones:
Trauma
This could result from unpleasant past experiences that caused the person to sustain an injury, which serves as a dent in an individual’s life, causing the person to be terrified of being in a house. The individual often acknowledges that he or she is overreacting but cannot control it.
When someone witnesses or hears stories about an unpleasant event relating to a house—whether a house crashing to the ground, a haunted house, or a home with an electrical or mechanical fault that caused great harm—it may contribute to an individual being traumatized enough that he or she develops this condition.
Genetics and Hereditary
Traits are inheritable, but so are medical conditions such as phobias. People with this condition who may not have been through a trauma but still suffer domatophobia may feel unexplainably afraid of houses.
This could result from an ancestor who had developed and lived through this condition, passing the genes of fear down to the offspring dominantly or recessively.
Background Upbringing
Most things children know and learn are all based on the caregiver and the environment. A child can obtain and suffer from phobia all because a close individual inculcated that in him or her.
The child will grow up with extreme and irrational fear, in this case, fear of houses, fear of being in a house, and fear of likely dangers relating to home.
Symptoms of Domatophobia
Symptoms of domatophobia are manifestations of the effects of domatophobia. These symptoms are likely, and they can, to a great extent, ruin a person’s life.
However, these symptoms depend on how severe the domatophobia that you are suffering from is.
The symptoms of domatophobia are divided into two according to the effects: physical symptoms and psychological symptoms.
Individuals may experience these symptoms not only when they come in contact with their object of fear, in this case, a house, but the thought of a home can trigger them.
Note that these symptoms can occur any time abruptly, unexpectedly, and without any warning signs
Physical Symptoms Of Domatophobia
These are the physical manifestations of domatophobia:
- Excessive sweating
- Trembling
- Hot flushes or chills
- Shortness of breath
- A choking sensation
- Increased heart rates
- Sharp chest pain
- A sick feeling in the stomach
- Nausea
- Headaches and dizziness
- Feeling of faint
- Nervous numbness
- Dry mouth
- A frequent need to go to the toilet
- Buzzing sounds or ringing in your ears
- Confusion
- Hyperventilation
- A rise in blood pressure
Psychological Symptoms Of Domatophobia
The mental symptoms may vary across individuals depending on the severity of the condition. Persons suffering from severe cases of domatophobia may have panic attacks when they get triggered by domatophobia.
The following is a compilation of common and likely symptoms of domatophobia:
- Fear of losing control
- Fear of going crazy
- Fear of fainting
- Feelings of dread
- Fear of dying
- Fear of harm or illness
- Feeling of guilt
- Feeling of shame
- Self-blame
- Social withdrawal
- Feeling sad or hopeless
- Feeling disconnected
- Confusion, difficulty in concentrating
- Anger, irritability, mood swings
- Anxiety and fear.
Treatment of Domatophobia
People with domatophobia may not feel the need to get treatment because they will go along way in avoiding houses of any form.
Most times, these people think that by avoiding houses that are fine and in control of the issues. However, avoiding the object of fear as essential as a house is difficult.
Moderate and severe cases of this condition can greatly affect a person’s normal daily activities and life choices.
They can also ruin a person’s social life and the relationships he or she has with others—friends, family, and others.
Domatophobia can destroy a person’s career and is generally even more dangerous than danger itself. Therefore, this condition should be treated once diagnosed.
The following are treatments available for the treatment of domatophobia as well as other phobias:
Treatments for Domatophobia
This technique may be similar to counseling, psychotherapy, and psychological therapy, which involves your therapist, who is specially trained to help people with mental and anxiety disorders.
You will schedule sessions after sessions with your therapist to discuss yourself, your feelings, your thoughts, and your behaviors.
However, there are various types of talking therapy that your therapist can pick from according to the ones that will help you, but they all have common aims, which are:
- To help you identify those negative behavioral and thought patterns to influence them positively.
- To help you resolve those conflicting feelings in you or at least help you find ways to cope with them
- To help you understand yourself and your surroundings better.
- To open to you the opportunity of talking to a person (professional) who won’t judge, tease, or make fun of you and your condition under a safe time and controlled, serene environment
Talking therapy is a gradual process that can result in the individual’s recovery. It is gradual but effective.
Cognitive-behavioral Therapy (CBT)
This treatment is based on the idea that what we always think influences our behavior.
Effects of domatophobia can affect how you view things and your thoughts about a particular situation or object; in this case, it is anything relating to the house.
Domatophobia can deprive you of peace of mind even when in a serene environment. Therefore, Cognitive-behavioural Therapy aims to identify those negative behavioral and thought patterns and equip you with the strategies to overcome them while controlling yourself.
Desensitization
This is done with the help of exposure therapy. Exposure therapy has stages; at each stage, the individual is gradually exposed to the object of fear under a controlled environment and professional supervision.
Emphasis on the word “gradually” because the individual could have panic attacks and other anxiety responses if exposed directly and abruptly to an object of fear.
The individual passing each stage successfully feels less threatened at the given stages of exposure and may soon not have to be afraid of the object of fear, in this case, houses.
This is why it is called desensitization, which reduces your sensitization to your objects or situations of fear (houses, in this case).
Hypnotherapy
This is the opening of an individual’s subconsciousness and convincing it that the fears are extreme and irrational and that there is nothing to be afraid of.
Medication
Medications used in the treatment of phobias are not the cure; they are just used to control anxiety and other psychological symptoms of domatophobia, which in turn prevents the physical symptoms.
They offer temporary relief from unpleasant symptoms. The medications used are of three main types, and they are:
- Antidepressants
- Tranquilizers
- Beta-blockers
These medications, just like every other medication, should not be used without the doctor’s prescription, and if prescribed, they should be used strictly according to the prescription.
Again, these medications can have side effects on an individual, and in some cases, these side effects can be severe.
Another reason why medicines should be taken precautionary is that there is a possibility of dependency and addiction, which can trigger withdrawal symptoms when stopped abruptly.
Self-help
This is one of the best ways of recovering from domatophobia. It is when you decide to help yourself without the help of a professional mental health worker by merely choosing to be very kind to yourself, take vital care of yourself and your health, and master your emotions, especially in the face of triggers.
Joining support groups available online and offline to help you feel less lonely, and with the tips shared by others and those who have recovered, may help you keep your emotions in check.
