Fear of whales or cetaphobia is another type of fear still being studied by experts. Hundreds of thousands of people around the world fear whales. The intense fear of whales is called cetacean, a word that has its origin in the Latin Cetus, which means large fish, and phobias, which is the Greek god of fear.
People who fear whales cannot bear to think, see, or talk about them. Watching a movie about (or a picture of) these great creatures can cause an all-out panic attack in the sufferer. Most cetaceans do not suffer from the symptoms of their phobia daily, only when they suddenly encounter a whale which is usually through the media or television.
Other people tend to laugh at this seemingly irrational fear; after all, the chances of the phobic meeting a whale are generally minimal. While the phobic also realizes that such fear is irrational and baseless, he cannot control it. Let’s study the causes, symptoms, and treatment of phobia.
You may also be interested in reading: Fear Of Beards: Causes, Symptoms, Overcoming
Index
Causes of cetacea
- As has been said before, fear of whales is usually triggered in childhood by seeing movies or movies related to whales.
- An online forum dedicated to the various phobias has people contributing their experiences regarding their fears. In the case of cetaceans, most of the phobics explained that their fear started after they saw the movie, Finding Nemo.
- Others had similar experiences of panic attacks after seeing whales depicted in Free Willy, Fantasy 2000, or Pinocchio.
- In each case, the whale, an inherently gigantic creature, is portrayed as a creature that crawls slowly over unsuspecting characters.
- The big screen in a movie theater can significantly exacerbate this fear in nervous individuals or young children.
- Orcas are generally portrayed as vicious and bloodthirsty creatures.
- It is believed that many Japanese anglers and members of the Inuit tribes developed a fear of these whales while hunting them.
- They should fear environmental organizations more than whales, as killing them is against the law and could lead to heavy penalties or severe imprisonment.
Other causes of Cetaphobia include
- The fear of monsters that most children have.
- They usually go away as the child grows; however, many continue to experience fear well into adulthood.
- A traumatic whale-related event, such as a sizeable dying whale washing up on the beach, etc., can also cause anxious people to begin to fear whales.
Fear of the ocean or fear that the sea has large whales can cause phobics to avoid the beach.
- Many have recurring nightmares of being swallowed alive by the whales (where no one would find their carcass).
- Such dreams and thoughts can cause intense panic in the individual.
Symptoms of Whale Phobia
Like all other phobias, the fear of whales can cause various symptoms such as:
- Dry mouth, rapid breathing, palpitations, etc.
- Shaking and shaking
- You are feeling like running away, covering your eyes, or running away and hiding when the image of a whale appears in books or on television, etc.
- Crying, screaming, and getting hysterical. Having recurring nightmares of being swallowed by whales.
Since most people cannot understand the reason behind such fear, phobics tend to be ridiculed or ridiculed. This causes them to withdraw further into themselves or feel depressed. Catephobia often accompanies other phobias such as agoraphobia, thanatophobia, fear of water, etc.
Try and overcome
- Gradual desensitization is the best way to overcome your fear of whales.
- The phobic should try to gather courage and watch videos or movies about these gigantic creatures.
- However, this therapy is best done under the guidance of a professional who can help you start small.
- For example, phobics may be asked to think of whales, progressing to viewing their photos and movies gradually, each time overcoming the anxiety experienced through deep breathing, muscle relaxation, etc.
- Another technique that can help overcome most phobias is hypnosis/hypnotherapy.
- This helps to get to the root of the dread and eliminate it.
- Others include NLP or neurolinguistic programming and cognitive behavioral therapy.
- Self-education is also necessary while trying to overcome the intense fear of whales.
- Whales are, by nature, peaceful and will not intentionally harm humans. They are mammals that take care of their young.
- They usually live only in the deepest parts of the ocean.
- Some statistics will also show that human deaths due to whales are few and rare.
Other techniques
- Other techniques to overcome anxiety related to Cetaphobia include meditation, positive visualization therapy, etc.
- Talking about fear in group therapy or with an experienced psychiatrist can also help you overcome your fear of whale phobia.
Hello, how are you? My name is Georgia Tarrant, and I am a clinical psychologist. In everyday life, professional obligations seem to predominate over our personal life. It's as if work takes up more and more of the time we'd love to devote to our love life, our family, or even a moment of leisure.