The Fear Of Ghosts(Phasmophobia or Spectrophobia): Causes, Symptoms, Overcoming

Fear of ghosts – Phasmophobia or Spectrophobia. Ghost phobia is the irrational fear of ghosts. The word comes from the Greek word ‘phases,’ which means ‘supernatural being/ghost,’ and Phobos, which means ‘deep fear or fear.’ Another word to describe it is Spectrophobia, which originates from ‘spectra’ or ‘reflection.’ Many people, young and old alike, fear ghosts.

This fear has been deeply ingrained in us since childhood, further fueled by television shows, as well as religion and culture. Life can be downright miserable for people who have an extreme fear of ghosts. Many refuse to go outside after dark or sleep alone or turn off the lights. Halloween is a terrifying time of year.

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Causes of Spectrophobia

• The anxiety anticipatory, the fear of death or the unknown (or things that “hit at night”) is primarily responsible for triggering the Espectrofobia.
• This is fueled by movies, scary folk tales, religious/superstitious beliefs, and news or media reports of alleged “ghost sightings.”
• The amygdala, a part of the brain, secretes a chemical that triggers fear.
• The brain does this as part of its defense mechanism. For example, a child may have been frightened by his siblings or friends, and as a result, they tend to remember these frightening events whenever they are left alone or in the dark.
• Television shows, Hollywood movies, culture, and religions are steeped in our fear of ghosts.
• Ghosts are portrayed as evil entities that hurt, harm, or have violent tendencies.
• Ghost stories taking children or pets and murdering them, wiping out life savings, or destroying homes also trigger Spectrophobia.

Many scientists believe that phasmophobia is the fear of our death or what is to come. The concept of dead people coming back ‘haunting a home can sometimes be triggered by stress that comes from believing that someone close to them is about to die.

Phasmophobia symptoms

• Phasmophobia can be debilitating; the affected person suffers from many physical, social, and emotional symptoms.
• Heart palpitations, stress, and anxiety or panic attacks are common in these cases.
• Children, for example, may start screaming, crying, or wetting the bed.
• Staying awake at night, hallucinating, and jumping with every sound one hears are the most common symptoms of fear of ghosts.
• Many people who suffer from it show poor performance in school or at work.
• Lack of sleep increases your stress and inability to concentrate.
• They tend to have mood swings, or they may seem irritable, angry, or start crying over minor problems.
• They also seem needy, depressed, clingy, shy, withdrawn, nervous, and nervous. They are easily startled or scared.
• Poor social life is expected as your relationship with your peers, or family members can be strained.
• The health of such individuals also suffers, and their likelihood of getting diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease increase.
• Muscle tension, gastrointestinal aches, and pains in nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, headaches, etc., are standard.
• Increased perspiration, skin blemishes, and rashes are other symptoms of Spectrophobia.
• Insomnia, dizziness, fainting, and increased urinary frequency can also be observed in patients.
• Many patients express fear of dying, going crazy, or impending disaster.
• The fear of ghosts is usually accompanied by other phobias such as the fear of mirrors, photographs, shadows, and the fear of the dark.

Treat and overcome a fear of ghosts.

• Often individuals with Phasmophobia avoid being treated for their condition, as they do not believe/admit that their fear is quite disabling, at least during the day.
• In the case of children with phobias, parents feel that the child will overcome the fear of ghosts with age.
• Parents have an essential role in treating their children’s fear of ghosts.
• They can help the child feel brave through make-believe, role-playing, or positive stories of heroism and bravery to help the child cope with his fear.
• For this home therapy to be successful, the parents must show confidence.
• They mustn’t show anxiety while trying to help the child overcome his fear.
• Adults with Phasmophobia should try to understand their fear. They can list the situations that trigger anxiety and rationalize it by writing down their response and how they can change the answer each time.
• It is essential to enlist the support of friends and family and make sure that the fear of ghosts is widespread and that they are not the only ones who suffer from it.
• Talking about fear is also a therapeutic way to treat Spectrophobia.
• Online or offline forums, as well as professional psychotherapists or hypnotherapists, can help the individual to treat homophobia.