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Coophobia (genophobia): the fear of sexual intercourse

Coophobia (genophobia): the fear of sexual intercourse

March 29, 2024

Coophobia is an irrational fear of sexual intercourse, which is part of the wide variety of sexual phobias or erotophobia. Individuals with this disorder can initiate romantic relationships, kiss other people or hug them, but feel great fear of sexual intercourse and penetration.

Having sex, especially with the person we love, is one of the greatest pleasures in life, and is essential to enjoy a healthy life, both individually and as a couple. But when fear takes over a person, the consequences at the psychological and social level can be very serious.

In this article we will talk about coophobia (also known as genophobia) and will delve into the causes, symptoms and consequences of this irrational fear.


What sexual phobias are there?

Sexual phobias or erotofobias are a variety of disorders related to sex . Some people feel phobia penetration (as in the case of coophobia), others feel fear of penises and others to intimacy.

Phobias, in general, are irrational fears that generate great anxiety, discomfort and stress peaks and cause the phobic person to avoid the dreaded stimulus or situation. There are different types of sexual phobias besides coophobia, are the following:

1. Nudofobia

This phobia is also known as gymnophobia, and it is the fear of nudity. Therefore, these people are afraid of being naked or that others see them like that.


2. Fear of privacy

Nudofobia can be confused with the fear of intimacy, but they are not the same. The fear of intimacy refers not so much to being naked, but to feeling close to the other person both physically and emotionally.

3. Haphophobia

And the irrational fear of intimacy is not the same as fearing a person's physical contact, which is known as hafephobia. This fear is characterized because the individual fears being touched by different causes (for example, for fear of contracting diseases).

Although the hafephobia is not related only to sex, this disorder also affects sexual relations.

4. Falofobia

It is the irrational fear of both flaccid and erect penises (medortophobia), which makes it very difficult to have sex.

  • Related article: "Fear of penises (phallophobia): causes, symptoms and treatment"

5. Paraphobia

It is a phobic disorder characterized by a fear of sexual perversion. It is a complex phobia in which some people fear to pervert themselves, while others fear the perversions of others.


6. Vulnerability phobia

The phobia of vulnerability is the fear of abandonment, of remaining in solitude if someone rejects them. It also affects intimacy, since some individuals do not believe that they can like others.

This phobia has negative consequences in different types of interpersonal relationships including those of a couple and, therefore, sex with it is affected.

7. Filemafobia

It is also known as filematophobia, and it is the phobia of kissing, that is, the irrational fear of these acts of love. Often associated with different causes, such as concerns about bad breath or fear of catching diseases.

  • Related article: "Phobia to the kisses (filemafobia): causes, symptoms and treatment"

Causes (and classical conditioning)

Coophobia, like any phobia, usually develops as a result of a traumatic experience. This occurs due to a type of associative learning called classical conditioning, in which the person suffers a traumatic experience from the past that provokes a strong emotional reaction.

John B. Watson was the first scientist to experience this type of human learning, and he succeeded in having a little boy named Albert learn an irrational fear, that is, a phobia. This controversial experiment could not be carried out today because it is not considered ethical. You can learn more about the experiment with little Albert in the following video:

Other causes of this phobia

The bad experiences that can cause this phobia can be different from one person to another: sexual abuse, manipulative sexual behavior or pain suffered during penetration. Phobias may have their origin in childhood, although in this case it is very normal to start in adulthood , when the sexual behavior is more pronounced.

They can often develop as a result of other sexual problems, such as erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation or dyspareunia, a medical condition that makes sex painful for some women.

Religious beliefs or irrational beliefs about sex (often the result of disinformation or television) can lead a person to suffer this phobia.

Symptoms of genophobia

The coophobia presents the same symptomatology of other phobias, either specific (as in the case of this phobia) or complex (as in the case of social phobia or agoraphobia). Anxiety and discomfort are the characteristic symptoms, and the person usually avoids any situation related to having sex with another person.

The symptoms of coctophobia can be classified into three groups:

  • Cognitive symptoms : irrational thoughts, anguish, fear ...
  • Behavioral symptoms : avoidance of the dreaded situation or stimulus, that is, sexual relations.
  • Physical symptoms : tightness in the chest, dry mouth, nausea, dizziness, headaches, hyperventilation and shortness of breath, acceleration of the heartbeat, tremors, chills ...

Treatment of this phobia

According to research, phobias can be overcome thanks to psychotherapy . And the data from these studies show that cognitive behavioral therapy is really effective. Some of the techniques that are most used in this type of therapy to overcome phobias are relaxation techniques or exposure techniques.

Regarding the latter, automatic desensitization is usually employed, which involves exposing the patient little by little to the phobic stimulus while learning more adaptive tools to cope with the situation. Logically, it is not possible for the patient to have sex in consultation, but other strategies can be used to help expose the patient to this type of situation and can prove that their hypotheses are wrong. Some cognitive techniques can also be used to modify some irrational beliefs.

Also, often, acceptance is key to reducing anxiety, so that in recent times new forms of therapy have been used as cognitive therapy based on Mindfulness (MBCT) or acceptance therapy and commitment.

In extreme cases, pharmacological treatment has proved useful, but always in combination with psychological therapy.


Fobias 2 (March 2024).


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