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Fear of penises (phallophobia): causes, symptoms and treatment

Fear of penises (phallophobia): causes, symptoms and treatment

March 28, 2024

Phobias are one of the most frequent reasons why patients visit the psychologist.

There are different types of phobias, and within specific phobic disorders we can find hydrophobia (fear of water), aerophobia (fear of flying) or arachnophobia (fear of spiders), among others. One of the specific phobias not so usual but that is very curious is the phallophobia , the irrational fear of penises.

In this article we will talk about this phobia and will delve into its symptoms, its causes and its treatment.

What is phallophobia?

Falofobia is usually encompassed within the different sexual phobias or erotophobias, among which also highlight the coophobia (fear of sexual intercourse), gymnophobia (fear of nudity) or hafephobia (fear of contact or being touched), among others. It is usually considered a sexual phobia because many people who suffer from it, especially in the case of women, avoid sexual contact to avoid having to face the phobic stimulus. Now, both men and women can suffer this type of phobia.


The irrational fear is as much towards the flabby as erect penises (medortophobia). The penis, whether erect or not, is something natural and most people understand that. However, there are men and women who are afraid to see, think or have an erect penis. For many phobic personalities, andThis can cause a lot of anxiety and discomfort, which causes them to avoid these uncomfortable situations .

Causes: traumatic situations

It is generally accepted that phobias arise from a combination of external events (ie, traumatic events) and internal predispositions (ie, inheritance or genetics), although the first option has much more weight. That is, many phobias have their origin in an event that triggers the past, usually a traumatic experience that occurs at an early age. For example, photophobia may have its origin in a bad sexual relationship of the past, which has caused great pain to the person who suffers.


The learning of phobias occurs through classical conditioning, a type of associative learning.

  • If you want to know more about classical conditioning, you can read our article: "Classical conditioning and its most important experiments"

The biological origin of phobias

Although this is usually done in almost all cases of specific phobia, social phobias and agoraphobia may have more complex causes.

As for biological causes, It seems that the body is designed to fear certain stimuli as a way of survival . Something that may have been very useful in the past, but not so much in our days. Therefore, phobias would occur through primitive and non-cognitive associations, and logical arguments would be ineffective in modifying these associations.

symptom

The symptoms of phobias are common in all types of phobias, since these pathologies belong to the group of anxiety disorders. That is why the main symptom is anxiety and discomfort, and the main characteristic of patients with phobia is the avoidance of the feared stimulus.


The phobic stimulus produces a great fear and anxiety, and for that reason the person tries to stay away from any situation in which he could feel this way. If sexual intercourse includes the possibility of seeing the phobic stimulus, patients with phallophobia avoid sexual intercourse and, therefore, present serious difficulties in their love lives.

In summary, phallophobia presents the following symptoms:

  • Physical symptoms : hyperventilation and shortness of breath, hypersudation, tachycardia, tremors, chills, tightness in the chest, dry mouth, stomach pain, dizziness, headaches ....
  • Psychological symptoms Distorted and catastrophic thoughts and great anxiety, discomfort and fear.
  • Behavioral symptoms : avoidant behaviors in the presence of the phobic stimulus: the penises.

Treatment

Like any phobia, psychological treatment can be very effective . Psychotherapy, therefore, is the best option, although in extreme cases drugs can also be applied.

Psychologists usually use different techniques for the treatment of this disorder, and cognitive behavioral therapy usually works very well, which aims to correct those beliefs or behaviors that interfere with the patient's well-being. The most commonly used techniques are relaxation techniques and exposure techniques. As for the latter, highlights the systematic desensitization, which involves exposing the patient gradually to the feared situations while learning adaptive tools . In addition, the therapist can help the patient understand the natural function of the human body and why erections take place, what they mean and what they do not mean.

In recent times, contextual therapies such as Mindfulness or Acceptance and Commitment Therapy are proving very effective for the treatment of any type of anxiety disorder, since they help the patient to accept the anxious experience and, in this way, decrease the intensity of the symptoms. Hypnotherapy can also work very well for some patients.

In severe cases, in addition, drugs prescribed by a psychiatrist may be administered, but this therapeutic option must always be accompanied by psychotherapy, since studies show that it is not effective in the long term if it is carried out as the only form of treatment.

New technologies and the treatment of phobias

In recent decades, new technologies have burst into our lives in different ways. Now it is possible to buy furniture online, read the newspaper of the day from the computer, study a master without the need to go to college or make psychological therapy online.

Further, it is possible to treat phobias from your own mobile , since in recent years applications have appeared that use virtual reality and augmented reality to expose the patient to phobic stimuli.

  • You can know the best applications of the market in our article: "8 apps to treat phobias and fears from your smartphone"

Phallophobia | irrational fear of penises and how do you get over it (March 2024).


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