We know that phobias exist for any stimulus we can imagine. Many of them are considered “rare” phobias, due to their low frequency of appearance and/or the characteristics of the phobic stimulus.
This is the case of pyrexiophobia, which is the intense, irrational and disproportionate fear of fever hallucinations In this article we will learn what this peculiar phobia consists of, and we will review what fever is and what hallucinations are. Finally, we will learn about the symptoms, causes and treatments of pyrexiophobia.
Pyrexiophobia is the phobia of fever hallucinations. That is, it appears an intense fear of hallucinations in febrile states This is a specific phobia (anxiety disorder), classified as “another type of phobia” according to the DSM-5 (Diagnostic Manual of Mental Disorders).
When you suffer from a very high fever, sometimes one of the symptoms that may arise is hallucinations. Hallucinations are “objectless perceptions”, that is, they involve, for example, seeing something that does not really exist, or hearing it, noticing it, feeling it, etc.
So, hallucinations can be of different types: auditory, visual, tactile. They normally appear associated with delusions (in psychotic disorders), although in the case of fever this is not the case.
Hallucinations
Hallucinations also appear in other pathologies, this time more serious, since they are mental disorders and not a simple fever. This way, They appear especially in psychotic disorders (for example schizophrenia). They can also appear in mood disorders (bipolar disorder and depressive disorder) or in a cognitive impairment disorder (dementias).
In the population without mental pathology, although it is less common, hallucinations may also appear under highly stressful situations. Normally it is a more “physiological” type of hallucination; Specifically, we talk about hypnagogic and hypnopompic hallucinations. The first appear when we are entering a dream state, and the second, when we wake up.
However, in pyrexiophobia, fear appears only in the face of hallucinations caused by fever.
Fever
The fever consists of an increase in body temperature This increase is usually temporary, and responds to a specific illness, infection or discomfort. In most cases, fever is a response to infections.
What causes fever is a group of substances (endogenous and exogenous) called “pyrogens.” But how exactly does fever occur? As we said, pyrogens are the causative agents of fever. These substances act in centers of the hypothalamus (specifically, in centers called “thermoregulators”), increasing its temperature.
When can you say you have a fever? In the case of children, a fever is considered to exist when the temperature is equal to (or higher) than:
38 degrees Celsius (38 ºC): if measured on the buttocks 37.5 ºC: if measured in the mouth 37.2 ºC: if measured under the arm (armpit)
In the case of adults, a fever is considered to occur when the body temperature is between 37.2 ºC and 37.5 ºC.
Very high fevers: hallucinations
As we said, hallucinations appear when fevers are very high. We are talking about temperatures that can exceed 41ºC. This type of fever is usually not caused by an infection, but by an alteration of the central nervous system (CNS).
When the body temperature is so high, the body can suffer damage In addition to hallucinations, other symptoms appear such as confusion and drowsiness. The hallucinations that appear can be of different types and intensity.
On the other hand, if the body temperature continues to increase, the damage that the body may suffer is irreversible; In these cases, the proteins end up losing their structure. Finally, when a temperature of 42 ºC is reached, one falls into a coma, and at 43 ºC comes death.
We know that high fever can cause hallucinations to appear. However, There are other medical conditions that cause high fever and hallucinations and that we must take into account so as not to confuse the symptoms:
Encephalitis
Encephalitis consists of an inflammation of the brain, which can cause irritation and swelling It is usually caused by a virus. Symptoms of encephalitis include hallucinations and high fever. However, we insist that in pyrexiophobia the phobia occurs only to hallucinations caused by fever.
Symptoms
The symptoms of pyrexiophobia, as a specific phobia, consist mainly of an intense, persistent and disproportionate fear of hallucinations caused by high fever
Another symptom of pyrexiophobia is the avoidance of the phobic stimulus; in this case, the person would avoid suffering from fever at all costs (although this is a difficult situation to control). This avoidance of fever would logically imply the avoidance of hallucinations.
Furthermore, as in all phobias, discomfort appears associated with the symptoms, which has an impact on the person’s overall functioning. This discomfort is clinically significant and interferes with the daily life of the individual with pyrexiophobia.
Causes
The causes of pyrexiophobia are related to previous experiences, related to hallucinations caused by the fever itself. That is, it is likely that the person has experienced these hallucinations in a situation of very high fever, and has experienced the situation as very unpleasant.
The hallucinations probably caused you fear, anguish, anxiety or such a degree of perplexity that the experience ended up being traumatic and causing pyrexiophobia.
Other possible causes of pyrexiophobia are related to more temperamental or personality aspects; There is a type of people more predisposed to suffering from anxiety disorders. These are people with a more insecure, unstable or “fragile” temperament. If, in addition, the person already suffers from another previous anxiety disorder, the risk may also increase
Pyrexiophobia is treated as a specific phobia. The main (and most effective) psychological treatment indicated for specific phobias is exposure therapy Through it, we can expose the patient to situations that are increasingly anxiety-inducing and closer to the phobic stimulus.
In the case of pyrexiophobia, since it would be unethical to induce a state of fever or induce hallucinations through drugs or drugs, one can choose to expose it to symptoms similar to these states. It can also be done through virtual reality exposure or through symbolic exposure (through videos).
The objective is for the patient, to the extent possible in this case, to experience/feel the symptoms that cause so much anxiety (hallucinations) and for the intense fear associated with them to disappear.
Cognitive techniques can also be used that allow the patient to have a more realistic view of the stimuli that they fear so much, understanding that these do not have to cause harm. It is important that you understand that high fevers only appear in extreme and infrequent cases, that many times this cannot be controlled or predicted, and that if they do appear, the hallucinations you may experience will not cause you harm either.
In the end, fever is an adaptive response of the body that is warning us that “something is not right” (coupled with hallucinations, which can hardly be avoided) and this must be transmitted to the patient, to reduce catastrophic and pessimistic thoughts. associated with pyrexiophobia.
