Thalassophobia (fear Of The Sea Or Ocean): Symptoms, Causes And Treatment
Although the human being is an animal species adapted to terrestrial life, The seas and oceans are very present in our lives
The simple fact that the majority of the surface of our planet is covered by seawater means that we must adapt to the presence of these large liquid surfaces, large masses that can be used to navigate and find natural resources, but that in certain contexts can be a threat.
In this article we will talk about the facet of the ocean that we experience with the most sense of danger and anxiety: thalassophobia
The concept of thalassophobia refers to a type of specific phobia in which what produces extreme fear is the ocean or the sea That is to say, a person who experiences this mental alteration will feel terror and great anxiety due to simple exposure to this environment, sometimes even if they are not really close and are simply watching a video in which this immense body of water appears.
Since it is a phobia, that level of discomfort must be clinically significant (which means that there is a clear and obvious deterioration in your quality of life that prevents you from doing many things and often leads to suffering) and appears in contexts in which the ocean or sea does not pose a reasonable or objective danger.
Obviously, if we are about to fall off the keel of a ship we will surely feel terror, but people with thalassophobia feel a similar way simply when looking at the ocean or a similar body of water. As an anxiety disorder that is thalassophobia, its mechanisms go beyond rationality.
As we have seen, thalassophobia is a specific phobia that appears when the subject is exposed to stimuli that they interpret as a sign that there is an ocean or sea nearby (or when they directly see these masses of water). For the rest, its differences with the rest of phobias of this type disappear, which means that the symptoms are typical of these anxiety disorders and that only what triggers them varies.
In summary, it can be said that the main symptoms of thalassophobia are the following: tachycardia, sweating, tremors, catastrophic thoughts, stress crisis loss of control over one’s movements, and a great feeling of danger.
At a neurobiological level, this unjustified state of alert implies the activation of the sympathetic nervous system, which prepares the person to react to the slightest stimulus and predisposes the behavioral reaction of flight.
At a behavioral level, the person tends to react in two ways: fleeing in an uncontrolled and almost automatic way, and avoiding exposure to the phobic stimulus to prevent the appearance of these anxiety attacks in the real or fictitious presence of the ocean.
Causes
In the same way as with the rest of phobias, there is no clear cause that causes thalassophobia, but rather there are a multiplicity of factors that can result in its appearance.
First of all, we must consider the possibility of having lived traumatic experiences. These are experiences in which a very unpleasant emotional imprint is associated with a variety of stimuli which, when perceived, can trigger in real time the experience of a physiological and emotional state similar to what was felt in the original traumatic experience.
For example, having almost drowned, or having lost someone you love in this way, can predispose you to experiencing this anxiety disorder. Furthermore, the biological aspect must be taken into account, and more specifically genetic predispositions to react with large amounts of anxiety in situations in which you feel that there is or will be a loss of control. In phobias, one of the most common stress mechanisms has to do with the expectation of suffering an anxiety crisis, which generates a self-fulfilling prophecy loop effect and that unpleasant experience that was feared and expected becomes a reality.
Differences with other similar anxiety disorders
There are two phobias that are similar to thalassophobia: bathophobia, or fear of depths, and hydrophobia, or fear of water. Although in practice it is very common for the stimuli that trigger them to be almost the same, there are nuances to take into account.
Thalassophobia occurs in the real or imaginary presence of seas and oceans, that is, masses of water that normally extend to the horizon, and that we can feel very close even though kilometers separate us from its shore The fear is of these bodies of water themselves, regardless of their depth.
In hydrophobia, on the other hand, the fear is of water, which can appear very far from the seas and oceans: for example, in caves, restaurants, swimming pools, taps, lakes, etc.
In bathophobia what generates terror is the notion of depth That is, the sensation that there is a mass of matter of precarious stability that separates us from the bottom of an abyss. This experience can appear in the sea, but also in the snow, in the sand or even in a ball pit.
Fortunately, thalassophobia has a good prognosis in most cases, since specific phobias respond very well to psychological treatment After several sessions and some activities to be carried out independently, the majority of cases in which this type of anxiety disorders occur give way to a relatively rapid improvement, to the point where the level of anxiety caused by the phobic stimulus is no longer clinically significant.
One of the techniques that psychologists use most to treat thalassophobia is The exhibition, which consists of exposing the subject to what scares him or her in a controlled manner, and having set a series of objectives. As progress progresses, the difficulty of these experiences increases, which in most cases occur under the direct supervision of the mental health professional.
You can work using real landscapes in which there is sea or ocean, or simulations experienced through virtual reality glasses, although at first it is also common to use only your imagination.
