Understanding Nosocomephobia: The Fear of Hospitals
Fear of hospitals or nosocomephobia is a very common phobia faced by a large number of people. The US president Richard Nixon had nosocomephobia as he reportedly refused to get treated for a blood clot. He believed that he wouldn't get out of the hospital alive. Let's delve deep into this phobia and understand it.
What's Nosocomephobia?
People who have nosocomephobia also suffer from white coat syndrome/hypertension. It's a condition where people's blood pressure rises when they visit a doctor's clinic.
While some people are scared of the clinic's architecture, others are afraid of what it represents. In short, the type of medical facility can change the level of anxiety. Modern facilities with new designs that incorporate spa-like facilities, soothing colors, and other patients' comforts make them feel safe and secure.
Many insurance companies can pay for both types of hospitals. Ensure that you check with your insurance company. While the fear of clinics and hospitals is valid, it can meddle in with proper care for the issue at hand.
It’s true if you experience a fear of hospitals combines with other medical-related phobias like:
- Claustrophobia: Fear of closed spaces. If you have claustrophobia, you might dread MRIs, CT scans, and other tests that require confinement.
- Hemophobia: Fear of blood
- Mysophobia: Fear of germs
- Latrophobia: Fear of doctors. Although doctors are the most common medical-related fear, few people are also scared of nurses and lab techs.
- Nosophobia: Fear of contracting a virus or a specific disease like diabetes or cancer.
- Thanatophobia: Fear of death
- Trypanophobia: Fear of needles
Normal Anxiety or Nosocomephobia
As it's common for people to feel anxious about visiting a hospital, it's difficult to differentiate if it's a common fear or a full-fledged phobia. A professional mental health professional can determine this.
In general, a person with nosocomephobia can refuse to enter a hospital even if they're going through a life-threatening condition. Moreover, they may understand that their fear is irrational, but they'll feel powerless when trying to overcome it. Different signs that prove that it's not just a fear, but nosocomephobia are:
- Increased heart rate
- Excessive sweating
- Avoidance behavior
- A panic attack at the thought or sight of a hospital
- Obsessive worrying
- Feeling nauseated
- Uncontrollable anxiety
- Rapid and shallow breathing
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