From childhood, the experience of having to visit the doctor or any other type of health specialist such as a dentist is quite distressing and traumatic. However, this is a normative and understandable fear, since in many cases these visits are related to suffering from some kind of pain.

However, when this fear becomes chronic and turns into an extreme fear of doctors, we may not encounter a case of latrophobia . In this article we will discuss the characteristics of this disorder, as well as its symptoms, causes and treatment.

What is latrophobia?

Categorized within specific anxiety disorders, latrophobia consists of the experience of an excessive, irrational and uncontrollable fear of doctors . This fear can extend to any type of professional working in the healthcare field (dentists, nurses…) or the healthcare centres themselves.

Anyone with the ability to make a diagnosis, administer a medication, give an injection, or perform any type of medical treatment or intervention can be the target of latrophobia. This anxiety disorder can go so far as to provoke a severe anxiety response only when the characteristic smell of a health center or hospital is perceived.

The main consequence of this phobia is that people who suffer from it avoid at all costs having to go to any space related to the health field .

Although they are aware that any health professional aims to preserve it, people with latrophobia will try by all possible means not to go to a doctor’s visit with the risk of overlooking diagnoses, of aggravating diseases, or even of becoming incurable.

Although in the specific anxiety disorder known as nosophobia the patient also avoids at all costs having to go to a doctor’s office, the main difference found with latrophobia is that, while in the former the phobic stimulus is manifested by the fear of getting sick, in the latter it is the figure of the professional that causes this fear .

How do you distinguish it from a normative fear of the doctor?

As mentioned above, it is common to feel a certain degree of respect, or even some fear, at the idea of going to the doctor’s or dentist’s office, etc. However, this fear need not be excessive or interfere with the patient’s routine.

There are a number of specific characteristics that allow us to differentiate a normative fear from a phobic fear proper to phobic disorders such as latrophy.

The first feature with which we can identify a phobic fear is that it is experienced in an absolutely disproportionate way compared to the real threat that exists. Although it is true that sometimes visits to the doctor may involve painful measures, the level of fear that these people experience when faced with the possibility of suffering such pain is excessive and exaggerated.

The second characteristic of this type of specific phobia is that fear is experienced in a completely irrational way. That is, the person is virtually incapable of giving any reasoning or logical basis to the fear he or she is experiencing, and even to the point of accepting that it makes no sense at all, and yet cannot be avoided.

Finally, in this type of anxiety disorder, the person also cannot control the fear they experience at the onset or the very idea of having to face the phobic object. This means that the patient cannot avoid experiencing the sensations and feelings of anxiety , as well as the appearance of intrusive thoughts and beliefs that favour and enhance this anxiety response.

What symptoms do you have?

The most characteristic manifestation of latrophobia, as well as the rest of specific phobias, is the experience of high levels of anxiety before the appearance of the feared object. In addition, for this fear to be diagnosed as phobic, the person must manifest some of the symptoms characteristic of this type of disorder.

These symptoms are divided into physical symptoms, cognitive symptoms and behavioural symptoms . And although they don’t have to arise in the same way and with the same intensity in all people, you will need to experience signs of all three categories.

1. Physical symptoms

As with the vast majority of anxiety responses, experiencing a phobic fear usually involves a series of changes and alterations in the body. These changes appear due to the hyperactivity that the autonomic nervous system manifests before the appearance of the aversive stimulus.

These symptoms include the following:

  • Increased heart rate .
  • Increased respiratory rate.
  • Feeling of suffocation or shortness of breath.
  • Increased sweating.
  • Increased muscle tension .
  • Headache.
  • Gastric disorders and problems such as diarrhea.
  • Dizzy feeling .
  • Nausea and/or vomiting.
  • Loss of consciousness.

Cognitive symptoms

Accompanying the physical symptoms, latrophobia presents within its clinical picture the appearance of a series of irrational thoughts and distorted beliefs about the feared object. In this case, medical personnel or health professionals.

These cognitive symptoms manifest themselves as follows:

  • Intrusive and uncontrollable ideas about the supposed danger or risks of the phobic stimulus.
  • Obsessive speculation .
  • Emergence of catastrophic mental images.
  • Fear of losing control and not being able to manage the situation properly.

3. Behavioral symptoms

The latter category of symptoms includes those behavioural patterns that appear in response to the appearance of the phobic stimulus. This symptomatology aims at avoiding the feared situation or running away from it in case it has already appeared. These behaviors are known as avoidance or escape behaviors.

The first type of behavioral symptoms are those aimed at avoiding meeting a health professional. That is, it includes all those behaviors or acts that the person performs to avoid the possibility of confronting them. Thanks to these symptoms the person temporarily avoids experiencing feelings of anguish and anxiety typical of a phobia.

On the other hand, escape behaviors appear when the person with latrophobia has not been able to avoid the phobic stimulus, so he will perform all acts and behaviors that allow him to escape from the situation as quickly as possible.

What are the causes?

Although it is really complicated to determine the specific origin of a phobia, it is hypothesized that a genetic predisposition, coupled with the experience of traumatic experiences , can be the basis for the development of this and any other phobia.

Similarly, there are many other factors that we must take into account, such as personality, cognitive styles or vicarious learning, since they can favour the appearance and development of this type of irrational fears.

Is there a treatment?

Because of the health complications this phobia can cause, it is recommended that these people see a mental health professional. There are different psychological interventions that can help reduce the intensity of the symptoms until they disappear.

Treatments that use cognitive restructuring techniques can help eliminate irrational thoughts and beliefs, which often form the basis of this disorder.

Likewise, the treatment known as “systematic desensitization”, in which the person is exposed mentally and gradually to the thoughts or situations that cause this fear accompanied by training in relaxation techniques, is very effective in enabling the person to overcome their phobic fear and restore their normal rhythm of life.