How to get rid of speedophobia (fear of contracting HIV infection). Main symptoms of speedophobia History from consulting practice

Speedophobia – fear of AIDS, causes, treatment

08.12.2017

Speedophobia is a panicky fear of being sick with AIDS. The disease belongs to the category of mental personality disorders. We are mainly talking about hypochondria, when a person is sure that he is seriously ill, despite the negative results of clinical tests and doctors’ assurances that his experiences are groundless.

In most cases, hypochondria develops in impressionable people. Men and women in the age group from 20 to 30 years are at risk.

What is speedophobia

Fear of contracting HIV is a natural reaction of a healthy person . But with speedophobia, there is constant concern about health. It is common for patients to seek evidence that they need medical care.

Fear of getting AIDS is accompanied by the following symptomatic manifestations:

Those suffering from speedophobia are convinced that cough and enlarged lymph nodes are symptoms that occur at the initial stage of development of an incurable disease. The more intense the pain, the more confident they are that they are sick and will die soon.
Although well-informed about the modes of HIV transmission, patients are still convinced that they were at high risk of infection and therefore require immediate medical attention. For those suffering from speedophobia, even hugging an HIV-infected person in outerwear is unacceptable, as they believe that there is a danger of infection, but according to objective data, this is not possible.
They undergo various tests, because... We are convinced that the doctors made a false diagnosis. But at the same time, patients are afraid to find out that the virus has attacked their immune system. They may cry and insist on confirming the diagnosis and repeating the analysis.
Even negative test results six months after unprotected intercourse cannot reassure a person suffering from speedophobia.
Patients are convinced that they have a poorly understood form of the disease, so doctors cannot detect a viral infection during a laboratory examination. It is not uncommon for people to be sick, but their illness is not incurable. It cannot be said that the symptoms do not have a physiological basis.
People suffering from speedophobia are willing to spend a lot of money on repeated tests. There are people who even take out loans to undergo examinations in European clinics. It all depends on the severity of the mental disorder.
There are suggestions from others to seek advice from a psychologist or psychotherapist.
Those suffering from speedophobia spend hours studying literature about the deadly disease, trying to identify the similarity of their symptoms with the clinical picture of AIDS. It is difficult to argue with such patients, because... they have the ability to find scientific facts that support their beliefs.

A person may face the following problems if he refuses to treat speedophobia:

Prolonged depression.
Avoidance of contact with people or, conversely, promiscuity.
Possible suicide in a state of despair.

Causes

There are a number of provoking factors:

The fear of AIDS arises against a background of stress: patients are faced with a serious illness that has affected their loved ones.
A psychological disorder that is characteristic of a man who refuses to accept his homosexuality. After the next sexual contact, people who suffer from speedophobia have an irresistible desire to get tested, because they are convinced that an infection has occurred.
Systematic stress exposure. People become sensitive, notice the slightest changes concerning their health: if there is a stabbing in the side, then cirrhosis of the liver is diagnosed, and a headache is considered as a symptom of the development of a malignant tumor.
A man may experience a feeling of guilt, which causes the appearance of speedophobia. He uses paid sex services and then worries about possible HIV infection. Even if a person does not neglect latex contraception, he is terrified of being infected.
Previously, a false diagnosis has already been made (medical error), so the person is worried that HIV will affect him. Colds are considered dangerous. And relapse of a chronic disease is considered as a symptom of immunodeficiency.

How to stop being afraid of HIV infection

Speedophobia occurs in 2 variants:

The person is sure that he has contracted a viral infection, but he flatly refuses to undergo laboratory testing.
Even after receiving a negative HIV test result, a person insists that he is terminally ill.

In the first case, you need to do the following:

Enlist the support of loved ones.
Make a strong-willed effort to go to the doctor and get all the necessary tests.
Understand that you won’t have to wait several days for the result, because... a rapid test involves obtaining data within a few minutes.

In the second case, the methods of combating speedophobia are not so simple. The help of a psychologist will be required, and sometimes a consultation with a psychiatrist is necessary, who will prescribe psychotropic medications for severe forms of the disorder .

The exact dosage, time interval and frequency of taking medications for speedophobia is prescribed by the doctor. Do not self-medicate to avoid worsening the problem.

Symboldrama is a proven method of combating this type of mental disorder. It includes the following:

The use of relaxation techniques, because symboldrama involves working with the patient’s unconscious motives. You need to close your eyes and try to relax your body muscles. Those suffering from speedophobia may experience difficulties at this stage, because... patients feel the need to control what is happening.
It is proposed to present an image of the disease. The psychologist emphasizes the idea that there are no bad and good images.
A series of questions are asked about what the disease is like.
A person diagnosed with speedophobia is asked to talk to the imagined image, if possible (for example, the patient presented the disease in the form of an animal or person, and not an abstraction).
There is a discussion of the memorable details of the image.
The psychologist asks to draw what the patient feels. It is recommended to use paints to complete the task.

The best method of combating speedophobia is to follow preventive measures:

Avoid promiscuity.
Use condoms.
Objectively assess your risk of contracting HIV.
Reduce sources of stress.

Many people understand that their worries are unreasonable, but cannot get rid of the oppressive fear. In this case, it would be advisable to seek help from a psychologist or psychotherapist .

The use of medications is necessary if a person suffering from speedophobia begins to develop depression and only under the supervision of a doctor.

Speedophobia, panic fear of being HIV-infected Link to main publication

Source: https://psymost.ru/fobii-strahi/spidofobiya-boyazn-spida

For what reasons does this phobia develop?

Hypochondria is a human condition that manifests itself in daily worry about the possibility of contracting any illness or several illnesses at once. Speedophobia is a clear form of hypochondria. There is hardly a more “suitable” disease for hypochondriacal development than AIDS, and there are a number of reasons for this:

People with Speedophobia are hostage to unconfirmed prejudices and irrational fears. Society has long had an idea of HIV-infected people as doomed people. The likelihood of transmitting this virus is also usually exaggerated.
If desired, almost all people can easily find symptoms of HIV. We are talking about constant fatigue, swollen lymph nodes, rashes or even a common cold - all these are symptoms of HIV. Fear finally settles in the head after the thought that HIV can appear literally after one unreliable sexual intercourse.
The feeling of remorse and guilt in actions that arises after betrayal, taking intoxicating substances or other offenses is associated with the possibility of acquiring HIV. Thus, Speedophobia often appears in married men who have already had an intimate relationship on the side.

Speedophobia - from symptoms to cure

Speedophobia is an irrational fear of contracting HIV and AIDS, causing anxiety, panic, and a search for non-existent signs of an incurable disease. If you do not consult a psychotherapist in time, the unreasonable fear that causes HIV phobia will result in serious health problems.

What is speedophobia

Fear of HIV symptoms often manifests itself in hypochondriacs who are concerned about their health and fearful of lurking dangers.

A person with HIV phobia is unable to live without thinking about the disease. The idea of a possible or already occurring infection haunts him everywhere. Realizing that anxiety is not supported by anything, he cannot imagine himself outside of experiences.

AIDS has created panic in society and a lot of prejudices and prejudices. The statement of medical luminaries that they become infected only through blood and sexual intercourse does not reassure speedophobes.

They suspect everyone and everyone; they mistake the symptoms of ARVI for AIDS.

Speedophobia is a mental disorder and requires treatment, since the patient cannot cope with obsessive anxiety on his own, despite negative test results.

Causes of fear

Factors contributing to fear of detecting HIV symptoms:

lack of literacy, lack of faith in doctors;
death of a loved one or acquaintance from AIDS;
impressionability, worries about cases of death from the disease described in the press, accompanied by colorful photographs;
awareness of the incurability of the infection;
prolonged exposure to a stressful situation, when the symptoms of another disease, similar to the signs of AIDS, are hypertrophied;
erroneous diagnosis made earlier;
genetic predisposition;
behavior that is not accepted by society - homosexuality, drug use, unprotected sex with women providing sex services.

Important! The situation is aggravated by guilt for immoral behavior, information about risk groups and the belief that AIDS is retribution for sins.

The patient’s condition is worsened by the discovery of weight loss, enlarged lymph nodes, and chronic fatigue syndrome. Immediately, terrible pictures of the development of an incurable disease are drawn in my head.

Diagnosed speedophobia symptoms are associated with mental imbalance. People with a wild lifestyle, constantly experiencing stress, and prone to depression are more often susceptible to the disease.

Why is speedophobia dangerous?

Dangers that await speedophobes:

Unreasonably high expenses

Constant suspicions of AIDS force people to spend money on expensive examinations in private clinics and the purchase of medications that were recommended by “knowledgeable” people on forums and social networks.

Instability of psycho-emotional states - depression, neuroses

Mental health is deteriorating. The patient gets irritated over trifles, loses appetite, sleeps little. Loss of interest in your favorite job, hobbies, and the opposite sex. Thoughts revolve around AIDS, other matters are of little concern. In exceptional cases, prolonged depression leads to suicide.

Loss of social contacts, damaged family relationships

Speedophobes lose contact with friends and acquaintances due to their reluctance to participate in the lives of other people, provide friendly support, and spend leisure time. Their contacts are narrowed to visitors to forums where they can learn something new about AIDS.

Sexual life is prohibited; household members do not want to communicate with a nervous or apathetic family member who spends the bulk of their funds on tests and medications.

The more impressionable a person is, the more the body’s immune defense against nervous tension is undermined. More and more painful signs are appearing that are attributed to AIDS.

Symptoms

Symptoms of speedophobia include:

regularly taking tests for HIV infection or avoiding examination for fear of hearing a terrible diagnosis;
mistaking symptoms of other diseases for signs of AIDS;
interpretation of negative test results as the presence of a special form of the disease that is difficult to diagnose;
the impossibility of contact with AIDS carriers, even in the form of a harmless handshake;
useless spending on examinations, borrowing money from friends or a loan from a financial institution;
negative test results and the absence of AIDS symptoms over the past 6 months do not convince the speedophobe that there is no threat to health or life;
fear of communicating with strangers;
knowledge of helplines and dates of events dedicated to the fight against the disease;
indiscriminate use of immunomodulatory drugs.

Symptoms of speedophobia include beliefs directed at oneself and others that fears are justified. They prove that the signs of AIDS described in popular magazines and medical literature are identical to the manifestations of his disease.

Is it possible to help a speedophobe recover?

To find out how to recover from speedophobia, meet with a psychotherapist. The sooner you seek qualified help, the faster your mental health will be restored.

The help of relatives will be required, who should draw the patient’s attention to the problem and convince the patient of the benefits of visiting a doctor. A speedophobe will need complex therapy, including taking pharmaceutical medications and conversations with a psychologist. Sometimes, at the initial stage of a phobia, a conversation with a loved one is enough to support their arguments with undeniable arguments.

Treatment

The pathological fear of contracting AIDS or otherwise HIV phobia does not go away on its own. Over time, the disease progresses and destroys mental and physical health.

If a speedophobe belongs to the category of people who are afraid to hear a diagnosis, taking an HIV test will help.

In the second case, when the examination results are not convincing, they use antidepressants, visit a psychologist, and work on themselves.

Therapy at home

Eliminating the fear of AIDS means leaving your comfort zone. The first step to recovery is to occupy all your free time with activities so as not to be distracted by extraneous thoughts. Establishing a daily routine, proper nutrition, and exercise helps to heal.

Important! Communicating with people, watching comedy films, and developing creative abilities have a positive effect on the psyche.

Returns control over your behavior by eliminating factors that provoke uncontrollable fear.

Medical treatments certainly help, but you won’t see a doctor every day. You have to make an effort yourself to get rid of the phobia.

Drug treatment

Constantly being stressed leads to an increase in cortisol levels in the body. If the concentration of the hormone is not stabilized, the risk of cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, and the development of osteoporosis increases.

Antidepressants are prescribed to patients with speedophobia in severe cases.

Medicines smooth out the symptoms of the disease and normalize biochemical changes.

It is recommended to take sedatives in the dosage prescribed by the doctor, since the patient is likely to experience withdrawal symptoms.

Self-selection of tablets leads to aggravation of the situation.

Psychotherapy

To rid the patient of signs of speedophobia, the doctor conducts psychoanalysis and identifies the root cause of fears.

The main factor that provokes the disease is rejection of oneself as a full-fledged person, downplaying one’s merits, and looking for shortcomings. More often, this behavior is preceded by improper parenting in childhood.

Another common cause of phobia is basic illiteracy. The patient knows about HIV infection in general. But he does not know that sweating, hyperthermia and enlarged lymph nodes are optional signs of AIDS.

The doctor advises relatives on how to establish communication and develop positive thinking in a speedophobic person.

When working with a patient, the psychotherapist uses various techniques - family according to Rogers, cognitive-behavioral or group, if the patient is willing to discuss problems in front of strangers.

If the psychotherapist can convince the patient that he is right, share fears and needs, the disease will recede.

The harm that phobias cause

Justified fear helps to survive in extreme situations, and phobia, as a psychological disorder, causes harm:

depression of the nervous system, the occurrence of neuroses, depression;
emotional discomfort, expectation of death;
loss of control over behavior;
decreased ability to work, resulting in job loss;
decrease in intimate contacts, refusal of sexual activity, leading to dissatisfaction of the other half, collapse of the family;
misunderstanding of loved ones, strong feelings - the reason for the passion for alcoholic beverages;
obtaining positive results causes distrust of medical workers;
the occurrence of “medical reference syndrome”, in which the described symptoms are transferred to oneself;

Speedophobia is unable to control its fears. The patient cannot say no to loading his head with useless and fearful thoughts, drives his consciousness into a framework, and destroys the established rhythm of life.

Conclusion

Speedophobia is not just a panic fear of AIDS, but a serious psychological disorder. To gain self-confidence and become spiritually free, you need to make an effort yourself and not refuse the help of psychotherapists.

If you liked or found the information useful, please like our channel!

Source: https://zen.yandex.ru/media/yaplitka/spidofobiia—ot-simptomov-do-izlecheniia-5cace58e5fb7b000afd50b70

How to get rid of speedophobia yourself

Fear is given to us for our survival, it helps us avoid danger, gives us strength, and gives us a “magic kick” when we need to act quickly in order to survive. But when fear goes beyond usefulness, becomes unreasonable, constant, then instead of benefit it begins to cause harm, destroys our life, makes it unbearable, such as the paralyzing fear of getting AIDS, contracting HIV .

If you have such a fear of contracting HIV infection, AIDS and you cannot get rid of it, it torments you every day and you think that you will soon go crazy, then you may have an anxiety disorder (obsessive-compulsive disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder , OSD), which is called AIDSphobia .

What is AIDSphobia?

AIDSphobia is an unreasonable fear of becoming infected with HIV or the fear that you are already infected with HIV , despite a stack of negative test results that are more than six months old from the possible moment of HIV infection.

This is a condition that is easy to eliminate, but the person himself cannot cope alone without outside help.

By definition, a phobia is an unreasonable or obsessive fear or anxiety about something. This fear bursts into a person’s life and fills his thoughts and mind, taking over and subordinating his entire life, destroying his relationships with others, in the family, at work, poisoning his entire life with its poison.

AIDS phobes are so sure of their HIV infection that all the negative tests in the world cannot convince them.

They spend the lion's share of time on the Internet, reading all kinds of articles, forums, only aggravating their state of mind, finding a bunch of symptoms of HIV infection and becoming 1000% convinced that they really have “AIDS.”

They begin to see the danger of AIDS infection everywhere: a red spot on the ground, pens in public places, a toilet seat. Question: “Or maybe they were touched by an HIV-infected person?” constantly haunts them when leaving the house.

They completely refuse sexual relations, fearing infection.

Causes of AIDSphobia

The true reasons why certain people develop AIDS phobia, while others under the same conditions do not, are unknown. Some mental health professionals suggest that the cause may be genetic . Another part of the experts is inclined that the cause of fears may be some traumatic events in life. For example, a fear of water can be caused if a person himself almost drowned or saw someone drown. Also, the fear of contracting HIV infection can be caused by knowledge of the consequences of HIV infection - the development of AIDS.

Now photos and descriptions of AIDS patients are available, people read, look, and some develop a fear of getting AIDS. AIDSphobia is further intensified by the fact that in most cases the cause of HIV infection is a conscious immoral action : unprotected sexual contact with a call girl, same-sex contact, joint use of psychoactive substances, such as spice, which cause sexual disinhibition, wild desire and ultimately lead to infection HIV. The feeling of guilt intensifies the phobia; the person is afraid to talk about his contact, afraid to see a doctor, so that, for example, his wife does not find out about his contacts.

In the minds of an AIDS phobe, HIV infection may be an inevitable punishment for his “adventures”; the stigmatization of HIV (the belief that only people who lead a dissolute, immoral lifestyle suffer from AIDS) strengthens the state of the phobia.

AIDSphobia can also be greatly enhanced by such a condition as pseudoAIDS - when there are signs similar to AIDS (weight loss, night sweats, fever, headaches, Kaposi's sarcoma rashes, painful, enlarged lymph nodes), but in reality the person does not have HIV in the body . He does tests in batches, but this does not satisfy him and the cycle repeats again and again , to the point that the body is forced to put the brain into pink reality mode ( madness ) so that the body does not destroy itself.

The existing system of medical care itself often acts as a factor contributing to the development of speedophobia in a patient: a dismissive attitude, inattention, inability to clearly explain to the patient, non-compliance with the principles of deontology and medical ethics leads to the patient’s reluctance to go to a medical institution; He begins to look for advice on various non-medical, non-professional forums, where the advisers are themselves speedophobic or already sick with HIV infection.

The modern Internet is a garbage dump, a dump where, along with useful information, there is a lot of very harmful and destructive information. Often “bayans” about needles with HIV in cinemas are released on the Internet in order to whip up anxiety and panic in society, and create hatred and stigma towards HIV-infected people. Apparently, some people enjoy this, but perhaps this is a targeted attack on society. Do not forget that we live in an age of not physical, but primarily informational war. Hacking a nuclear power plant's computer control system can be more dangerous than a fired missile.

In Russia, there is no regulation of the distribution of medical content on the Internet, so people who have nothing to do with medicine often write about medical topics. Anyone can give advice, but a speedophobe will believe them.

Treatment of AIDSphobia

Typically, treatment for AIDS phobia includes the use of medications and psychotherapy (single, group, family).

Remember! AIDS phobia is a serious condition that requires the intervention of a qualified psychotherapist. Do not be ashamed to seek help from a doctor if you cannot get rid of the obsessive, uncontrollable fear of HIV and AIDS.

One conversation with a qualified doctor will be more useful than spending many hours, many days sitting on Internet forums surrounded by similar AIDS-phobes who, like hot coals, stoke each other’s fears. The doctor will prescribe the right treatment, say the right words and you will get rid of this misunderstanding forever.

If you or someone close to you suffers from AIDS phobia, do not hesitate to contact us. Delay here is dangerous, the phobia does not stop, it only progresses, clinging to new “facts”. You will be in vain trying to convince the speedophobe that his fears are unfounded, but in response you will receive more and more “arguments” that he still has AIDS, but it is hiding somewhere, for example, “in the lymph nodes” and therefore cannot be detected, but then “He will definitely come out.”

You cannot prove anything to a convinced speedophobe, remember this.

In the initial stages of speedophobia, in most cases, one word from the doctor is enough, that after 3 months the negative result made on the 4th generation test system is 100% reliable and the fear will disappear. But in some cases this will not be enough, the person will again run to “Google” and again take tests for HIV.

The Russian healthcare system lags behind the international level by 15-20 years. Therefore, although tests are done on 4th generation test systems, which can detect antibodies to HIV from 2 weeks, Russian AIDS centers still have instructions requiring examination of persons who have had sexual or injection contact with an HIV-infected person 1 year after the last contact.

There are 2 groups of speedophobia and further tactics depend on which group you belong to:

I. Speedophobes who know little about HIV and their speedophobia is caused precisely by this lack of knowledge about how HIV is transmitted and not transmitted, how one can get HIV infection and how one cannot. Such a speedophobe needs more knowledge about:

what is the difference between HIV and AIDS,
under what conditions does HIV die?
how can you become infected with HIV,
how you can't get infected with HIV,
what are the risks of contracting HIV through various contacts,
How long does it take for a negative test to become 100% reliable?

And when he receives the necessary knowledge, he is freed from his fear. This is the easiest group of speedophobes in terms of the ability to get rid of the fear of AIDS without the help of a medical specialist.

II. AIDS-phobic experts , they know everything! They know what the 2nd window is, about the lengthening of the window when HIV-2 is detected, the names of rare subtypes of HIV, etc. You will not surpass such a speedophobe with your knowledge, he is exhausted, he does not know what to do, so the only way here is to see a psychotherapist and the sooner the better , so as not to end up with a psychiatrist.

A must-read book for every AIDS phobe

There is a very good, useful book, unique in its kind, by David Adam on the topic of getting rid of speedophobia, “The Man Who Couldn't Stop.” The author describes his HIV-phobia, how he suffered from it and, most importantly, HOW HE WAS ABLE TO OVERCOME AIDS PHOBIA.

“Only a fool or a liar says he knows how the brain works,” says the author, who has lived through this living nightmare called obsessive-compulsive disorder (from the Latin obsessio - “siege”, “envelopment”, Latin obsessio - “obsession” idea" and Latin compello - "I force", Latin compulsio - "coercion") (OCD, obsessive-compulsive disorder).

And rest assured, Dr. David Adam is neither a fool nor a liar, he described this mental illness very meticulously and truthfully, this is the best description of speedophobia in the last few years.

The book is written very openly, in every sense. The author sincerely admits the limitations of scientific knowledge and his own (although he is very modest) knowledge about mental illness at the present stage of development. He does not pretend to be a know-it-all or a super-specialist, he is a sincere, self-critical researcher who experienced speedophobia in his own skin for 20 years and recovered from it. You can trust him.

Adam, as an author and editor of the scientific journal Nature, could well have written a dry scientific work on OCD, but since... Since he himself experienced speedophobia, the result is a book with scientific data and the author’s own experience of the battle with speedophobia .

In 1991, while he was in college, the thought crossed his mind that he had AIDS. He was in a panic. He tore all the girls' posters off the walls. “I lost my breath, I literally gasped for air when I opened the window of my “stuffy” bedroom... I was so scared that I felt as if my fingertips were being pricked with a myriad of needles.” But this was not a random, single attack, it was only the beginning of a long, rapidly developing AIDS phobia .

“I see HIV everywhere. It’s on toothbrushes, soap, pens, toilet paper... Because of the cracked skin between my toes, I walk on my toes on the floor of the locker room so as not to step on the blood, which must contain the human immunodeficiency virus.”

Here is an excerpt from the book “The Man Who Couldn't Stop” about how AIDS phobia got to him:

“A person on average has 4 thousand thoughts a day, not all of them are useful or smart, there are many parasitic thoughts, for example, snatches of phrases, words, pictures, “earworms” (repeated phrases, usually songs), and negative thoughts also inevitably come: “I can’t, it won’t work” is the sworn enemy of sports psychologists).

Let’s add here a portion of terrible ideas that suddenly come to mind out of nowhere, for example: “What will happen if you hit this woman in the head? What kind of face will the driver make if I jump in front of his bus?” And similar thoughts come to almost all people, you can ask around.

For example, one friend of mine checks the toilet seat to see if there are rats there. Another turns off the iron and hides it in a safe fireproof place to make sure that he turned it off, because he knows that after a while thoughts will begin to bombard him: “Are you sure you turned it off? Sure? What if you didn’t turn it off?” Or one soul spent the entire evening agonizing because he thought he had written “f*ck” somewhere on his dream job application. Most people are overcome by such strange thoughts, but some people cannot get rid of them.

But when we cannot get rid of these thoughts, when they get out of our control, they begin to torment us and can lead to a nervous breakdown. For example, for me they led to obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

I clearly remember this day - on that day the Brazilian racer Airton Senna died at the Grand Prix in Italy. That day I was simply stuck in the changing room of the pool because I could not get out because of thoughts that paralyzed my will.

Before this, two key events occurred in May 1994. I was 22 years old and full of life. I was swimming in the pool and was already climbing the steps when suddenly pain pierced my finger - I cut myself a little and a small drop of blood came out of the wound, the blood dissolved in the water of the pool, and meanwhile I watched its path in horror. I was overcome with horror, numbness, and my stomach sank.

After this incident, 4 weeks passed and another incident happened to me at a bus stop. Before this, I was already sure that everything was fine with me and the chilling horror would no longer visit me, but I was deceiving myself. Standing at a bus stop, I unsuccessfully tried to hold on to it and pricked my finger with a nail coming out of a sheet of metal. It was Saturday evening and there were a lot of people at the bus stop. I thought: “Any of them could prick themselves with this nail and leave their blood on it. What if he was HIV positive? Then his blood entered my wound and I will get AIDS!”

Yes, of course, I knew that according to official data, such cases of P-O-K-A were not registered. The virus is not viable outside the body. “But what if a person with HIV injected himself right in front of me?” Can you imagine my condition?

While I stood wet in the bathtub with flip flops in one hand and toilet paper stained with my blood, I replayed the entire chain of events from the moment of the injection at the bus stop. I convinced myself that there was no blood on the carnation, but even if there had been, HIV would have died long ago. This made me feel even worse. What should I do to be 100% sure?

Meanwhile, someone started knocking on the changing stall where I was stuck because of my thoughts. He has already started whistling. I looked at my finger. Wait a minute! WHAT THE FUCK DID I DO? WHY did I put toilet paper on a fresh cut?! OH MY GOD! After all, there could be ANOTHER BLOOD on this paper! I looked at the toilet paper. There was blood! But... of course this is my blood! (?) But is this really my blood? After all, someone with AIDS and a wound could also leave behind their HIV-infected blood! OH JESUS! I threw the paper in the trash, rushed to the dispenser and examined it. There is no blood. Phew... it's relieved a little. I pulled out a few sheets of towels, no... everything was fine... everything was clean. BUT theoretically, IS IT POSSIBLE TO PUT A LEAF WITH BLOOD INTO THE DISPENSER ITSELF? OR MAYBE HE TOUCHED THE DISPENSER WITH HIS BLOODY HAND?

I opened the locker room door. The whistler was already ready to swim. He went to the sink, tore off the paper, blew his nose, and threw the paper into the trash can. I did the same. He looked at me. I smiled. He doesn't. He swam and left. But I couldn’t...”

But this book is not a personal memoir, it contains many real-life examples and scientific research , of which Adam's own example is just one. He describes fear

Winston Churchill in front of water because of his "ego-dystonic" urge (desires, impulses or thoughts that are considered unwanted, incompatible or substandard by a person) to jump into water, jump in front of a train, jump from a balcony;
mathematician Kurt Gödel's phobia of food poisoning ;
pathological fear of the company of people because of their microbes pioneer of electricity Nikola Tesla , so he preferred the company of pigeons to the company of people;
Hans Christian Andersen's fear that he would be buried while he slept, so when he went to bed, he left a note that he was sleeping and not dead.

So, dear speedophobe, you are in good company).

However, the most significant cases were in patients who are not as famous as those described above. For example, Bira who ate the entire wall of her house to stop thinking about it; Maria, whose husband one day woke up in sharp, intense pain and found three locks locked around his male organ and testicles because she was haunted by the fear that he would be intimate with her while she was sleeping).

Bira is a schoolgirl who lived in Ethiopia. She was haunted by obsessive thoughts that she should eat the wall of the house and she ate... because when she started eating it, the thoughts began to intensify and become more unbearable. As a result of eating clay bricks, she became very ill, she was tormented by throbbing stomach pains, she was very exhausted, she had a lot of worms and parasites, because... I also had to eat soil. At first she turned to local healers, who advised her to simply not think about it, but, of course, this did not help her at all. In the end, she gave up and found a psychiatrist and it was already a miracle, because... there are only 8 psychiatrists in the whole country, for 70 million people. And the psychiatrist was able to help her and she recovered. When she came to him in Addis Ababa, he examined her and diagnosed her with obsessive-compulsive disorder. She was filled with destructive thoughts, she could not stop them, they tormented her. In trying to stop them, she developed compulsive (obsessive) behavior. Over time, compulsions acquired the character of obsessions (obsession). The doctor diagnosed her with moderate . What then might severe OSD mean? The severity of OSD is determined by its consequences. A severe OSD can be called the case of a Brazilian named Mark, who constantly touched his eyes (checked their shape) and became blind from this.

The author examines these cases and tries to explain their cause and treatment from the point of view of traditional psychiatry, evolutionary psychology, genetics, aversion therapy (conditioned reflex therapy based on the development of a negative conditioned reflex), philosophy, social history, religion, neuroscience, anthropology and even zoology, in short it will be interesting .

Polar bear phenomenon

Leo Tolstoy long ago knew how difficult it is to resist unwanted thoughts. When he was a child, in order not to have to look after his younger brothers and sisters, they played this game: in order to become a member of a secret society, you had to go into a corner and not think about the polar bear there. And of course they didn’t succeed, and they constantly hovered around this corner and he didn’t have to deal with them. Khoja Nasreddin also skillfully used this phenomenon:

The parable of the white monkey.

One day, the greedy and cruel moneylender Jafar came to Khoja Nasreddin. He was hunchbacked and ugly, therefore, having heard enough stories about the wisdom of Nasreddin, he wanted him to turn him into a handsome man. It goes without saying that Nasreddin had nothing to do with witchcraft. Moreover, Hodja had no desire to help the evil moneylender. However, he listened to Jafar's request and promised to help. Nasreddin demanded that Jafar and all his relatives come to him at a certain hour, and when everyone had gathered, he began an intricate ritual. “Undress, Jafar, and walk around the fire three times,” said Khoja Nasreddin. He still had not come up with a decent way and was gaining time. His face was concerned. The relatives watched in silence. The moneylender walked around the fire like a monkey on a chain, dangling his arms, hanging almost to his knees. Khoja Nasreddin's face suddenly cleared up. He sighed with relief and leaned back, straightening his shoulders. - Give me a blanket! - he said in a sonorous voice. - Jafar and everyone else, come to me! He lined up his relatives in a ring, and seated the moneylender in the middle on the ground. Then he addressed them with the following words: “Now I will cover Jafar with this blanket and say a prayer.” And all of you, including Jafar, must close your eyes and repeat this prayer after me. And when I take off the blanket, Jafar will already be healed. But I must warn you about one extremely important condition, and if anyone violates this condition, then Jafar will remain unhealed. Listen carefully and remember. The relatives were silent, ready to listen and remember. “When you repeat the words of the prayer after me,” Khoja Nasreddin said separately and loudly, “not one of you, let alone Jafar himself, should NOT think about the white monkey!” If any of you begins to think about her or, even worse, imagine her in your imagination - with a tail, a red bottom, a disgusting muzzle and yellow fangs - then, of course, there will be no healing and there cannot be, for the accomplishment pious deeds are incompatible with thoughts of such a vile creature as a monkey. Did you understand me? - Got it! - the relatives answered. - Get ready, Jafar, close your eyes! - Khoja Nasreddin said solemnly, covering the moneylender with a blanket. “Now close your eyes,” he turned to his relatives. - And remember my condition; DO NOT think about the white monkey. He chanted the first words of the prayer: “Wise and omniscient Allah, by the power of the sacred signs Alif, Lam, Mim and Ra, sent down healing to your insignificant servant Jafar.” “Allah is wise and omniscient,” echoed the discordant chorus of relatives. And on the face of one Khoja Nasreddin noticed anxiety and embarrassment; the second relative began to cough, the third began to confuse his words, and the fourth began to shake his head, as if trying to drive away the obsessive vision. And a minute later, Jafar himself tossed restlessly under the blanket: a white monkey, disgusting and inexpressibly vile, with a long tail and yellow fangs, persistently stood before his mental gaze and even teased him, alternately showing him his tongue, then his round red butt, that is, places the most indecent for a Muslim to contemplate. Khoja Nasreddin continued to read the prayer loudly, and suddenly stopped, as if listening. His relatives fell silent behind him, some backed away. Jafar ground his teeth under the blanket, because his monkey began to do very obscene things. - How! - Khoja Nasreddin exclaimed in a thunderous voice. - O wicked people and blasphemers! You violated my ban, you dared, while reading a prayer, to think about what I forbade you to think about! “He tore off the blanket and attacked the moneylender: “Why did you call me!” Now I understand that you did not want to be healed! You wanted to humiliate my wisdom, my enemies taught you! But beware, Jafar! Tomorrow the emir will know about everything! I will tell him that while you were reading your prayer, you deliberately kept thinking about the white monkey for blasphemous purposes! Beware, Jafar, and you all beware: this will not be in vain, you know what the punishment for blasphemy is! And since blasphemy actually entailed a very heavy punishment, all the relatives were numb from the sting, and the moneylender began to babble something, trying to justify himself. But Khoja Nasreddin did not listen; he turned sharply and left, slamming the gate... Soon the moon rose and filled the whole of Bukhara with a soft and warm light. And in the moneylender’s house, screams and swearing were heard until late at night: they were trying to figure out who was the first to think about the white monkey...

(article is being updated, to be continued)

Until we meet again, with best wishes for health,

Doctor.

Speedophobia – fear of contracting HIV

In the modern world, where HIV infection is quite common, the fear of contracting it is a normal reaction of any person. But for some, the fear of AIDS is so strong that it completely consumes the person. Psychologists call this panic fear speedophobia.

Let's look at this mental disorder in more detail, study the reasons for its occurrence and ways to get rid of it.

What is speedophobia?

Speedophobia is a mental disorder in which a person is terrified of contracting AIDS. This disorder is a type of hypochondria, a condition that causes a person to suspect and look for symptoms of a disease that actually does not exist.

An individual suffering from such a phobia constantly worries about his health, listens carefully to the body, trying to detect signs of disease. He often goes to the hospital, demands endless examinations from doctors, and takes tests for HIV infection.

Speedophobia poisons a person’s entire life, because his thoughts constantly revolve around a possible disease. He is worried, worried, nervous because of his far-fetched fears. But, even understanding the absurdity of this, a person cannot get rid of obsessive fear.

Causes of phobia

Every person is afraid of getting sick with an incurable disease. AIDS is one such disease and is therefore feared by many. However, speedophobes are not just afraid of contracting HIV infection, but experience panic. The true causes of this phenomenon have not yet been studied by medicine. However, psychologists identify several factors that give rise to speedophobia:

Abundance of negative information. Information about the dangers of AIDS and the number of people who suffer from it is actively disseminated through the media. The topic of HIV is often discussed on the Internet, without skimping on terrible details. An impressionable person may take all this to heart and begin to be seriously afraid.
Child psychological trauma. In childhood, a speedophobe could experience severe psychological shock associated with the disease. For example, one of the relatives or acquaintances died of AIDS and this affected the child so much that even as an adult, he could not get rid of the fear of the terrible disease.
Heredity . If a person's parents or other close relatives are HIV carriers, they may be haunted by the fear of contracting the disease themselves.

Development of speedophobia against the background of hypochondria

As mentioned above, the fear of contracting AIDS is more common in people suffering from hypochondria. The reasons for this are as follows:

Hypochondriacs are very concerned about their health. It seems to such a person that a terrible disease could strike him at any moment. AIDS is one of the most discussed incurable diseases in society. Therefore, it seems to the hypochondriac that sooner or later it will affect him too. Although in fact, information about HIV is greatly embellished. The infection is transmitted sexually and through blood. It is impossible to simply become infected with AIDS, even if you communicate with a carrier of the infection.
AIDS has no clear symptoms, so any increase in temperature, enlarged lymph nodes, or malaise causes panic in a hypochondriac. He can attribute a common cold to an incipient disease. And if he has unprotected sexual intercourse, this may be a reason to urgently run to the hospital and get tested.
If a person leads a promiscuous lifestyle, often changes sexual partners, uses drugs, etc., he is worried about possible infection. Gradually, this anxiety can develop into pathological fear.

How does the fear of contracting HIV manifest itself?

The phobia is manifested by the following set of symptoms:

Swollen lymph nodes, cough and elevated body temperature greatly worry a person, since these are symptoms similar to HIV. The more pronounced they are, the more worried he becomes. Although such signs are accompanied by many diseases, even a harmless cold.
As a rule, speedophobes are well informed about the methods of transmission of HIV and know very well that the infection is transmitted only through sexual contact or through blood. However, despite this, it seems to them that they can become infected even through objects, a handshake or a hug in outer clothing. The fear of illness is so strong that it defies logic. Therefore, speedophobes try to avoid any contact with people who are HIV carriers.
A person suffering from a phobia constantly takes tests for HIV and undergoes examinations. When doctors tell him that the test results are negative and there is nothing to worry about, the person still does not believe it and demands a repeat test. It seems to him that the doctors made a mistake in the diagnosis or did not examine him thoroughly enough. Even if six months after unprotected sexual intercourse the test shows a negative result, the speedophobia still does not calm down, but continues to worry.
Speedophobe thinks that negative test results are a consequence of the fact that he has a poorly understood or hidden form of the disease, and doctors cannot detect it using traditional methods. Any illness only increases his suspicions.
A person suffering from a phobia is ready to spend any money on endless medical examinations. Some individuals even take out loans and go to European clinics for examination, because they believe that domestic doctors cannot make the correct diagnosis.
Some speedophobes, on the contrary, are afraid to undergo examinations and tests, so as not to hear a terrible diagnosis. The person is almost sure that he has become infected with HIV, but he does not go to the hospital, but suffers and worries, stressing himself out and increasing his fear.
Speedophobes constantly study medical journals, articles and notes on the topic of AIDS, comparing the symptoms they observe in themselves with those described in the literature. It is impossible to convince them that they are healthy, because in conversation they cite strong scientific evidence in favor of the presence of the disease.
For fear of becoming infected, a person avoids any contact with other people.
Since AIDS affects the immune system, the speedophobe tries with all his might to increase his immunity - he takes mountains of vitamins, dietary supplements, and immunostimulants, which, in his opinion, can help reduce the risk of getting sick.
A person suffering from a phobia develops prolonged depression. In especially severe cases, he may not be able to stand it and attempt suicide.
The speedophobe knows all the helplines for HIV-infected people, he is always aware of where and when events dedicated to this problem are held.

How dangerous is speedophobia?

This disease may seem ridiculous and far-fetched to many, but its danger should not be underestimated.

Ruin . Speedophobes spend a lot of money on various medical examinations, expensive and unnecessary medications that doctors may prescribe. Such active spending of money can threaten ruin and debt.
Neuroses and depression. Constant worries due to the fear of contracting AIDS weaken the human psyche, provoking the development of neurotic and depressive disorders, sleep disturbances, loss of appetite, and a sharp decrease in performance.
Deterioration of relationships with others. The speedophobe constantly pesters his family and friends with his fears and anxieties, complaining that he suspects he has a disease, but doctors cannot detect it. Eventually, relationships with other people become strained; acquaintances may consider the person crazy and begin to avoid him.

Methods for treating fear of HIV infection

Any phobia must be treated. The sooner treatment is started, the easier it will be to get rid of fear. Psychiatrists and psychotherapists treat speedophobia and other similar disorders. The following methods help in getting rid of the fear of AIDS:

Antidepressants and tranquilizers. These drugs cannot cure speedophobia, but they help reduce anxiety and fear, normalize mood and get rid of depression. However, you cannot select medications on your own. This should be done by a doctor. He will select the medicine, course duration and frequency of administration, and dosage of tablets.
Psychotherapy . The main method of treating phobias is psychotherapy. Well-proven methods: cognitive method, psychoanalysis, hypnotherapy. In combination with medications, psychotherapeutic treatment will give the desired effect.
Support from loved ones. For a successful recovery, it is very important that the patient is supported by loved ones, listens to him and reassures him. It is extremely difficult to cope with the disease on your own, so relatives and friends must be patient and help the patient.
Occupational therapy . Work, especially physical work, helps to distract from obsessive thoughts, normalizes sleep, and increases appetite.
Laughter therapy . Psychologists say that laughter helps in the fight against phobias, neuroses and depression, therefore they recommend that patients watch comedies more often, read jokes, look at funny pictures and photos.

An integrated approach to the treatment of speedophobia can bring good results.

How to protect yourself from speedophobia?

And finally, it is worth mentioning the methods of preventing HIV infection that any person should know. This will help impressionable people reduce their fear of contracting HIV and prevent the development of a phobia.

Avoid promiscuity.
When having sex with a new partner whom you do not know very well, be sure to use condoms.
Don't do drugs.
Strengthen your immune system.
Avoid unnecessary stress, as it weakens the body's protective functions.
Read less about AIDS, do not look for information on the Internet. Most information about the disease is not true.
Adequately assess the risks of HIV infection.

For a normal, fulfilling life, it is necessary to pay attention not only to physical, but also to mental health. A person with a healthy, strong psyche is less susceptible to phobic disorders.

Source: https://yapsiholog.ru/spidofobiya/

Symptoms of pathological fear

Speedophobia and other similar painful conditions are often caused by the fear that medical workers will not comply with the requirements of medical ethics. Therefore, people who are confident in their fictitious illness do not try to turn to anyone for help. But in this situation, consultation with a psychologist is mandatory. This should be understood by every person who has identified symptoms characteristic of a mental disorder.

Mental and emotional symptoms

A person becomes overly suspicious of his health

A person’s fear of contracting AIDS is accompanied by the appearance of signs during attacks that he manages with great difficulty to hide from others. The development of a mental disorder can be identified by the following symptoms of illness:

Increased attention to your own health and well-being. A person begins to panic even at the slightest deterioration in his condition. He perceives any illness as a sign of HIV and AIDS.
Minor signs and symptoms force the patient to immediately go for tests to evaluate the health status. It is worth noting that negative results do not give people with speedophobia a feeling of relief. They simply begin to doubt their credibility. This state of affairs forces them to regularly visit the laboratory and undergo various tests.
Regularly visiting the Internet to search for confirmation of the veracity of your guesses. If a person finds them, he feels temporary relief and satisfaction. At the same time, his fear intensifies.
A patient with a phobia always remembers emergency numbers. He tries not to miss a single event dedicated to the topic of AIDS.
A person susceptible to fear of a dangerous disease rarely trusts doctors’ statements that the diagnosis does not confirm his illness. This is one of the most striking symptoms of mental disorder.

If a person suffers from speedophobia, then he will be constantly worried about the possibility of contracting AIDS. When talking, he regularly mentions the disease and may complain about the presence of symptoms that indicate its development.

Physical ailments

Constant worries about HIV and AIDS, as well as the thought that a person can get sick by contracting a dangerous disease, leads to the appearance of somatic disorders. In fear for his own life, the patient begins to associate them with the signs of this pathology.

We must remember! Prolonged experiences and stress significantly worsen a person’s general condition. He blames this on the development of pathology, which in reality does not exist, which is confirmed by the results of numerous studies.

It is necessary to think about starting to fight speedophobia if a person periodically experiences the following symptoms:

Constant weakness in the body.
Headache.
Increased body temperature
Skin rashes.
Poor health.
Increased fatigue.

This symptomatology is considered by a person with speedophobia as another confirmation of the development of a dangerous disease.

Problems and recovery from speedophobia

› Living with HIV ›

Speedophobia is an obsessive fear of becoming infected with the HIV virus.

A person looks out for symptoms of AIDS in every possible way, associates the slightest deterioration in health with immunodeficiency, often takes tests for HIV and, if the results are negative, retakes the test again.

Such an anxious state interferes with a full life; a person becomes fixated on an imaginary illness and the fear of HIV comes to the fore, depriving him of mood, restful sleep, and sometimes even mental health.

Causes of fear of AIDS

Speedophobia is a type of hypochondriacal syndrome - constant worry about one’s health and the identification of all kinds of non-existent pathologies.

The syndrome is typical for suspicious and anxious people, susceptible to the slightest irritants, excitable and impulsive, especially if one of their relatives and friends is sick.

In modern medicine, hypochondria refers to reversible mental disorders, accompanied by changes in the functioning of somatic mechanisms. That is, there are no organic disorders, the cause of the disorder is feelings and emotions.

For a hypochondriac to develop speedophobia, it is enough to hear about the incurability of HIV and, for example, the first symptoms of the disease. In addition, there are many similar reasons for fear of AIDS:

stereotype about the doom of HIV patients to suffering and quick death;
a widespread prejudice that there is no cure for HIV;
a large number of myths and fictions regarding AIDS;
illiteracy and poor awareness of the population about the methods of transmission and prevention of HIV;
exaggerated and distorted statistical data (HIV incidence, AIDS mortality);
unreliable information from the media and the Internet about new methods of infection, a general epidemic, the creation of new strains of HIV in the laboratory and other fabrications of journalists that people with speedophobia perceive as truth;
nonspecific signs of immunodeficiency - any cold or allergic rash is perceived as a manifestation of AIDS;
incorrect work of doctors and lack of educational work;
social aspect - discrimination against HIV patients and negative labeling - only drug addicts, homeless people and people who are promiscuous are affected;
negative experience - someone close to you had HIV or died of AIDS.

Symptoms of speedophobia

A person with speedophobia is usually so sure that he has HIV that negative test results from one medical institution are not quoted. And the patient donates blood for HIV in each hospital in turn.

When hospitals at their place of residence run out, such people go to other cities and try to finally find a medical institution where the test will still be positive.

In addition to tests, speedophobia forces imaginary patients to undergo numerous expensive procedures, look for a competent doctor and undergo endless examinations to make a known diagnosis.

To justify their actions, patients with speedophobia invent unique cases: their test results are falsified; doctors don’t tell them the diagnosis so as not to upset them; their HIV is a new variety that they have not yet learned to detect.

People become obsessed with the thought of the disease, stop communicating with relatives (suddenly they were the ones who infected them), eventually stop going to doctors (after all, they are all unprofessional since they cannot detect HIV), look for symptoms and get information from the Internet, trying to prove to themselves the certainty of infection.

Speedophobia is a mental disorder; naturally, in addition to the fear of HIV, a person develops symptoms of mental disorders:

depression, anxiety, irritability, inability to relax, aggressiveness;
feeling of tension and stiffness;
inability to concentrate, decreased ability to work, fatigue;
sleep disturbance, loss of appetite;
memory impairment.

Against the background of such symptoms, a deterioration in physical health is possible and a person with an imaginary pathology actually becomes sick - headaches, digestive disorders, malfunctions of the cardiovascular system.

How to get rid of AIDSphobia

Speedophobia is a disease and it certainly requires treatment. A person will not be able to cope with the problem on his own, and without treatment the prognosis is disappointing - the patient may, due to obsessive fears, lose his mind or acquire a more severe mental disorder.

AIDSphobia (fear of getting infected): symptoms like HIV, how to fight

Among the wide list of phobic diseases, one cannot help but recall speedophobia. It ranks far from the last in the number of diseases among people around the world.

This disease manifests itself quite simply. A healthy person is convinced that he is infected with a venereal disease or will become infected with it in the near future.

Such phobias arise against a background of instability of the nervous system and often cause severe stress.

Experts say that this disease is a type of hypochondria. As a rule, such diseases occur in those people who are too sensitive to the problems that surround a person every day.