Table of contents:
- Causes of trypophobia
- Origin of the phobia of holes
- Trypophobia test in humans
- Pictures of Causes and Symptoms of Trypophobia in Humans
It is normal to feel fear on occasion, this feeling is born from the survival instinct and its function is to keep us alert to any danger, however, when the fear we feel arises for no apparent reason and causes us too much discomfort, we may have a phobia. Phobias are described as those irrational and exaggerated fears towards objects, situations or other specific stimuli.
There is a specific phobia that is characterized by repulsion and fear of holes and geometric figures close together: trypophobia. This irrational fear went viral on social media, and as a result, it was found that it affects more people than was initially believed. In this Psychology-Online article, we will discover all the secrets of trypophobia or fear of holes, we offer you an extensive definition, its causes and a test.
You may also be interested in: What is trypophobia: definition with images Index
Original text
- Avoidance behaviors to avoid being exposed to stimuli with geometric figures close together
- Sweats
- Tremors
- Feeling of disgust and revulsion
- Dizziness and nausea
- Itching sensation throughout the body (this particular symptom is more typical of trypophobia)
Causes of trypophobia
It is important to comment that, despite the fact that many fears and phobias are irrational in nature or based on personal traumatic experiences, trypophobia in particular has a justified and adaptive cause for our species.
Origin of the phobia of holes
Its origin is genetic in nature (that is, the fear of holes can come from generations before us) and can be explained by the fact that many of the most poisonous and dangerous animals on the planet have circular patterns on their skin to alert of its lethality.
It is possible that our ancestors had bad experiences related to poisonous animals or plants whose skin was covered with holes and, through hereditary learning, later generations would have learned to avoid and even feel revulsion towards these stimuli. In addition, holes in human skin are often a symptom of contagious diseases that we should stay away from. Therefore this theory could explain, for example, the itching and repulsion more characteristic of trypophobia than of any other type of irrational fear.
Despite having an adaptive origin, phobias and the consequent phobic responses are usually quite incapacitating for us, this is because they limit our daily activities and produce responses of respulsion to objects that, in reality, do not pose any danger to our survival.
Trypophobia test in humans
To end this article on trypophobia or fear of holes, we offer a test based on images of objects whose shapes can awaken the unconscious response so characteristic of trypophobia. According to many studies, it is normal to experience symptoms such as itching and repulsion in this trypophobia test, this is because there are many people who suffer from it at a low level but are not diagnosed.
In order to detect trypophobia in humans, the following test is quite simple as well as useful. To do this, we just have to view the images that we attach at the end of the article and classify the symptoms we experience when we see the holes in each photo.
The images are ordered from least to most intense, so if we have little trypophobia, it is possible that the first photos do not produce any symptoms. However, if our level of phobia is higher, we will experience itching and a feeling of repulsion in the initial images. What is your level of trypophobia ?
This article is merely informative, in Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.
If you want to read more articles similar to Causes and symptoms of trypophobia in humans, we recommend that you enter our category of Clinical Psychology.