ATAZAGORAPHOBIA (fear of forgetting): what is it, symptoms, causes and treatment

We live in a world full of pressures and demands that generate constant states of alert. In different areas of life, we connect with people who produce certain sensations that we feel both in our thoughts and in our own body. Given this, it may happen that we overlook various activities that we should carry out. It is understandable that we forget dates, names, medical shifts, meetings and/or commitments when we live rooted in obligations.

It not only happens to us, but also some relatives could have this type of behavior. However, there are people who have a great fear of forgetting or being forgotten. These difficulties bring various complications that affect our daily lives. Probably, something like this has happened to you or you know someone who has this type of difficulty. Having adequate tools to face these obstacles can allow us to cope with these situations in a more pleasant way. In this Psychology-Online article we will provide you with information about the Athazagoraphobia (fear of forgetting): what is it, symptoms, causes and treatment.

Index

1. What is athazagoraphobia
2. Symptoms of athazagoraphobia
3. Causes of athazagoraphobia
4. Treatment of athazagoraphobia

When we mention athazagoraphobia, we refer to an anxiety disorder characterized by the presence of a irrational and exacerbated fear, both of forgetting oneself and of being forgotten For other people. Although this disorder is not defined in a section of the DSM-V^[1], it is possible to place this clinical picture within the specific phobias given its particularities that appear.

Given this, it is important to bear in mind that a series of diagnostic criteria must be met so that athazagoraphobia can be detected. They are:

• Fear and/or anxiety in the face of forgetfulness.
• Forgetfulness almost always generates fear and/or anxiety.
• Fear and/or anxiety disproportionate to the real danger that forgetfulness represents.
• Duration of six months or more.
• Deterioration of social, work and family relationships.
• Fear and/or anxiety are not related to any other mental disorder.

Athazagoraphobia or fear of forgetting presents a series of physical, emotional, and behavioral manifestations that are part of the presentation of this problem. Next, we will display the main symptoms of athazagoraphobia:

• Feeling of being abandoned or forgotten by the environment.
• catastrophic thoughts linked to death.
• Afraid.
• Intense distress.
• Muscle tension.
• Persistent sadness and loneliness.
• Difficulties in memory and concentration.
• dizziness
• Sickness.
• Insomnia.
• Incrise of cardiac frecuency.
• Constant insecurity.

Despite the symptoms just described, the presence of any of them does not necessarily imply that we are facing a picture of atazagoraphobia. It is essential have the diagnosis made by a mental health professional that evaluates the clinical characteristics of the patient, taking into account their particularities.

Knowing the origin of this problem can give us clues regarding possible treatments for this anxiety disorder. In the following lines, we will describe the most relevant causes of athazagoraphobia:

• Environmental factors: the experiences that occurred in childhood are of great importance in the development of personality. In cases of athazagoraphobia, it is possible that the person has experienced situations of abandonment by their environment. In turn, it may happen that one of the family members has developed a picture of athazagoraphobia as a result of various circumstances. Consequently, the imitation of behaviors plays a fundamental role in people's lives.
• Genetic factors: genetic inheritance is associated with the way in which we process information from the environment. In other words, it may happen that certain neural circuits linked to fear and memory are affected in people with atazagoraphobia. In most cases, this is because their parents have these characteristics.

Although the fear of being forgotten leads to various difficulties in daily life, the truth is that there are currently available treatments that have been shown to have good efficacy in addressing the athazagoraphobia. We show them below:

psychological therapy

Therapy can help resolve situations that cause problems for people with symptoms of athazagoraphobia. On the one hand, the goal of therapies is to provide adequate tools so that the person can face situations that cause fear and/or anxiety in another way. Here we can highlight the cognitive behavioral therapy as the most important.

On the other hand, they try to locate the origin of the patient's symptoms so that he can find new ways of dealing with conflict situations. In general, traumatic experiences are worked on that the person had in the past in order to overcome them.

psychiatric medication

In cases of athazagoraphobia that represent considerable severity, it is possible to administer a psychotropic drug that acts on the chemistry of the brain and produces a relaxation of the brain. Central Nervous System. This allows the person to face life in a more pleasant way. However, the drugs should be consumed only under medical indication of a mental health professional working in conjunction with a psychologist.

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 Athazagoraphobia (fear of forgetting): what it is, symptoms, causes and treatment, we recommend that you enter our category of Clinical psychology.

1. American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.). Arlington: Pan American Medical Publisher.

• Ospina Achila, A. m. (2016). Athazagoraphobia, the fear of not forgetting. Pontifical Javeriana University. Visual arts