New technologies trigger fears of novelty and, therefore, the unknown. But it is not only about new technologies, but about anything that we have to do for the first time. Neophobia is the fear of the new and it is curious that we fear all those new things so much that they are actually the ones that can change our lives for the better. Have you ever felt terrified of living unknown experiences? Have you experienced fear of change? If you want to know more about Neophobia, we will tell you about it in our dictionary.
What is Neophobia?
Neophobia is the fear of the new. To the new clothes? to brand new something? No, although in the most serious cases it can also include this aspect. Neophobia is observed especially in the adult population when they have to face new technologies, always changing and always with something new. Smartphones, computers, making a video call, social networks…
But there are more cases in which Neophobia occurs. For example when you face. Adding to the obvious nerves of starting a different job, in a different place, is Neophobia (if you have this disorder) and it can prevent you from getting the job you want.
New job, new house or move, living in another city or in another country, starting a new relationship, meeting new people, changing habits, learning to swim, going to the gym for the first time and, beware of this variant of Neophobia eating, trying new foods
In all these situations, fear of the new is combined with fear of change or fear of the unknown. If something is new, it’s unknown to you and insecurities creep in, am I going to be able to…? The emotional tension that all people feel before a novelty, some transform it into excitement and curiosity and others transform it into authentic panic.
Main symptoms of Neophobia
You have to distinguish between that vertigo that makes you do something new and the symptoms of Neophobia, which are the same as those of anxiety. Palpitations, sweating, dizziness, shortness, numbness in the extremities, stomach pain, muscle tension… A state well known to people who suffer from anxiety and which can lead to a panic attack.
The natural reaction to this symptomatic picture is flight or avoidance. Imagine the consequences of constantly avoiding everything that is new to you. Sometimes you will be able to do it, but with significant consequences that reduce your quality of life. But other times you won’t be able to escape, you won’t be able to avoid it in any way.
Added to the physical symptoms of Neophobia are emotional symptoms such as anguish, frustration, low self-esteem for not seeing yourself capable of doing new things, sadness or helplessness. But there is more, because you will also have to suffer a series of cognitive symptoms among which irrational and catastrophic thoughts stand out and, in the most serious cases, the terrible feeling of losing control or going crazy.
Why are we afraid of the new?
And what causes Neophobia? Generally we resort to conditioning by traumatic experience to find the cause of phobias, but in this case and given the high number of stimuli that can cause fear, it is difficult to attribute this cause. And yet we do not lack reasons to understand why the fear of a new situation shoots up to become a phobic disorder.
The new, the unknown or the change, which are the three factors that go together in Neophobia, move in feelings of uncertainty, lack of control and fear of failing. Three sensations that are very often at the root of anxiety disorders and that it is not difficult for them to lead you to an emotional overflow in which the phobia appears.
Doing something new implies leaving the comfort zone to a greater or lesser extent. There is resistance to doing it because it takes us directly out of comfort (even if it is a comfort that we do not like or make us happy), there is a fear that the change will go wrong (with the drop in self-esteem that this entails) and there is resistance generalized towards uncertainty (as natural and adaptive in its proper measure, as harmful when it is excessive).
Parenting style and personality development may also be at the origin of Neophobia. People with an excess of perfectionism, people who have been raised with a lot of demands and pressure, with an excess of responsibilities and with low self-esteem are prone to suffer from this type of phobia that implies facing something new.
And, of course, we cannot forget about anxiety. When you suffer from a previous anxiety the impossibility of managing emotions, the fear of uncertainty, the blockage caused by anxiety in time and the imperious but impossible need to have everything under control means that you have to avoid exposing yourself to new situations at all costs.
The treatment of Neophobia that you should know
Given the wide range of stimuli that this phobia has, it is necessary to seek treatment as soon as possible. The consequences of not treating Neophobia can be terrible, with the destruction of both mental and physical health. Social isolation comes sooner or later and surely also the loss of employment.
It must be remembered that any therapy to treat a phobia is accompanied by relaxation; breathing exercises and that you can also include meditation among the best allies. Because in addition to being effective resources to overcome a phobia, they become internal baggage to use in cases of anxiety.
What therapy is the most appropriate to treat Neophobia? As in all phobic disorders, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy appears to be the most effective. It takes a while, maybe longer than you imagine, but it is about walking more safely than fast on the path that will lead you to overcome your phobia.
Therapy first treats distorted thoughts related to novelty. An attempt is made to reduce the perception of danger that one has in the face of the new, since it is about irrational thoughts. Once we have managed to generate rational thoughts about the stimuli that cause fear, it is time to move on to action or behavior.
The goal is to eliminate avoidance behavior so that we can do new things. This is achieved step by step with the gradual Exposure Therapy in which it is discovered that when you face simple new things, nothing bad happens. It is the important thing, to verify that when doing something new the world does not end. And continue treating the cognitive aspect to see the situation in a different way.
Because, do you know what the experts really recommend to increase well-being and the feeling of happiness? Precisely doing new things, finding new stimuli that do not frighten you but fill you with illusion.