Have you noticed that we live surrounded by crystals? Perhaps you have not noticed this detail, but people who suffer from hyalophobia are very aware of it. Hyalophobia or the fear of crystals is a very limiting disorder because there is no way to avoid the stimulus that causes fear. In our dictionary of phobias we talk about the consequences of suffering from this fear of crystals.
What is hyalophobia?
Hyalophobia is the fear of crystal or glass. A mirror, a window, glasses, some doors, cars there are crystals or glass everywhere, even if we haven’t noticed it. People with hyalophobia know it well because it is very difficult for them to avoid it in their day to day.
This avoidance behavior, which is actually almost impossible, is what turns the fear of glass into a phobia that must be treated as soon as possible. Hyalophobia is very limiting and the consequences on the life of the person who suffers from it are catastrophic. There is no way to escape from the crystal.
Do I have a phobia?
If the problem with hyalophobia was the inability to touch glass, it might have less of a consequence. But it is that people with hyalophobia experience a lot of insecurity when they are near some glass, some mirror, and some window. And that insecurity turns into fear and all the symptoms that we know so well.
Dizziness, palpitations, shortness of breath or panic attack if the stimulus cannot be avoided is the most frequent reactions. But more dangerous than the physical symptoms of hyalophobia are the psychological consequences that begin with a loss of self-esteem by being aware that their fear is unfounded and excessive and can end with the total isolation.
What is the fear of glass?
But what can cause this specific phobia? The most common is to find the cause in a traumatic experience. Having had an accident in which the glass lacerated the body, for example, or seeing from a car accident with all that glass around are strong reasons for developing this phobia.
Sometimes phobias appear without a specific reason. Suffering from an anxiety disorder can generate the most diverse phobias, such as this one to crystals or any object, situation, sensation or animal. Anxiety triggers fear and when the mechanism is out of control, you never know what the stimulus is going to cause the problem.
Hyalophobia treatment
We insist that a phobia cannot be overcome by our own means, especially when it is one as limiting as hyalophobia. Psychological help is necessary and in most cases cognitive is used to treat the phobic disorder.
Along with cognitive behavioral therapy, techniques of gradual exposure to the stimulus that produce fear or systematic desensitization are often used, in which situations are provoked so that the person suffering from the phobia imagines facing their fear.