+1-617-394-8820 contact@baybiosciences.com

Causes, Symptoms of Claustrophobia

by | May 30, 2024 | Info | 0 comments

Claustrophobia Overview

Claustrophobia is a form of anxiety disorder, in which an irrational fear of having no escape or being closed-in can lead to a panic attack.

It is considered a specific phobia according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 5 (DSM-5).

Triggers may include being inside an elevator, a small room without any windows, or even being on an airplane.

Some people have reported that wearing tight-necked clothing can provoke feelings of claustrophobia.

Quick Facts on Claustrophobia:

Here are some key points about claustrophobia. More detail is in the main article.

  • A variety of tips and treatments may help people overcome their fear.
  • Claustrophobia affects some people when they are in a small space.
  • It can lead to feelings of panic.
  • Causes may include conditioning and genetic factors.


What is Claustrophobia?

The word claustrophobia comes from the Latin word claustrum which means “a closed-in place,” and the Greek word, phobos meaning “fear.”

People with claustrophobia will go to great lengths to avoid small spaces and situations that trigger their panic and anxiety.

They may avoid places like the subway and prefer to take the stairs rather than an elevator, even if many floors are involved. Up to 5 percent of Americans may experience claustrophobia.

Symptoms may be severe, but many people do not seek treatment.


Signs and Symptoms of Claustrophobia

Claustrophobia is an anxiety disorder. Symptoms usually appear during childhood or adolescence.

Being in or thinking about being in a confined space can trigger fears of not being able to breathe properly, running out of oxygen, and distress at being restricted.

Claustrophobia is different for everyone. The anxiety can range from mild nervousness to a full-blown panic attack. For doctors to diagnose the anxiety as a phobia, it has to be serious enough to affect your ability to live a normal life.

 

Possible Genetic or Physical Factors

Other theories that may explain claustrophobia include:

Having a smaller amygdala: This is the part of the brain that controls how the body processes fear.

Genetic factors: A dormant evolutionary survival mechanism causes reactions that are no longer needed in today’s world.

Mouse studies have indicated that a single gene may cause some individuals to have a greater degree of “resident-intruder stress.”

One group of researchers has suggested that people who experience claustrophobia perceive things as being nearer than they are, and that this triggers a defense mechanism.

Diagnosis of Claustrophobia

A psychologist or psychiatrist will ask the patient about their symptoms. Diagnosis of claustrophobia may emerge during a consultation about another anxiety-related issue.

The psychologist will:

  • Ask for a description of the symptoms and what triggers them
  • Rule out other types of anxiety disorder
  • Try to establish how severe the symptoms are

To establish some details, the doctor may use:

  • A claustrophobia questionnaire to help identify the cause of anxiety
  • Claustrophobia scale to help establish the levels of anxiety

For a specific phobia to be diagnosed, certain criteria need to be met.

These are:

  • A persistent unreasonable or excessive fear caused by the presence or anticipation of a specific situation
  • Anxiety response when exposed to the stimulus, possibly a panic attack in adults, or, in children, a tantrum, clinging, crying or freezing
  • Recognition by adult patients that their fear is out of proportion to the perceived threat or danger
  • Employing measures to avoid the feared object or situation, or a tendency to face the experiences but with distress or anxiety
  • The person’s reaction, anticipation or avoidance interferes with everyday life and relationships or causes significant distress
  • Symptoms cannot be attributed to another mental condition, such as obsessive-compulsive compulsive disorder  (OCD) or post-traumatic disorder (PTSD) 
  • The phobia has persisted for some time, usually 6 months or longer

Your doctor will ask about your symptoms and health history, and they’ll give you a physical exam. They’ll take into account any fear that may:

  • Be triggered by waiting for something to happen
  • Cause panic attacks linked to the situation that triggers fear
  • Make it hard for you to get through your day
  • Not be explained by other disorders


Treatment of Claustrophobia

Following a diagnosis, the psychologist may recommend one or more of the following treatment options.

Several types of therapies can help.

  • Exposure therapy. It gradually puts you into the situations that frighten you to help you get over your fear. At first, you might just look at a photo of a tight space. Then, with your therapist’s help, you work up to being inside a tight space.
  • Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). This is a type of talk therapy where you meet one-on-one with a trained therapist. You talk about the negative thoughts that drive your fear and learn ways to overcome them. You may get CBT alone or combined with exposure therapy.
  • Virtual reality (VR). This uses computer simulations of tight spaces like elevators or MRI machines. Getting the experience of a tight space in the virtual world can help you get over your fear in a setting that feels safe.
  • Relaxation and visualization. You can learn ways to calm your fear when you’re in a situation that usually scares you.
  • Medical treatment. If therapy isn’t enough, your doctor can prescribe anxiety drugs or antidepressants to help you deal with the situations that cause your fear.

Support is key when you’re trying to overcome a phobia. Talk to your partner, other family members, and friends. You can even ask them to come with you to therapy sessions.

Tips for Coping

Strategies that can help people cope with claustrophobia include:

  • staying put if an attack happens. If driving, this may include pulling over to the side of the road and waiting till symptoms have passed.
  • reminding yourself that the frightening thoughts and feelings will pass
  • trying to focus on something that is not threatening, for example, the time passing or other people
  • breathing slowly and deeply, counting to three on each breath
  • challenging the fear by reminding yourself that it is not real
  • visualizing positive outcomes and images

Longer-term strategies may include joining a yoga class, working out an exercise program, or booking an aromatherapy massage, to help cope with stress.

Claustrophobia can be treated and cured. There are different ways to treat your fear and symptoms so you can have an active and healthy life.

Bay Biosciences is a global leader in providing researchers with high quality, clinical grade, fully characterized human tissue samples, bio-specimens, and human bio-fluid collections.

Samples available include cancer (tumor) tissue, cancer serum, cancer plasma, cancer, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). and human tissue samples from most other therapeutic areas and diseases.

Bay Biosciences maintains and manages its own biorepository, the human tissue bank (biobank) consisting of thousands of diseased samples (specimens) and from normal healthy donors available in all formats and types.

Our biobank procures and stores fully consented, deidentified and institutional review boards (IRB) approved human tissue samples and matched controls.

All our human tissue collections, human specimens and human bio-fluids are provided with detailed, samples associated patient’s clinical data.

This critical patient’s clinical data includes information relating to their past and current disease, treatment history, lifestyle choices, biomarkers, and genetic information.

Patient’s data is extremely valuable for researchers and is used to help identify new effective treatments (drug discovery & development) in oncology, and other therapeutic areas and diseases.

Bay Biosciences banks wide variety of human tissue samples and biological samples, including cryogenically preserved at – 80°C.

Including fresh frozen tissue samples, tumor tissue samples, formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE), tissue slides, with matching human bio-fluids, whole blood and blood-derived products such as serum, plasma and PBMC.

Bay Biosciences is a global leader in collecting and providing human tissue samples according to the specified requirements and customized, tailor-made collection protocols.

Please contact us anytime to discuss your special research projects and customized human tissue sample requirements.

Types of Biospecimens

Bay Biosciences provides human tissue samples (human specimens) from diseased and normal healthy donors which includes:

We can also procure most human bio-specimens, special collections and requests for human samples that are difficult to find. All our human tissue samples are procured through IRB-approved clinical protocols and procedures.

In addition to the standard processing protocols, Bay Biosciences can also provide human plasma, serum, and PBMC bio-fluid samples using custom processing protocols; you buy donor-specific collections in higher volumes and specified sample aliquots from us.

Bay Biosciences also provides human samples from normal healthy donors; volunteers, for controls and clinical research, contact us Now.

  • 日本のお客様は、ベイバイオサイエンスジャパンBay Biosciences Japanまたはhttp://baybiosciences-jp.com/contact/までご連絡ください。