Medicine:Hodophobia

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Hodophobia
Other namesFear of travel
Sample postcard, cartoon postcard printed by the Asheville Post Card Co, two people traveling in a... (NBY 422007).jpg
SpecialtyPsychiatry
Symptomsintense, persistent anxiety with thoughts of travel and/or during travels[1]
Durationpersistent, typically lasting for 6 months or more[1]
Differential diagnosisSeparation anxiety, Posttraumatic stress disorder, Major depressive disorder[1]
TreatmentExposure Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy[1]

Hodophobia is an irrational fear, or phobia, of travel.[2][3]

Hodophobia should not to be confused with travel aversion.[4][5]

Acute anxiety provoked by travel can be treated with anti-anxiety medication.[6][7] The condition can be treated with exposure therapy, which works better when combined with cognitive behavioral therapy.[6][7]

Signs and symptoms

People with fear of traveling experience intense, persistent fear or anxiety when they think about traveling and/or during travel.[8][9] They will avoid travel if they can, and the fear, anxiety, and avoidance cause significant distress and impair their ability to function.[8][9]

Related phobias

Cause

The causes of hodophobia and the mechanisms by which it is maintained are often complex, as with many phobias.[8][10]

Diagnosis

The diagnosis is clinical.[8] It is often difficult to determine if the specific phobia of hodophobia should be the primary diagnosis, or if it is a symptom of a generalized anxiety disorder or another anxiety disorder.[8][11]

Classification

Hodophobia is a specific phobia as classified in the DSM-5.[12]

Management

Acute anxiety caused by travel can be treated with anti-anxiety medication.[6][7] The condition can also be treated with exposure therapy which works better when combined with cognitive behavioral therapy.[6][7][13] Relaxation techniques and education can also be helpful in combination with other approaches.[9][13][14]

Society and culture

Sigmund Freud, the famous neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, confessed in a number of letters that he suffered from fear of travel.[15] He used the term "Reiseangst" for it, which means "travel anxiety" or "fear of travel" in the German language.[16] However Freud's anxiety was not a "true" phobia.[16]

See also

Other travel-related disorders include:

  • Travel sickness in humans
  • Transport tetany in animals

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 American Psychiatric Association (2013), Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.), Arlington: American Psychiatric Publishing, pp. 217–221, 938, ISBN 978-0890425558, https://archive.org/details/diagnosticstatis0005unse/page/217 
  2. multiple sources
  3. "healthcentral: Hodophobia - The fear of traveling". https://www.healthcentral.com/article/hodophobia-the-fear-of-traveling. 
  4. "WebMD_The Fear Factor: Phobias". WebMD. https://www.webmd.com/anxiety-panic/features/fear-factor-phobias. 
  5. "EscapeTheIvoryTower: The difference between fear and aversion". http://www.escapetheivorytower.com/2012/07/the-difference-between-fear-and-aversion/. 
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 "Huffington Post: You Won't Believe What Could Cure Your Fear of Flying". Huffington Post. 2014-01-06. https://www.huffingtonpost.com/peter-greenberg/you-wont-believe-what-cou_b_4537567.html. 
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 "PsychologyToday: Anti-Anxiety Medication and Flying". https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/conquer-fear-flying/201407/anti-anxiety-medication-and-flying. 
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 An Unusual Case of Phobia: Hodophobia (Volume 4, Issue 2, No. 95 ed.). International Journal of Indian Psychology. 2017. pp. ISSN:2349-3429 (p). ISBN 978-1-365-84231-3. http://www.ijip.in/Archive/v4i2/18.01.169.20170402.pdf. Retrieved 2018-06-25. 
  9. 9.0 9.1 9.2 "HealthCentral: Hodophobia". https://www.healthcentral.com/article/hodophobia-the-fear-of-traveling. 
  10. Bozman, Edward. "CommonPhobias - Hodophobia". http://common-phobias.com/Hodo/phobia.htm. 
  11. "From Fear To There: What is hodophobia?". https://www.fromfeartothere.com/what-is-hodophobia/. 
  12. *"CommonPhobias: Hodophobia". http://common-phobias.com/Hodo/phobia.htm.  *"Theravive: Specific Phobia DSM-5 300.29". https://www.theravive.com/therapedia/specific-phobia-dsm--5-300.29-(icd--10--cm-multiple-codes).  *"UPenn: Specific Phobias". https://www.med.upenn.edu/ctsa/phobias_symptoms.html. 
  13. 13.0 13.1 "Psycom - specific phobias". https://www.psycom.net/anxiety-specific-phobias/. 
  14. "Calm Clinic - Introduction to Travel Anxiety: Causes and Cures". https://www.calmclinic.com/anxiety/types/travel. 
  15. Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic, Volumes 16-18, p. 73
  16. 16.0 16.1 Paul C. Vitz, Sigmund Freud's Christian Unconscious, . 25

External links

Classification
External resources