Atelophobia (imperfection phobia): symptoms, causes and treatment

This anxiety disorder is often linked to self-esteem problems.

We all know that nowadays we live in a competitive world in which there is a high level of competition and demands regarding our actions. At the work level we are asked to be productive, efficient, proactive, adaptable, able to work in a team, good teammates and organized. And this is not only at the work level, but also in areas such as the couple we are faced with a high level of demand and competitiveness.

This frenetic pace makes some people think that they not only have to be good but that they must always seek excellence, and even perfection in everything they are or what they do. And even, in some cases, phobic symptomatology can arise to not reaching perfection. This is the case of those who suffer from atelophobia.a peculiar phobia that we are going to talk about in this article.

What is atelophobia?

The atelophobia is an uncommon phobia, that we could consider specific in spite of the fact that its phobic object is rather subjective and can vary enormously from a person to another one. As a phobia we are not talking about a simple discomfort, but about the existence of an irrational fear and panic. an irrational and disproportionate fear and panic to the presence of an object, being to the presence of an object, being or concrete situation (to the point of being able to unchain panic attacks), generating this fear the avoidance of the phobic stimulus or of situations in which it can appear.

In the specific case of atelophobia the phobic stimulus is the imperfectionor rather not being able to achieve perfection with one's actions, ideas or beliefs. In some cases this can also extend to the behavior of others and not only to one's own.

It is easy to think of atelophobia as perfectionism, but it should be noted that it is not limited to perfectionism: there is a real anxiety and somatic and behavioral reactions out of the ordinary and disproportionate to the possible risk it could pose.

This means that the person with atelophobia will feel dread at the idea of doing something that is not perfect, avoiding those situations in which he/she can do it or spending a great deal of time trying to do things perfectly. The symptomatology does not end there. the presence of some type of imperfection can generate the appearance of tachycardia, hyperventilation, tremors, nausea and vomiting.The symptoms do not end there, but the presence of some type of imperfection can generate the appearance of tachycardia, hyperventilation, tremors, nausea and vomiting or cold sweats, among others, reflecting the psychological discomfort or anxiety caused by the presence of the feared stimulus.

Consequences

The symptoms described above can involve a high level of interference, being generally much higher than that of other phobias. First of all, atelophobia is a fear of imperfection that can occur at any time, place and situation. can occur at any time, in any place and in any situation, making the tension more permanent.. In addition, it has a direct implication for self-esteem and personal self-concept.

Thus, it is common that people with this type of phobia are never satisfied with themselves and have a very low self-concept and self-esteem. They will also have a high level of demand regarding their own behavior, with nothing they do ever being good enough and always comparing their performance with that of those who do each thing better. This discomfort generally causes them to present depressive symptoms and even some irritability. depressive symptoms and even a certain irritability and hostility towards themselves..

And not only with themselves: they also demand a lot from others. This can cause these people to have severe difficulties in their social, work and couple relationships, as they consider that their relationships and performance with all of them, and theirs with him/her, should be perfect. To this is also added the continuous self-criticism, which can generate a certain rejection of being permanently present.

At work, in addition to social difficulties, they can also waste a great deal of time trying to improve or perfect results that were already good, losing efficiency and productivity.

In some cases this problem can also generate problems with the body itself, although it is not so common since the fear itself is usually that our behavior and its results are not perfect, being quite specific in the sense that it is "what we do, think or believe" what is usually judged and not so much the physical.

However, there are cases in which it has also been linked to the presence of eating disorders.problems can appear when atelophobia is mixed with the practice of exercise or diets to the point of losing quality of life and damaging one's health.

In addition to all this, it should be remembered that the subject will tend to avoid situations in which it is easy that their actions are not perfect, which can lead to isolation and cessation of a large number of activities both work and leisure. Attempts to try new things or to train in the consolidation of a skill may also be eliminated in order to avoid exposing oneself to the risk of not being good.

Causes

The origin of atelophobia, as with most mental disorders, is not entirely clear. And the fact is that are multiple the factors that interact at the time of a mental health problem arises.

First of all, there may be a certain Biological predisposition, such as a low physiological activation threshold or the inheritance of somewhat perfectionist personality traits. This predisposition or vulnerability is only such, but the experience of certain events or the learning of certain ways of acting can converge with it to favor the appearance of atelophobia.

On a less generic level, it has been observed that it is frequent that those who suffer from atelophobia have had a restrictive education or have received a high level of criticism during their childhood, and their actions were never sufficient to please their environment. An excessively demanding and rigid upbringing can lead to the thought that they will never be good enough.

It may also appear in cases where they have experienced that not doing something well enough has had severe consequences in their lives, something that may have led them to generalize in such a way that they fear that not being perfect will have consequences.

Link with other disorders

Atelophobia is a difficult disorder to diagnose, which can be confused with the aforementioned perfectionism that may fall within a typical behavior, or it could also be easily confused with various disorders.

It is possible to observe a certain link with a very specific group of disorders: obsessive disorders.. The best known of them is the Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder or OCD, specifically resembling more in those cases whose obsessions are linked to aspects such as cleanliness, order, verification or morality. In both cases there is concern about one's own actions and there is a high level of self-demand. The worry and anxiety they feel in both cases can lead them to compensatory acts, and they dedicate a great part of their time to these worries. However, in atelophobia there are no obsessions or compulsions as such.

Possibly the most similar to atelophobia is a disorder similar to the previous one: Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder (although the name is similar to OCD, here there are neither obsessions nor compulsions, it is more stable and the characteristics of the disorder are integrated in the personality), in which the aforementioned perfectionism is present in a persistent manner and can generate a high level of maladjustment and suffering both for oneself and others as the individual requires everything to be tidy and well done.

Social adjustment problems and even some anxiety are common.. The truth is that atelophobia could appear in a person with this type of personality and in fact this type of people are much more prone, but should not be identified. Firstly because atelophobia is a more specific disorder that does not have to be part of the identity of the person, besides the fear of failure does not have to generate physiological symptoms in obsessive-compulsive personality disorder.

Another aspect to take into account is the possibility that the atelophobia is linked to the physical aspect, being able to suppose a serious risk of suffering some type of eating disorder or body dysmorphic disorder.

Treatment for imperfection phobia

The treatment of atelophobia shares with most phobias the fact that it is based on exposure to the feared stimuli. Thus, it is intended that the subject is able, either by exposure or systematic desensitization, not to show an anxious response to imperfection. To make a hierarchy of particularly phobic situations and working progressively so that the subject remains in the situation or generates a response incompatible with the anxious response is one of the most common therapies, and should be carried out through a negotiation between the professional and the patient.

Also in this case it is essential to work through cognitive restructuring, through which we can try to modify the beliefs regarding personal efficacy and the need to do everything perfectly. For this it can be useful to work previously on the origin of this fear, what it meant then and what it means now, what sense the patient gives to it, how it affects him/her and when it appears.

Likewise, it will be necessary to work on the level of self-expectation and the existence of cognitive distortions. Therapies that work on self-gratification and self-esteem will also be of great help to improve the patient's emotional situation. will also be of great help to improve the patient's emotional situation. If the anxiety is unbearable for the patient, it is possible to use some anti-anxiety drugs to reduce the symptoms and to start working psychologically.