Menophobia (menstruation phobia): symptoms, causes and treatment

This anxiety disorder affects some people who develop a great fear of menstruation.

Have you ever heard the word menophobia? It is a type of phobia, in this case, phobia (intense and irrational fear) of menstruation.

In this article we will see the characteristics of this peculiar phobia, what exactly is feared with it and, finally, what are its symptoms, causes and possible treatments.

Menophobia: what is it?

The menophobia is the phobia to the menstruation (menstruation).. This fear can be extrapolated to the fact of bleeding, but also to the associated symptoms of the period (pain, changes of mood, hormonal changes...). Thus, it is a type of phobia related to other types of fear, such as fear of pain and/or fear of blood (hemophobia or hematophobia).

Another curious fact about menophobia is that, in the case of men, the fact of suffering from it is related, in some cases, to the fear of women.

Characteristics of menstruation

Also called menorrhea, menstruation or period, as most of us know, it is a bleeding that occurs once a month in women (from the time they get their first period, between the ages of 8 and 15, approximately, until they reach menopause, between the ages of 45 and 55).

During this period, which lasts between 2 and 7 days, women bleed from the vagina. The amount of blood varies greatly from one woman to another, and the bleeding is not the same from one woman to another.and the bleeding is also not the same on the first day as on the second, third, etc. Menstruation occurs because the egg that the woman has produced is expelled from the ovary to be fertilized and is not fertilized (i.e. pregnancy does not occur).

Thus, in menophobia there is an intense, irrational and disproportionate fear of menstruation; it can occur in both men and women. However, it should be noted that it is a rare phobia (it is true that there may be many fears associated with it, especially among women, and that this is quite frequent, but these are cases that could hardly be classified as phobias).

That is to say, cases of menophobia, diagnosable as such (with all the symptoms it entails and the fulfillment of the diagnostic criteria), are rather few.

Symptoms of menstruation phobia.

What are the main symptoms of menophobia? As a specific phobia, and being an anxiety disorder (according to the DSM-5), there are a series of diagnostic criteria (symptoms) specific to it, which are mainly four:

• Disproportionate/irrational fear.
• Avoidance of the phobic stimulus
• Interference with daily life
• Duration of at least 6 months of symptoms.

Let's look at them in a little more detail.

1. Disproportionate/irrational fear

In menophobia the excessive fear can appear in the face of different stimuliIn menophobia, excessive fear can appear in response to different stimuli: the bleeding itself (which is related to blood phobia [hemophobia or hematophobia]), the painful symptoms associated with menstruation and/or the hormonal and mood changes that occur as a result of menstruation.

In other words, it is a complex phobia, because all these situations, or only one of them, can be feared.

1.1. Fear of bleeding / fear of blood

Fear of blood, or bleeding, called hemophobia or hematophobia, may occur in menophobia.can appear in menophobia. This could also be related to a sensitivity to disgust or a fear/fear of staining clothes, for example.

1.2. Fear of pain

Fear of pain is quite common, although it should be stressed that being afraid of something is not the same as having a phobia. Phobias are anxiety disorders that cause real interference in daily functioning, as well as intense discomfort. In other words, they are mental disorders, which incapacitate the person.

Thus, fear of pain is a common occurrence, not only in menophobia, but in other types of phobia. In these cases, in the end, what the person fears is not so much the stimulus itself (in this case, menstruation), but the consequences (symptoms) of menstruation, which would involve pain and discomfort. of menstruation, which would involve pain.

Pain (both physical and mental) has always (also evolutionarily) been something quite avoided by human beings, since it is a state that generates different emotions/feelings, such as rejection, fear... Thus, it is natural to think that people do not want to suffer, and do not want to feel pain.

1.3. Fear of mood and/or hormonal changes

Another possible fear associated with menophobia is the intense fear of mood and/or hormonal changes generated by menstruation itself..

If, as women, we know that before the arrival of menstruation (or during menstruation), our hormonal cycle changes and, as a consequence, our mood and state of mind changes as well, this can generate certain discomfort and/or anxiety. In extreme cases (when this discomfort really interferes with our life), menophobia appears.

2. Avoidance

In menophobia, as in any other phobia, the phobic stimulus/situation is avoided. Although in this case this symptom is particular, since menstruation cannot be avoided (unless artificial methods are used, such as Birth Control pills without rest).

So the person with menophobia could use one of these methods to avoid menstruation.

3. Interference in life

The above symptoms cause interference in the person's daily life, as well as in his or her usual functioning.. In addition, many times there is also a significant discomfort in the person.

4. Duration of 6 months

Finally, the duration of the symptoms of any specific phobia must be at least 6 months (always according to the DSM-5). (always according to the DSM-5).

Causes

The causes of menophobia can be various: related to another specific phobia, commonly hemophobia or hematophobia (blood phobia), related to some traumatic or highly embarrassing event for the person (for example, having been soiled in public and fearing to relive it, having experienced intense pain, excessively intense mood swings, etc.), etc.

On the other hand, in the case of women, the fact of having had very heavy and painful periods can also lead to the appearance of menophobia (due to the intense fear of suffering from menopause). (for that intense fear to suffer pain).

Treatment

As for the psychological therapy of menophobia, let us remember that the treatment usually used for specific phobias is of two types: exposure therapy and cognitive-behavioral therapy.. These two options are highly effective, although exposure therapy, a little more so.

In exposure therapy, the person with menophobia will be exposed to the stimuli that he or she fears so much. In the case of blood, this may be simple, although in the case of pain and mood swings, the hierarchy of items will be more difficult to perform (because they are more "abstract" stimuli or difficult to make concrete).

Cognitive behavioral therapy aims to modify the erroneous beliefs and dysfunctional/irrational thoughts associated with the phobic stimulus, in this case menstruation, the pain it causes, the blood itself, the fact of soiling in public or the mood swings it provokes. This objective is worked, mainly, through cognitive restructuring techniques.

Bibliographical references:

• American Psychiatric Association -APA- (2014). DSM-5. Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. Madrid: Panamericana.
• Belloch, A., Sandín, B. and Ramos, F. (2010). Manual of Psychopathology. Volume I and II. Madrid: McGraw-Hill.
• Caballo (2002). Manual for the cognitive-behavioral treatment of psychological disorders. Vol. 1 and 2. Siglo XXI (Chapters 1-8, 16-18).