Pogonophobia (fear of beards): causes, symptoms and treatment

Although some people consider them fluffy, sexy and adorable... others do not.

One of the most prominent trends of recent times is the beard, which has caused many men to grow beards because of the aesthetic component. Some studies suggest that men with beards are seen as more attractive, and for some women it may even be a fetish. The inordinate attraction to beards is called pogonophilia.

However, not everyone thinks beards are stylish, and some individuals may even develop a disorder called pogonophilia. some individuals may even develop a disorder called "pogonophobia", the irrational fear of beards.the irrational fear of beards. In this article we will review some characteristics of this pathology and talk about its causes, symptoms and consequences.

What is the fear of beards

The beard has been the symbol that characterizes masculinity. Over the centuries, it has represented many masculine virtues, including wisdom, strength, high social status, even sexual prowess, especially in warrior cultures. However, it also represents a phobic object.

There are many types of phobia, but few attract attention in the same way as facial hair phobia, which refers to the irrational fear that some people have of beards ... especially the long, bushy ones.. especially the longest and most bushy ones. This phobia was discovered in 1851, and the etymological origin of the word is found in Ancient Greece, since "pogon" means beard and "phobos" means fear. Phobias are anxiety disorders that cause anxious symptomatology in the presence of bearded men.

Causes of pogonophobia

The reasons why a person may not like beards are very varied.. For example, some people associate beards with men who take little care of themselves and may be dirty. Others link facial hair to religious fanaticism. In other cases, beards may cause distrust or may be seen as old-fashioned or outdated.

However, pogonophobia is a phobic disorder, and therefore a serious pathology, which usually has its origin in classical conditioning. That is, it is an associative learning, which usually happens after a traumatic experience.

The first experiments on phobias in humans were carried out in the 1920s, when the American psychologist John B. Watson and his assistant Rosalie Rayner caused infants to feel fear towards white rats, which they had previously enjoyed.

• You can learn more about these studies in our article: "Classical conditioning and its most important experiments".

Other causes of this phobia

However, traumatic experiences suffered by an individual are not the only reason for the origin of this phobia; observation can also bring about its development. This is known as vicarious conditioning, when an individual observes the reactions of another person to a stimulus that is relevant to the subject as well as to the observer. If you want to go deeper into this topic, you can read our article: "Vicarious conditioning: how does this type of learning work?" to learn more.

In addition to the learned origin of phobias, some authors claim that they have a Biological origin, and that human beings are more prone to develop these pathologies because fear is an emotion that develops by primitive and non-cognitive associations, that is, in the primitive brain and not in the neocortex, and therefore does not respond to logical arguments. This would explain why phobics have serious difficulties in overcoming this pathology despite knowing that they suffer from this disorder..

Symptoms of beard phobia

This phobia affects the quality of life of those who suffer from it. While some pogonophobics are afraid only of mustaches, others suffer from beard phobia. Subjects with this phobia experience symptoms that can be cognitive, behavioral and physical.

Cognitive symptoms include fear, anxiety, confusion and lack of concentration.. Subjects with pogonophobia usually avoid the feared stimulus, which would refer to a behavioral symptom. Some of the physical symptoms are: hyperventilation, rapid pulse, sweating and trembling, nausea and vomiting, and dry mouth.

Treatment

As in the case of other phobias, pogonophobia can be treated. Psychotherapy has been found to be very effective, according to much research.

There are different treatments depending on the orientation of the therapist.. One of the most effective is cognitive behavioral intervention, which usually includes relaxation techniques and exposure techniques.

The objective of this last technique is to gradually expose the person to the feared stimulus, in this case the beard, until it no longer causes fear or anxiety. Doing this gradually involves starting the treatment with exposure to the stimuli that cause the least discomfort, for example, seeing a picture of a person with little facial hair. The goal is to reach the most feared ones, for example, touching a person's bushy beard.

In this way, the person is able to see for himself that he is not in danger when facing these situations, and so little by little the fear disappears and he learns that the beard is not synonymous with danger.

Systematic desensitization

This technique is similar to the previous one, but the patient also learns coping strategies, for example, breathing and relaxation techniques that cause a decrease in the level of activation. The treatment is carried out until the degree of anxiety and discomfort has completely subsided.

• Related article, "What is systematic desensitization and how does it work?"