Mental Health and Behavioural Sciences

What is Claustrophobia: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment Options

admin Jul 13, 2024

Introduction

You would have heard about a “horror” video game...!

Set on an oil rig, Still Wakes the Deep aims to exploit several fears and phobias, prominently featuring the vast and mysterious ocean and the dread of isolation. Buttiens' intense personal experiences with claustrophobia critically shaped the game’s design, particularly the rig's engineering section.

Firstly, what is the difference between fear and phobia?

Lot of fears seem reasonable. We all try to avoid entities that make us feel uncomfortable. The distinction between a fear and a phobia is that a phobia is an intense as well as irrational fear toward one or more entities or situations.

In this blog, let us demystify the term claustrophobia and its triggers, and learn in depth about the symptoms, causes, and treatment options:

But What Exactly is Claustrophobia?

Claustrophobia is a specific phobia where one fears closed spaces (claustro means closed). There is a higher prevalence of this phobia in women compared to men.

How Common is Claustrophobia?

Approximately 12.5% of the population has claustrophobia. The average individual with a specific phobia, such as claustrophobia, fears three objects or situations. About 75% of individuals with a specific phobia fear more than one entity or situation.

What Situations Can Trigger Claustrophobia?

Common triggers comprise:

Tunnels
Elevators.
Public restrooms
Trains.
Airplanes.
Small cars.
Caves.
Revolving doors
MRI imaging machine.
Cellars.
Miniature rooms which don’t have windows or with windows that can’t be opened.
Thoughts about being in a confined space.

What Are The Symptoms Of Claustrophobia?

Symptoms of claustrophobia are like symptoms of anxiety and a panic attack. Individual may experience:

Physical symptoms

Perspiration or shaking.
Tightness in chest or prompt heartbeat.
Difficulty breathing or breathing rapidly.
Chills/flushing (red, hot face).
Choking feeling.
Upset tummy or feeling “butterflies” in stomach.
Dizziness, feeling faint or lightheaded.
Dry mouth.
Feeling confused or disoriented.
Numbness or tingling.
Ringing in ears.
Crying, tantrums, freezing/clinging (manifestations of a specific phobia in kids).

Emotional symptoms

Fear of losing control.
Fear of fainting.
Feelings of dread.
Feeling overwhelming anxiety.
Feeling an intense requirement to leave the situation.
Understanding that fear isn’t rational, but they can’t overcome it.
Fear of dying.

What Causes Claustrophobia?

What causes claustrophobia isn’t entirely understood. Researchers believe causes might comprise:

A traumatic event as a child

Few adults with claustrophobia report one/more events where they were trapped/confined to a tight space as a kid.

A triggering event post childhood

Individual may have had a triggering event such as he/she might have got stuck in an elevator or experienced severe turbulence on a flight.

Childhood exposure to a parent’s claustrophobia

A person may develop claustrophobia if you felt the anxieties of one of your parent’s reactions to confined spaces. Technically, scientists believe neurochemicals overstimulate a portion of person’s brain — amygdala — in the presence of fear. There’s also thought that a single genetic alteration can increase their probability of claustrophobia if they have that gene defect.

Treatment Of Claustrophobia

Exposure therapy along with cognitive behavioural therapy are the two major treatments for claustrophobia.

Exposure therapy (also known as desensitization therapy)

In this type of psychotherapy, a person is gradually exposed to his/her feared situation. With gradual, repeated exposure, the objective is that person will feel comfortable in his/her specific feared situation.

Exposure therapy may comprise:

Facing feared phobia directly, in real-time.
Recalling and describing feared experience.

Glancing at pictures or utilising virtual reality to get close to the actual feared experience yet be in a safe ambience. Exposure therapy can be paced in too many ways. Therapy also includes relaxation and breathing exercises. A person’s psychologist will develop a unique plan for them, based on the severity of symptoms.

Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)

This type of psychotherapy (talk therapy) aims on managing a person’s phobia by changing the way the person thinks, feels, and behaves.

During CBT, person will:

Discuss symptoms and describe how they feel.
Can explore phobia more deeply to gain an understanding of how to respond.
Learn how to recognize, reevaluate and change their thinking.
Utilise problem-solving skills to learn how to cope.
Face their phobia instead of avoiding it.
Learn how to keep their mind and body calm.

Are Medications Utilised To Treat Claustrophobia?

In addition to therapy, medications are sometimes prescribed for a short duration to treat anxiety caused by claustrophobia. For instance, healthcare providers might prescribe medications to treat anxiety when a person is flying. The two main medication classes most predominantly prescribed are:

Benzodiazepines, like the antianxiety drugs alprazolam, clonazepam, as well as diazepam.
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, like paroxetine/escitalopram.

In a nutshell, Claustrophobia is an intense fear of confined or enclosed spaces. Common triggers comprise tunnels, elevators, trains and airplanes. If a person has claustrophobia, they feel anxious about being in an enclosed or tight-fitting space. They may have trouble concentrating and functioning. Person may be overwhelmed with thoughts about being in a confined space. Their thoughts may keep them up at night. Behaviour training is the main treatment.