All About Chromatophobia

Color perception is an important ability to obtain information about the world. Due to the ability to distinguish colors, we can identify many objects and their special characteristics, and also usually each person has his own favorite and least favorite colors and shades. But there are people who painfully perceive a particular color or several colors. They cause in them a panicky irrational fear, which is called chromatophobia.

Chromatophobia - this is a strong irrational fear on the verge of aversion to color. In most cases, an inadequate attitude is observed to any particular color - a person is afraid only of red, black or yellow. Less commonly, fear causes a combination of colors or a wide range of palettes.

An uncontrolled fear of each particular color is called in its own way, for example, the fear of red is phodophobia, and the fear of blue is cyanophobia, the fear of yellow is xanthophobia, and the fear of green is prasinophobia. The pathological fear of white is called leukophobia, orange - chrysophobia, black - melanophobia.

Chromatophobe is almost always afraid of bright colors.

All individual types of chromatophobia are closely related to psycho-traumatic events, which the human subconscious were “associated” with a specific color scheme. It is noteworthy that chromatophobia can affect some species of animals, as well as color blind people.

This phobia, although it is not so common, can significantly complicate life.To avoid the possibility of suddenly encountering a frightening color, a person can limit his or her circle of friends, go out on the street, refuse to attend work only because the unpleasant color in the office or the uniform of the company does not allow a person to concentrate and fulfill their professional tasks.

People with chromatophobia try to avoid large cities with an abundance of signage and screens, with variegated and colorful crowds, transport. There is evidence that Benjamin Franklin did not like yellow objects, and Billy Bob Thornton suffers from chromatophobia in several shades of the palette at once.

Intolerance to some tone or shade is usually develops after childhood trauma. Such injuries for an impressionable, suspicious child with a vulnerable psyche and great imagination can be the death of a loved one, separation from parents, abuse, violence, accidents. For example, at a funeral on the occasion of the death of a loved one, a child sees an abundance of black, and this color can be deposited in the subconscious, as it is closely associated with death, loss, loss.

A child who has been abused may not remember the face of the rapist and the offender, but may well remember the color of his clothes. And this shade can be frightening, unpleasant, causing a real panic for life.

Sometimes the cause of chromatophobia lies in the cultural traditions of the people. In each culture, shades and tones give their importance. In India, China and Japan, they are most often afraid of white, because there it symbolizes misfortune, death. Red color often causes hostility among Europeans, as it is associated with impurity, sin, blood, aggression.

Blue, which for many peoples symbolizes the sky and the divine principle, for the Iranian is the color of mourning and sorrow. Black, which for most people is anxious in itself, is revered in India, where it is considered the color of health and harmony.

So, green for one is associated with young spring greens, and for another - with unpleasant and dangerous mold, yellow for some is the color of wealth, good luck, sun and warmth, good mood, and for some it is the color of pus, unhealthy yellowness of the skin of a dying man person. therefore everything is quite individual. How many chromatophobes, so many justifications and reasons for their fear.

Chromatophobe is constantly tense - a collision with an unpleasant hue can occur at any time. His clothes never have shades that even remotely resemble a frightening tone; in his house there are no objects painted in such a color. Chromatophobes tend to carefully think through their actions, the places that they should visit, the routes by which they have to get to these places. If there are frightening objects along the way, the chromatophobe can make a big detour, make several detours in a detour, if only not to encounter what causes alarm and horror.

If it suddenly happens that the collision could not be prevented, A person suffering from this phobia releases adrenaline into the blood. Under the influence of this hormone, the pupils expand, there is a desire to run and hide from danger, while the person understands the absurdity of his condition, is afraid that others will notice it, and this second joined fear only enhances the manifestations. The heart rate becomes more frequent, breathing is shallow, shallow. The skin turns pale, sweat is liberated abundantly, the body temperature slightly decreases.

Dry in the mouth, tremor of the extremities may occur. In severe cases, a person loses balance, loses consciousness.

Calls to pull yourself together and with an effort of will to overcome fear in the case of chromatophobia can be not only meaningless, but also harmful. Fruitless attempts to do this cause only a decrease in self-esteem. It is impossible to cope with a phobic mental disorder on your own. You can drive the fear even deeper, then it will manifest itself with double power and will "grow" with additional mental disorders.

To get rid of irrational fear, the doctor can use one of the many methods of psychotherapy or several methods collectively - cognitive-behavioral therapy, rational therapy, gestalt therapy, hypnotherapy, NLP. Sometimes there is a need for additional prescription of medicines. Antidepressants that significantly increase mood can be used.

They try to prescribe tranquilizers only in rare cases when panic attacks are frequent, severe, associated with inappropriate behavior.. It will be useful relaxation training, including deep muscle, this can help achieve yoga classes, meditation, the development of breathing gymnastics techniques.

Throughout the entire course of treatment (and it usually lasts several months), the patient is required to follow all the doctor’s recommendations, work with him in one team: severe stress, anxiety, alcohol and drugs should be excluded. It is important to enlist the support of loved ones and relatives, friends, everyone whom the patient trusts.

It is advisable that with the start of therapy while walking around the city and visiting art galleries (as a method of immersing in a variety of colors), it is close people who accompanied the person, insuring him in case of a possible panic attack. In general, the forecasts are very favorable. In 9 out of 10 patients with the method of psychotherapy, persistent long-term remission can be achieved.

For interesting facts about colors and chromatophobia, see the video below.