Fear of birds: causes, manifestations and treatment

Fear of birds, many of which are very pretty and elegant, may seem strange to someone. But not to the ornithophobe himself. For him, this fear is a painful reality. Ornithophobia is considered a rather rare phobic disorder, and therefore it can be very difficult to detect its causes.

Fear of birds is called ornithophobia, and this disorder is part of the group of zoophobia. But unlike many other fears of various animals, insects, reptiles and amphibians, ornithophobia is always accompanied by severe anxiety disorder. This can be considered its hallmark.

If with a fear of tropical poisonous frogs a resident of central Russia can live his whole life quite peacefully (you will only see such a frog at the exhibition, and the phobia will never go there), then things are more complicated with birds. Birds are widespread, they surround us almost everywhere - in cities, villages, in the forest, at sea, and therefore the level of anxiety of an ornithophobe exceeds all reasonable limits, and the phobia itself is characterized by a severe course in which the patient's psyche wears out quickly.

The International Classification of Diseases for ornithophobia does not provide a separate code, it is listed among isolated phobias under the code 40.2.

Pathological fear of birds can manifest itself at any age - both in childhood and in adults. It is noteworthy that ornithophobia progresses quite rapidly.

However, other birds will not cause a negative reaction. Sometimes fear is caused only by dead birds or bird trills. As part of ornithophobia, the fear of bird feathers is also considered, manifested by disgust, disgust, anxiety and panic when they are seen. Fear of bird feathers is considered not only one of the rarest, but also one of the most mysterious - psychiatrists still have not been able to come to a consensus on what exactly can cause such fear.

In any case, ornithophobia can significantly affect the daily life of a person - in severe cases, a desperate ornithophobe may even refuse to leave the house so as not to collide a dove or a sparrow on the street. This means refusal to visit the place of study, work, shopping and shopping. Whether the life of a person who is always waiting for danger to appear will be full, obviously - no.

A high level of anxiety creates prerequisites for the development of other mental illnesses, and for this reason alone, ornithophobe should seek qualified professional help.

As already mentioned, the causes of ornithophobia are quite complex and unobvious. Experts are inclined to believe that the prerequisites can develop in childhood, for example, as a result of an attack by birds. Not all birds can attack humans, but seagulls, for example, are not afraid of either adults or children, and they can very well take away ice cream or other goodies from their children.

Often children are struck by the sight of a dead bird, which he can see on the playground, while walking in the park. If the child has increased nervous excitability, the baby is anxious, suspicious, impressionable, prone to nightmares, prone to fantasize excessively, then the corpse of a bird seen may very well be the most disturbing provocative factor, which will then trigger fear mechanisms in the brain every time a person will encounter feathered.

Because of the impressionability, a phobic disorder can develop even after watching a horror film, where the birds are presented in an ominous form, and a documentary about wildlife, in which the birds are represented by aggressors.

If in the family one of the parents suffers from ornithophobia, it is likely that his behavior pattern will pass to the child and he will grow up with a feeling of fear towards birds, which he will not be able to find justification.

And finally, one cannot fail to say about the traumatic experience. A chicken, a cock, a parrot could attack the child and painfully bite at the foot. Poultry kept in a cage and released to fly can suddenly dive right into the person’s face. It can also cause a sudden fright, which can turn into a deeper and more persistent phobia.

Fear of bird singing can develop after a dangerous traumatic situation in which a person has fallen. If at this moment bird chirping was concomitant in his memory, then it is quite possible that then twitter will cause bouts of increased anxiety.

Certain types of birds can cause fears for various reasons. For example, the mother constantly tells the child that pigeons are carriers of dangerous infections, and the basis of such ornithophobia is the fear of contracting them in the first place, and birds in the second. Mystical claims that the raven symbolizes death can be primarily associated with the fear of dying (thanatophobia) and only secondarily with the ravens themselves.

This type of phobia can have a variety of manifestations, the spectrum of symptoms is very wide and depends on what is the prescription, stage and form of the phobic disorder. Ornithophobe can be afraid of all birds without exception, and this is the most severe form of mental disorder.

On the way to work or on business, an ornithophobe who meets an ordinary pigeon along the way can sharply turn around and run in the opposite direction, bypassing the “dangerous” place. They gradually get used to phobias, gradually people begin to hide their true emotions, but the sudden appearance of the bird puts everything in its place: the ornithophobe is frightened, he may start a panic attack.

In this case, the heartbeat becomes more frequent, there is a feeling of lack of air, the pupils dilate and throws into sweat. In severe cases, a person may faint. After the attack, the person feels awkward, ashamed of others, he feels a sense of his own inferiority.

Fear can concern not only living and real birds, but also their images in photographs, demonstrations on television. The most severe cases of ornithophobia described in psychiatric practice have symptoms such as increased anxiety at the mere mention of birds, even if there are no pictures with their image, nor a real bird near.

Ornithophobes try to avoid zoos, pet stores, bird markets, city squares, where there are always a lot of pigeons and people specially feed them in such places.

Aggravation of ornithophobia can occur suddenly. Often, against the background of the initial phobic, paranoid disorder develops, when it seems to a person that birds are everywhere, they pursue him. If a delusional manic state develops, then the patient begins to feel firmly convinced that someone has conspired and specially sends birds to him, that this is the machinations of enemies or enemy intelligence, that birds can not only kill him, but also regularly monitor him.

Ornithophobia is a mental health disorder. This means that it is not treated by psychologists, there are no folk remedies for such fear. Independent attempts most often end in complete failure (experienced bird watchers with great experience know this very well). The fact is that trying to pull yourself together and control emotions with a phobic disorder is impossible.

In the severe form of the total fear of all birds with several panic attacks during the day, a person can be placed in a hospital during treatment to protect against frightening circumstances and objects. The middle and mild stages of the disorder do not require inpatient treatment.

The main role in getting rid of this form of fear is given to psychotherapy. Usually, cognitive-behavioral therapy, rational psychotherapy are used, sometimes there is a need to apply hypnotherapy and the NLP method. For several months, in most cases, the doctor manages to change the perception of the image of birds in the human mind to a more positive one. And if he does not begin to love birds (this is not required), then at least he begins to calmly perceive them, without fear that another panic will arise.

Medicines are used only if other problems, such as depression, are associated with a phobia. In this case, antidepressants are prescribed. When paranoid manifestations occur, treatment is carried out with tranquilizers and antipsychotics. In other cases, it is believed that a pill for fear of birds does not exist.

It is noteworthy that after the treatment, many former birdwatchers start a parrot or canary at home as a reminder that fears can be defeated.