Last Updated on April 13, 2023 by Mike Robinson
Ataxophobia is an unreasonable and extreme fear of untidiness and disorder. That is, it is the fear of things that are out of place or not in order.
People with this disorder feel much more anxious when things aren’t set up how they want them to be. Because of this, they often don’t let other people get involved in their personal lives.
Likewise, people with ataxophobia firmly believe that only they can organize their things. Also, when something is disorganized, the person who messed it up must reorganize it.
It’s also important to note that the fear of disorder caused by this phobia can affect both physical (like a messy room) and functional (like how something works) things (the performance of an activity, the specification of the personal agenda, etc.).
Ataxophobia can affect a person’s daily life by making it hard for people to participate in things that aren’t well-run.
In this article, we will analyze the characteristics of ataxophobia. Also, we will explain its symptoms, its causes, and the treatments that are useful to overcome the fear of disorder.
Characteristics of Ataxophobia
Ataxophobia is part of a group of disorders known as specific phobias. These mental disorders have characteristics of irrational fear. In this case, that fear is disorder and unorganized situations.
The main characteristic of specific phobias is the responses they cause in those who have them.
In this way, an individual with ataxophobia will experience an extreme and intense anxiety response whenever exposed to any type of disorder. This anxiety they experience is much higher than they experience at any other time.
Ataxophobia is considered a persistent disorder. In other words, the fear of disorder does not disappear if it is not properly treated.
Fear of Disorder vs. Obsession
Ataxophobia is not the same as being obsessed with order, but a person can have both. The need for order does not mean a person is afraid of disorder. The “phobic” part makes it easy to tell the difference between the two.
A specific part of ataxophobia is an irrational and excessive fear of disarray. Ataxophobia is present when there is phobic fear, and it is not present when there is no phobic fear.
But people who have ataxophobia often have a very clear obsession with order. So, both ideas can be true of the same person, but they are not the same thing. A person may experience an obsession with order but not fear disorder or have ataxophobia. In the same way that a subject can experience ataxophobia without presenting a clear obsession with order.
How to Determine If You Have Ataxophobia
As with all types of phobias, the fear of disorder that is experienced in ataxophobia presents a series of characteristics. In fact, fear is a very common feeling in people, and there are many things that can cause fear, including too much clutter.
So, not all fear of disorder implies the presence of ataxophobia. In order to establish the presence of this disorder, the fear experienced must meet the following requirements:
1- Disproportionate Anxiety
The fear of disorder must be disproportionate to the importance of the situation.
In itself, the disorder does not entail any danger to people, so an intense fear for this type of situation is usually quickly identified as phobic.
But the fear must be out of proportion and much stronger than it should be. A moderate situation must be perceived as very scary and make the person feel very anxious.
2- Irrational Fear
The fear of disorder must also be irrational; that is, it can not be explained by any other reason.
The individual is aware that his fear is not supported by any other logical reason, yet they can’t explain why the fear is there.
3- Uncontrollable Feelings
The person with ataxophobia knows that his fear of disorder is not reasonable. This kind of fear is very uncomfortable, and they probably would rather not have it.
However, they cannot manage this phobia alone since his fear of disorder is beyond voluntary control.
4- Unable to Adapt
Fears that aren’t phobias offer a clear beneficial purpose. That is, they help the person adapt to their environment.
For a fear to be adaptive, it must be in response to a real threat. Therefore, the fear caused by ataxophobia is not considered to be adaptive.
In fact, the fear of disorder is maladaptive since not only does it not allow the subject to adapt better to their environment, but it also makes it difficult for them to live normal lives. Ataxophobia can limit a person’s ability to function and have negative consequences.
5: Avoidance Behavior
When a person with ataxophobia is exposed to situations of disorder, they experience high feelings of anxiety and discomfort due to the intensity of the fear they suffer.
This is why people with ataxophobia try to avoid any place or situation that is unorganized or in disarray. Avoidance is the only way they can prevent the discomfort these situations cause.
6- Persistent Anxiety and Fear
The fear of ataxophobia is continuous and persistent. This means that it appears in any situation in which the individual interprets the presence of disorder. In other words, there are no situations with disorder in which the phobic fear does not appear.
In addition, the fear of the disorder ataxophobia is not limited to specific amounts of time. When the disorder develops, it persists over time and does not disappear.
This is how you know there is a need for treatment. If not properly intervened with and resolved, the phobic fear will remain.
Symptoms of Ataxophobia
Ataxophobia causes clear signs of anxiety, which show up whenever the person is exposed to the things they fear or to the disorder itself.
Ataxophobia can cause anxiety, which can show up in different ways in each case. But all of the symptoms of ataxophobia are also signs of anxiety in general. Every case of ataxophobia will have some combination of physical, mental, and behavioral symptoms.
Physical symptoms
Ataxophobia produces an increase in the activation of the autonomic nervous system. This increase in activity is caused by fear and the alarm signal that comes on when the subject is exposed to disorder.
The physical symptoms caused by ataxophobia may vary slightly in each case. However, some of the following manifestations always appear:
- increase in the respiratory rate.
- increase in the cardiac rate
- Tachycardia
- exaggerated increase in sweating.
- Pupillary dilation
- stress and/or muscle stiffness.
- stomachaches and/or headaches
- Drowning sensation
- Nausea and/or dizziness
- It feels like you’re in a dream state.
Cognitive symptoms
Cognitive symptoms refer to all the thoughts that an individual with ataxophobia experiences when exposed to situations of disorder.
Thoughts can be very different, but they are always negative, both about the danger of the situation and about your ability to deal with it.
Thoughts about the disastrous consequences that disorder will cause, the desperate need for order or the requirement to remain in an organized space are examples.
Behavioral symptoms
The subject’s behavior changes immediately when they are exposed to what they are afraid of. Their behavior will no longer be based on what makes sense. Instead, it will be based on what fear and anxiety demand.
The most common behaviors associated with ataxophobia are:
- Avoidance of situations with disorder
- highly meticulous and organized lifestyles.
- Involvement in well-organized activities only.
- Avoidance of unorganized people.
- Isolation to preserve order.
Causes of Ataxophobia
The things that cause certain phobias are being looked into right now. One thing that seems clear is that there is no one reason why someone gets a specific phobia.
At the moment, there is a lot of agreement that phobias are caused by a number of factors that interact with each other. In the case of ataxophobia, the following factors seem to have had a bigger impact on how the disorder started:
Classical conditioning
As a child, being taught and influenced by your parents in ways that place a lot of value on order and organization can be a relevant factor. The clear preference for order and the dislike of disarray seems to develop during the first years of life.
Because of this, learning to fear disorder can be very influential during the first years of life.
Observing others
Classical conditioning, such as visualizing the behaviors of individuals obsessed with order, can also contribute to the development of ataxophobia.
Likewise, receiving information about the negative impact disorder can have on your life could also have an influence.
Cognitive factors
Some of the things that can contribute to phobias are unrealistic beliefs about how bad being exposed to disorganized situations could be. The result is constant thoughts about phobia-related threats, low self-efficacy, and overestimating the danger. These types of thoughts are what keep ataxophobia going, but they are not what start the disorder.
Treatment Options
Ataxophobia can make a big difference in how a person acts. It can make it hard to do more than one thing at a time, limit the places where you feel comfortable, and cause you to be overly organized and orderly.
Therefore, it is very important to treat the disorder to overcome fears and resolve ataxophobia. The treatment of choice for this type of phobia is psychological therapy, which is much more effective than psychotropic drugs. In particular, cognitive-behavioral treatment works well and is the best way to deal with the disorder.
This kind of therapy is based on putting the person in situations they are afraid of. It is done in a slow and controlled way, and the goal is to get the person to stay in disorganized situations without trying to get away. Through gradual exposure, the person will slowly lose their fear of disorder.
Also read: Why Does Anxiety Occur?
Additionally, relaxation techniques are usually applied to reduce anxiety and facilitate exposure to the disorder. Cognitive techniques also allow for the elimination of distorted thoughts about disorders.
