Is Fear of Growing Up a Disease?
Is Fear of Growing Up a Disease? Apparently, the fear of growing up is a rare disease called gerascophobia and only a couple of cases of the disease have been reported, that too, in adults. Now there appears to be a new case – that of a 14-year-old boy in Mexico, who is reported to be so scared of growing up that he takes extreme measures such as eating less and speaking in a high-pitched voice to appear younger.
Researchers who looked at his case wrote that every time the boy sees a physical change that indicates he’s growing up, he takes measures to hide it, and has even considered surgeries. The boy also believes that once he becomes an adult, he’ll get sick and die. The phobia started when he was 11 years old. A year of psychotherapy has not helped.
According to Dr. Alan Manevitz, a clinical psychiatrist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York, phobias can develop from a combination of biological, psychological and environmental factors. In this case, the boy suffered from separation anxiety disorder when he was five, and was also sexually abused and bullied at a young age. Researchers say that all these experiences contributed to his gerascophobia.
The boy was treated with the antidepressant fluoxetine, along with a form of psychotherapy, and family therapy, and researchers say that his condition has improved. The case was published in the journal, Case Reports in Psychiatry.
Category: News
