Aquaphobia (from Latin aqua 'water', and Ancient Greek φόβος (phóbos) 'fear') is an irrational fear of water.[1]
Aquaphobia is considered a Specific Phobia of natural environment type in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. A specific phobia is an intense fear of something that poses little or no actual danger.[2]
Prevalence
A study of epidemiological data from 22 low, lower-middle, upper-middle and high-income countries revealed "fear of still water or weather events" had a prevalence of 2.3%, across all countries; in the US the prevalence was 4.3%.[3] In an article on anxiety disorders, Lindal and Stefansson suggest that aquaphobia may affect as many as 1.8% of the general Icelandic population, or almost one in fifty people.[4]
Manifestation for aquaphobia
Specific phobias are a type of anxiety disorder in which a person may feel extremely anxious or has a panic attack when exposed to the object of fear. Specific phobias are a common mental disorder.[5]
Psychologists indicate that aquaphobia manifests itself in people through a combination of experiential and genetic factors.[6] In the case of a 37 year old media professor, he noted that his fear initially presented itself as a, "severe pain, accompanied by a tightness of his forehead," and a choking sensation, discrete panic attacks and a reduction in his intake of fluids.[7]
Etymology
The correct Greek-derived term for "water-fear" is hydrophobia, from ὕδωρ (hudōr), "water"[8] and φόβος (phobos), "fear".[9] However, this word has long been used in English to refer specifically to a symptom of later-stage rabies, which manifests itself in humans as difficulty in swallowing, fear when presented with liquids to drink, and an inability to quench one's thirst.
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