All About Philophobia, the Fear of Love, and How to Overcome it with Psychological Therapy & Counselling

What is Philophobia?

Philophobia is the Fear of Love and, like all other fears and phobias, can cause significant anxiety and stress if you suffer from it.

In most cases, the fear of love is likely to be the fear of losing love because of the degree of pain and suffering it can cause.

There may be a number of reasons why you developed Philophobia, for example:

• A partner may have recently broken-up with you leaving you feel sad or even depressed.
• You might have found relationships too difficult to manage or too involving.

Although phobias are often described as ‘disorders’, there is no valid scientific evidence that Philophobia is the result of any kind of biological fault or chemical imbalance as proposed in the biomedical models of mental illness.

On the contrary, Philophobia is much more likely to be the result of your own, subjective evaluation (what you think your experiences mean) of what happened to you and is therefore better described as a psychosocial symptom.

Philophobia Symptoms & Behaviours

All phobias, including Philophobia, create feelings of anxiety because phobic objects or situations are always perceived as a threat.

Consequently, the symptoms of Philophobia are both specific and generic and may include:

• Avoiding getting involved with others.
• Strong feelings of jealousy or suspicion.
• Breaking-off relationships before they break-up with you.
• An elevated heart rate.
• A sense of dread about what might happen.
• Worrying that you might pass out.
• Feeling dizzy or disoriented.
• Having heart palpitations.
• Having a dry or sticky mouth.
• Hot sweats.
• Feeling Stressed.
• Difficulty breathing easily.
• Feelings of panic.

Moreover, you may have all, some or even different symptoms to these listed here and this is due to the subjective nature of Philophobia.

Furthermore, you should also be aware that many of these somatic symptoms (symptoms felt in the body) listed above WILL subside over time and rarely last for more than 20 to 30 minutes.

What Causes Philophobia?

it is likely that your Philophobia is the result of either traumatic experiences or adverse situations that you experienced at some point in your life.

You may, for example, have been in a relationship with somebody who cheated on you leaving you feeling worthless or unworthy.

For some people, avoiding falling in love love may seem like a better option than losing love.

What’s more, because the Fear of Love has never been linked to any biological factors, the most likely explanation for your Philophobia is the way that you understood and made sense of your earlier experiences.

Counselling and Therapy for Philophobia

We can offer you a number of different types of therapy and counselling for your Philophobia the Fear of Love.

Choosing the most suitable therapy depends on a number of different considerations including factors such as:

• How long you have had your phobia.
• Your personal preferences.
• How your phobia is affecting you today.

You can read more about the different types of therapy for Philophobia on the following links:

• Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Philophobia
• Counselling for Philophobia
• Pluralistic Therapy for the Fear of Love

Although all forms of psychotherapy use slightly different approaches, the one thing they all have in common is the relationship that is formed between the client and therapist.

Furthermore, research also suggests that the therapy relationship may be the most important factor in achieving a good therapy outcome.

Arrange your FREE initial consultation here.

If you’d like to find out more about overcoming Philophobia or recovering from related mental health problems then why not arrange a free initial consultation with us.

During this consultation we will discuss your particular phobia and the different types of mental health counselling we offer without you having to commit to any counselling going forward.

The consultation lasts around 50 minutes and is a great opportunity to meet with either Paul or Joan and decide if you would like to proceed with any support.