Mysophobia, also known as verminophobia, germophobia, germaphobia, bacillophobia and bacteriophobia, is a pathological fear of contamination and germs. The term was coined by William A. Hammond in 1879 when describing a case of obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) exhibited in repeatedly washing one's hands.[1] Mysophobia has long been related to compulsive hand washing.[2] Names pertaining directly to the abnormal fear of dirt and filth include molysmophobia or molysomophobia, rhypophobia, and rupophobia, whereas the terms bacillophobia and bacteriophobia specifically refer to the fear of bacteria and microbes in general.[3][unreliable source?]
People with mysophobia usually display signs including:[6][citation needed]
excessive hand-washing
an avoidance of locations that might contain a high presence of germs
a fear of physical contact, especially with strangers
excessive effort dedicated to cleaning and sanitizing one's environment
a refusal to share personal items
a fear of becoming ill
Mysophobia greatly affects the everyday life of individuals and can range in severity of symptoms from difficult breathing, excessive perspiration, increased heart rate, and states of panic when exposed to germ-enhanced conditions.[6]
Cause
There are many underlying factors and reasons that a person may develop mysophobia, such as anxiety, depression, or a traumatic situation.[6] Developing in a culture where hygiene is heavily integrated into society (use of hand sanitizers, toilet seat covers, and antibacterial wipes for commonly used items such as grocery carts), can also be a main driving force for the development of mysophobia.[6]
^Hammond, William Alexander (1879). Neurological Contributions. Putnam. p. 40 – via Internet Archive.
^"Cleanliness Rules Germaphobes' Lives". WebMD. from the original on November 2, 2019. Retrieved September 10, 2017.
^. Archived from the original on October 27, 2014. Retrieved September 3, 2014.
^μύσος 2021-02-24 at the Wayback Machine, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, on Perseus
^φόβος 2021-02-25 at the Wayback Machine, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, on Perseus
^ abcdSmith, Kathleen. "Mysophobia (Germophobia): Are You a Germaphobe?". Psycom. from the original on 2019-07-11. Retrieved 2019-11-17.
^"It's No Coincidence That Hitler Was a Germaphobe". Big Think. Retrieved 2023-01-11.
^Thomas, Sarah (2014-03-24). "Famous Germaphobes". NHPR. New Hampshire Public Radio. from the original on 2019-11-14. Retrieved 2019-11-17.
^Lippman, Daniel (July 7, 2019). "The Purell presidency: Trump aides learn the president's real red line". Politico. from the original on January 25, 2022. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
External links
Mysophobia and the Ebola Virus
January 31, 2023
mysophobia, germophobia, redirects, here, confused, with, germanophobia, confused, with, mycophobia, hatred, sound, misophonia, also, known, verminophobia, germophobia, germaphobia, bacillophobia, bacteriophobia, pathological, fear, contamination, germs, term,. Germophobia redirects here Not to be confused with Germanophobia Not to be confused with Mycophobia For the hatred of sound see Misophonia Mysophobia also known as verminophobia germophobia germaphobia bacillophobia and bacteriophobia is a pathological fear of contamination and germs The term was coined by William A Hammond in 1879 when describing a case of obsessive compulsive disorder OCD exhibited in repeatedly washing one s hands 1 Mysophobia has long been related to compulsive hand washing 2 Names pertaining directly to the abnormal fear of dirt and filth include molysmophobia or molysomophobia rhypophobia and rupophobia whereas the terms bacillophobia and bacteriophobia specifically refer to the fear of bacteria and microbes in general 3 unreliable source MysophobiaOther namesGermophobiaSpecialtyPsychologyThe term mysophobia comes from the Greek mysos musos uncleanness 4 and fobos phobos fear 5 Contents 1 Signs and symptoms 2 Cause 3 Society 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksSigns and symptoms EditPeople with mysophobia usually display signs including 6 citation needed excessive hand washing an avoidance of locations that might contain a high presence of germs a fear of physical contact especially with strangers excessive effort dedicated to cleaning and sanitizing one s environment a refusal to share personal items a fear of becoming illMysophobia greatly affects the everyday life of individuals and can range in severity of symptoms from difficult breathing excessive perspiration increased heart rate and states of panic when exposed to germ enhanced conditions 6 Cause EditThere are many underlying factors and reasons that a person may develop mysophobia such as anxiety depression or a traumatic situation 6 Developing in a culture where hygiene is heavily integrated into society use of hand sanitizers toilet seat covers and antibacterial wipes for commonly used items such as grocery carts can also be a main driving force for the development of mysophobia 6 Society EditSome well known people who have or had mysophobia include Adolf Hitler 7 Howard Stern Nikola Tesla Howard Hughes Howie Mandel Saddam Hussein and Donald Trump 8 9 See also EditList of phobiasReferences Edit Hammond William Alexander 1879 Neurological Contributions Putnam p 40 via Internet Archive Cleanliness Rules Germaphobes Lives WebMD Archived from the original on November 2 2019 Retrieved September 10 2017 Bacillophobia Fear of microbes Archived from the original on October 27 2014 Retrieved September 3 2014 mysos Archived 2021 02 24 at the Wayback Machine Henry George Liddell Robert Scott A Greek English Lexicon on Perseus fobos Archived 2021 02 25 at the Wayback Machine Henry George Liddell Robert Scott A Greek English Lexicon on Perseus a b c d Smith Kathleen Mysophobia Germophobia Are You a Germaphobe Psycom Archived from the original on 2019 07 11 Retrieved 2019 11 17 It s No Coincidence That Hitler Was a Germaphobe Big Think Retrieved 2023 01 11 Thomas Sarah 2014 03 24 Famous Germaphobes NHPR New Hampshire Public Radio Archived from the original on 2019 11 14 Retrieved 2019 11 17 Lippman Daniel July 7 2019 The Purell presidency Trump aides learn the president s real red line Politico Archived from the original on January 25 2022 Retrieved March 3 2021 External links EditMysophobia and the Ebola Virus Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Mysophobia amp oldid 1134098130, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
