Fear of moths – Mottephobia

The word Mottephobia comes from Motte – German for Moths, and phobia, the irrational fear of something. Unfortunately, some people also suffer from a fear of butterflies, which is known as lepidopterophobia. To make it simple, I will refer to the moth as a global term for both moths and butterflies. 

What makes it hard for someone with this phobia, is that they know that the moth is completely harmless and often see them as beautiful. However, the closer that the moth gets to the person, the worse their reaction becomes. 

What Triggers Moth or Butterfly Panic?

It is different for every person, as to which aspect of the moth that sets their phobia off. For some it is the close proximity, for others it may be the sound of the wings beating, for someone else it may be the feel of the wings brushing skin, and for someone else, it may be looking straight-on at the moth’s face.

For others, their mental images may be enough to  bring on a panic response. 

These mental images may be super-sized and feel over-whelming, showing the moth up close and absolutely huge, which is you were confronted with a moth or butterfly that size, could be very overwhelming.  The sound of wings may be amplified, or the person may visualise their panicked reaction when a moth touches them.  It’s as though your senses are heightened and instead of the actual reality of the moth or butterfly, the imagination increases the decibel levels on sights, sounds and feelings from within you.

Often, another family member has this same phobia or may have another phobia that is similar.

Relaxation Training

I suggest starting with relaxation training as you may also be prone to anxiety and stress, so starting with the basics is always a good place. Practise slow deep breathing, go to a yoga or pilates class, or check these out: The Four Seasons  The Hypnosis Habit  The Island as they are general relaxation audio files. I like the titles of these, they instantly help to focus my mind on the positives. 

HYPNOSIS

Overcome Panic Attacks is a hypnosis audio that may also help because you are going to your sub-conscious mind and tapping into the root cause of the problems and helping yourself to release the fears while re-writing your internal scrips with confident and calm behaviour and then you might be able to actually enjoy moths and butterflies.

CBT

Systematic desensitization may also help as you practise deep breathing and stay in a relaxed and calm state and then gradually are exposed to the moth or butterfly, more and more over an extended period of time and across time, perhaps weekly or twice-weekly.

I’d love to hear how you go.