Ergophobia: Fear of Work Or Functioning

What Is Ergophobia?

Ergophobia (from Greek word ergon, meaning work, and phobos, fear) is an overwhelming, irrational fear of work, finding work, or functioning. Sufferers of ergophobia experience undue anxiety about the workplace environment even though they realize their fear is irrational.

Ergophobia - Fear Of Work

Causes Of Ergophobia
Ergophobia may be caused by individual fear that they are incapable of handling their job responsibilities and are destined to fail at work. Their fear may actually be a combination of fears, such fear of failing at assigned tasks, fear of speaking in front of groups of their colleagues, fear of socializing with co-workers, or fear of work meetings or committees.

As with any type of phobia, ergophobia may have developed from an incident of trauma at some earlier point in a person’s life. Losing a job or being mocked or maligned for poor work in the past could be a couple of reasons why people develop this fear. There are many potential traumatic causes, and these may not even have occurred in the work place. A person who has had extremely negative experiences making presentations in school might develop ergophobia that relates specifically to making work presentations. Similarly, past experiences where someone could not meet deadlines could cause the physical symptoms of this fear in the present. Some sufferers of Ergophobia also learn the fear from observations of other people such as their parents.

Symptoms Of Ergophobia
The symptoms of Ergophobia are individual and will vary from person to person. Some people, when confronted with their fear of work, may begin to perspire, feel slightly uncomfortable or become nauseated. Some people are so severely compromised by Ergophobia, that they may experience paralyzing anxiety and/or panic attacks.

Treatment For Ergophobia
There are several ways to treat Ergophobia. Some people may require medication to help calm anxiety in the workplace, and they also can benefit from several therapy types. The most common to treat this condition are talk therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, and desensitization therapy. Of these three, the latter two are usually thought most effective. Some larger cities offer group therapy too, for those who suffer from this condition.

With work and time, many with ergophobia are able to make partial or full recovery and may be able to continue working with far less panic and much more confidence. Given that work is often a necessity, need to treat this condition is very high, and getting diagnosis from a professional is important also, since this may help forestall employers from terminating those who suffer from this condition.

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