What is Cherophobia?

The querophobia is the irrational fear of being happy. The term comes from the Greek word "chero", which means "to rejoice".

When a person experiences cherophobia, they are often afraid to participate in activities that many would describe as fun or that give a sense of happiness. The truth is that it has not yet been investigated or clearly defined, as this disorder is not yet contemplated in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) to diagnose mental health conditions.

What are the symptoms of cherophobia?

Some experts classify the querophobia as a form of anxiety disorder. In this case, anxiety is related to participation in activities that make us happy.

Is a person with cherophobia always sad? No way. Only avoid activities that can lead to happiness or joy, for example a party, a concert or a meal of friends. The person with cherophobia rejects all those opportunities that could lead to positive changes in life due to the fear that something bad will happen. If someone sounds funny, he will get away from it.

Some of the key thoughts that a person with cherophobia may have include:

• Being happy will mean that something bad will happen to me (something good is followed by something bad)
• Happiness makes you a bad person or a worse person.
• Showing that you are happy is bad for you or your friends and family.
• Trying to be happy is a waste of time and effort.

What are the causes of cherophobia?

Sometimes, the querophobia may be due to the belief that if something very good happens to a person, or if their life is going well, it is also meant for something bad / bad to happen next. As a result, they may fear activities related to happiness because they believe that they can prevent something bad from happening. This is usually the case when someone has experienced a traumatic physical or emotional event in the past.

An introvert may also be more likely to experience this phobia, preferring activities alone or at most with two people at a time. They may feel intimidated or uncomfortable in group settings, noisy places and crowded spaces.

Perfectionists can also be associated with cherophobia. Those who are perfectionists may feel that happiness is a trait only of lazy or unproductive people. As a result, they avoid all that activity associated with happiness.

What are the treatments for cherophobia?

Because querophobia has not been extensively detailed or studied as a separate disorder, there are no FDA-approved medications or other definitive treatments to treat the condition. However, some suggested treatments include cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), relaxation strategies, such as deep breathing, daily or exercise, or exposure to events that cause happiness as a means to help a person identify that happiness does not have why have adverse effects in our life.