We've all experienced anxiety even thinking: Tomorrow I'm at work.
For some people, however, these work-related feelings can create disability and compromise professional and personal well-being. There is also a name for this phenomenon and it is called ergophobia.
What is ergophobia?
The term ergophobia, which is derived from the Greek 'ergon' (work) and 'phobos' (fear), refers to an irrational and excessive fear of work. It can sometimes be called ergasiophobia, work aversion or workplace phobia. It is a phobia that can cause serious distress and impairment in social and occupational functioning and, in the long term, can lead to work avoidance.
People suffering from this condition feel fear and anxiety both at the idea of going to work and when they are at work. It is a fear – which can actually be a combination of fears, such as failing at certain tasks, speaking in front of work groups or socializing with colleagues – that can cause physical and mental discomfort and lead to an inability to perform tasks and professional or work activities.
Although ergophobia is not specifically mentioned in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), it is considered a specific phobia.
For this type of phobia to be possible, the fear must be irrational and disproportionate to any actual threat. A surgeon, for example, may experience a certain level of anxiety about the risks associated with an operation. A surgeon with ergophobia may experience a debilitating fear of what is happening, causing him to avoid operating on patients altogether.
It is not unusual to find that people who suffer from ergophobia start working later in life than their peers. People with ergophobia also have a more exaggerated or irrational level of fear and may even avoid applying for jobs. They may feel overly stressed by ordinary work situations, even when they are well.
Psychological causes and origins
Specific phobias are acquired when a direct or indirect negative or traumatic event occurs involving a particular stimulus, such as a toxic work environment.
Someone suffering from ergophobia is likely to have experienced a negative or frightening event at work: they may have been publicly humiliated by a boss or colleague, made a mistake at work that was emotionally significant, or even had a event in the workplace that caused fear. Like a violent boss.
Similarly, a person may develop an indirect fear of work by learning about or witnessing traumatic events in the workplace, such as workplace bullying or violence.
Other risk factors may add to this. Among them is, for example, performance anxiety, a genetic component - studies show that there is a strong family link associated with the development of specific phobias - and a particular brain function.
Symptoms of ergophobia
People suffering from ergophobia may manifest this fear differently, based on the type of occupation or career undertaken, as well as on the basis of personal characteristics or the presence of conditions, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, generalized anxiety or depression.
However, typically, symptoms (which persist for long periods and for at least 6 months) may include:
Unjustified fear when going to work or thinking about doing so;
Physical symptoms of anxiety, such as shaking, sweating, fast heart rate, dry mouth, difficulty concentrating, and difficulty breathing, such as feeling suffocated;
Panic attacks;
Avoiding work, which may result in long periods of sickness or avoiding applying or attending job interviews;
Persistent and worsening anxiety and worry;
Impairment of social and professional functioning;
Inability to meet work deadlines;
Difficulty keeping a job;
Long periods of unemployment;
Lack of willingness to take on additional work responsibilities;
Thinking about negative work situations or challenges at work;
Disengagement at the workplace;
Underemployment (working fewer hours or in low-skill jobs).
Diagnosis and analysis
It is often difficult to diagnose this condition because many people do not seek help: therefore, it is not possible to estimate the real incidence of this condition.
In general, to be recognized as ergophobia, symptoms must persist for more than six months.
The first step to overcoming ergophobia is to seek professional help to understand whether it is ordinary work-related anxiety or an irrational fear.
