Overcome the fear of moving
The fear of moving is a real and devastating problem for some people. The anxiety of moving to a new state, city, or even a new home can be overwhelming for some.
As hard as it may be to believe, there are tens of thousands of people who suffer from fear of moving, or tropophobia as it is called. It is a very real and diagnosable disorder that, if left unchecked, can have devastating consequences for those who suffer from it.
Tropophobia is known by several names, including the most common ones such as Fear of moving and Fear of making changes. For those who have never experienced any type of anxiety on the move, it can be difficult to understand exactly how debilitating this disorder can be. For those who have been at least a little anxious about moving to a new location, it would be a little easier to understand how a disorder like tropophobia can be so debilitating, how it can have such a huge impact on the quality of life of those who suffer from it. .
Some people live in the same state, in the same city, even in the same house all their lives and never think or need to consider moving to a new location. Their lives are well rounded and well adjusted to their particular environment and they lead happy and fulfilling lives. But there are those who will live with a fear, a fear of change, a fear that keeps them trapped in the same house, the same town, the same state, for years or even a lifetime.
Studies have revealed, especially in larger metropolitan areas like New York and Los Angeles, that people live their entire lives in the same house, never venturing outside of a mentally determined safe zone. Either a municipal area like Brooklyn, New York, or a neighborhood within that area. Stories keep surfacing about people who know little about the world around them because they suffer from severe tropophobia.
Trying to explain the thoughts and feelings of those who suffer is very difficult to put into words to give readers the ability to understand. It might be easier to understand if one were to say it like that. Imagine yourself standing on a rocky cliff, your feet already halfway over the edge. Imagine looking down from that cliff and not being able to see the bottom, only darkness as the distance recedes under your gaze. Imagine kicking a rock over the edge and waiting for the report that it hit bottom, but never hearing it.
Now imagine, if you will, that the world tells you that a better and more abundant life is right in front of you just a few steps away and all you have to do is take a few more steps and cross the edge, from that edge you have been . standing up, which from your point of view is the only stable ground you have left before you fall into a bottomless pit.
Of course it’s not that simplistic. Characterizing all the facets that make up the disorder would, of course, show that it is much more multidimensional. But the above illustration serves as a reference example of the thought.
The fear of moving has the ability to devastate not only the life of those who suffer from it, but also that of those around them. Suffering from tropophobia can lead to the loss of job opportunities or promotion or even the loss of a career. If a spouse needs to move due to work, it can cause serious marital problems far beyond the normal pressures of such an event. Fear of moving or fear of change can have not only devastating psychological effects, but also damaging physical effects as a result of anxiety.
Tropophobia is not always easy to detect as a disorder. Many people who are afraid to move don’t realize it. They may have developed a sophisticated method of coping that is capable of rationalizing each and every decision they make to resist making changes, reasons that may sound and seem totally convincing on the surface. But when rationalization is exhausted and a problem is finally recognized, there is hope.
The hope is that, like any other phobia, tropophobia can be treated, it can be overcome.
Many times taking the first small step to treat it will give way to giant steps in a very short time. In other cases, slow and methodical steps toward treatment and recovery are needed. There are agencies and support groups that can help. If you suffer or know someone who suffers from fear of moving, do not let it control you. Take control and get the help you need to improve yourself and live a better life. The first step is to become aware of the fear, and the second is to act against that fear.