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You feel disgusted at your feet, no matter how well-groomed they are and who they are on? This is not hysteria, but actually a disease: podophobia.
Horny heels, hairy toes, unkempt toenails, sticky sock lint between the toes, nail fungus: we can probably agree that no one finds this particularly appealing. Feet are probably not the sexiest parts of the body in general. Well, with the exception of foot fetishists, there are probably only a few people who claim to have really beautiful toes or who describe the feet as aesthetic. So far, so normal.
Foot care & pedicure: this is how you make your feet suitable for the open air
But there are people who themselves expect their partner to * not * take off their socks in bed so that they do not come into contact with their bare feet. Those who even have a problem with cuddly baby feet that cannot attack their own children and ask their guests to please dress up house paws. One could speak of hysteria here. Or an inappropriately large amount of disgust. But it is actually a recognized disease: the fear of feet, Podophobia.
Podophobia is a real disease
The phobia becomes a problem for those affected, especially in summer when many people wear flip-flops and open sandals. Common to all phobias is the avoidance behavior with which those affected usually react to their fears. Depending on the anxiety disorder someone suffers from, it can severely restrict everyday life. In the worst case, if you suffer from claustrophobia, you hardly ever leave your apartment.
Hopefully this will only happen in the rarest of cases with podophobia and therefore does not really have to be treated like an illness. However, if you are severely restricted in everyday life by your fears, it is advisable to take action. And many fears can be treated well. With behavior therapy, for example. During the therapy, the causes of the anxiety are researched and those affected are confronted with their fears in small steps in order to learn that they are unfounded.
