Scriptophobia is the extreme fear of writing for public view or review. The word Scriptophobia is derived from the Latin word script which means writing and phobos which is the Greek word for fear or dread.
Scriptophobia is a very common phobia which affects a lot of people though most are not aware. They are unable to do anything that involves expressing themselves in written words and when some tries, it looks like something a newborn baby wrote which is quite contrasting to the person’s overall intelligence quotient.
Now writing can be quite a daunting task if it involves creative writing such as story writing, content developing or copywriting.
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But when it comes to easy things like essay writing and you find yourself struggling to use the right words, or find it difficult to write just a sentence or two, then you should start taking steps to get over this phobia.
Causes of Scriptophobia
The fear of writing is caused by a lot of things ranging from your immediate environment, to how sensitive you are. We all know that the most formative period of a human being is the childhood years. This stage either breaks or makes a being.
Fine, you might be able to change some of the orientation you received as a child when you are much older, but it is definitely not an easy task as you will find yourself endlessly struggling to do so unless your commitment is 100 percent.
When a child is exposed to writing in his/her early years; reading books, writing of a holiday experience, keeping a diary and so on, there would be a lesser fear of developing sriptophobia, this is because writing is now part of the child, like a second nature and with constant practice, that child would become one of the greatest writers ever lived.
The reverse is the case when an adult was not exposed to writing in his/her early formative years. Developing the skills later in life might be difficult but not impossible.
It can also be caused by fear of criticism, especially for someone who is very sensitive and tries to shield away from any negativity the world brings. Most times, people are not constructive with their criticism and would rather use derogatory words when criticizing. This causes more harm than good to the recipient and if it happens to be someone without a thick back and strong belief in what he or she does, it could lead to far worse damaging consequences of which scriptophobia is one of them. The individual begins to fear writing because of criticism, whatever he/she writes would never be good enough.
As a student, the teacher might be the cause of the phobia, always criticizing and mocking the student’s writing instead of encouraging and teaching more.
Signs Of Scriptophobia
Watch out for these signs when you are asked to write to determine if you really have this phobia:
Extreme Anxiety, Confusion, Dread, Shortness of Breath, Rapid Breathing, Palpitations, Excessive Sweating, Inability to Articulate Clearly, Lack of Focus, Irritability, Shaking, Feelings of Powerlessness, Feelings of Losing Control, Avoidance Behavior.
Ways To Get Over Scriptophobia
Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) , Habit Strategies To Relax, Cognitive Therapy (CT), In Vivo Exposure, Response Prevention, Hypnotherapy, Group Therapy, Psychotherapy. Energy Psychology, Medication, Meditation are therapeutic ways of conquering the phobia. You can see a therapist to guide you through it but if you feel it is not too severe then these steps can serve as a guide to overcoming it.
Practice every chance you get:
Do not wait till there is an essay to write before you try out your writing capability. Try out writing three or four times a week. Write essays on different topics, pour your heart out, this is not the time to check spelling or grammatical errors, you can do that after the 10th edit. Write, write, write till it becomes part of you as practice makes perfect.
Get defensive of your work:
You know you’ve put in a great deal of effort to put that essay together and along come someone with destructive criticism trying to put your efforts down. You definitely shouldn’t let that person get through to you. Stand up for your work and efforts when you sense a destructive or negative criticism and stay far away from people with such attitude.
Get help:
Get the help of a professional writer or someone who is very good with essay writing and ask that they teach you the basics. Keep the communication open so you can ask whatever question you wish to.
Write yourself:
Allowing your parents, siblings or anyone write your essay is not a wise thing to do as it might cause problems for you in the future. You might be called for a physical interview and be asked to write another essay, what would you do? Try righting yourself and you will get extremely positive results.
Enjoy writing:
You have to have passion in what you do to do it right. So to write a good essay, you don’t have to see it as a means to an end, but the end itself. Enjoy the topic you are writing on, get deeply involved in its description or argument and you will see ideas and words flowing in a way you never though it would.
Remember, you can only make a difference if you try!
