Algophobia Algophobia Algophobia is a phobia of pain - an abnormal and persistent fear of pain that is far more powerful than that of a normal person. Algophobia is much more common in elderly people. It can be treated with behavioral therapy and anti-anxiety medication. The term comes from the , "álgos", "pain" and , "phóbos", "fear". According to Sabino Metta, a behavioral psychologist, the phobic reaction is a learned behavior. A common example of this would be an elderly person who hears about all of their friends suffering from various ailments and pains. This person will begin to anticipate the
The Story of the Youth Who Went Forth to Learn What Fear Was their wedding, the boy's continuing complaints annoyed his wife to no end. Reaching her wits' end, she sent for a bucketful of stream water, complete with gudgeons. She tossed the freezing water onto her husband while he was asleep. As he awoke, shuddering, he exclaimed that while he had finally learned to shudder, he still did not know what true fear was. The fairy tale is based on a tale from the German state of Mecklenburg and one from Zwehrn in Hesse, probably from Dorothea Viehmann, as told by Ferdinand Siebert from the area of the Schwalm. In the first