Germophobia Or Mysophobia
Cleanliness is next to godliness, or so the saying goes. Of course, getting too clean leads to images of scrubbing the skin clean off in the sink due to obsessive compulsive disorder, bordering o germophobia or an irrational fear or germs.
Also known as mysophobia, it’s becoming less of a condition and more of the standard, what with advertisers threatening sweet death if your house has so much as a spot in the kitchen. Monk might make it cute, but apparently, that only happens in television.
Now, germophobia or mysophobia is the pathological or irrational fear of dirt, due to the germs or out of fear of being contaminated with stuff from the dirt – which is strange, considering that not too long ago in the history of the world we were living in the dirt. Ancient ancestors of ours lived and caves. Long before anyone figured it out, people were drinking water that wasn’t even boiled.
And we’ve progressed to the point that germophobia is turning into something you’re supposed to have. It’s always a good idea to make sure that what you put in your body is clean, but too much clean stuff especially for the young means that their immune systems never get a shot to develop. For those who’re looking to travel, it’s not a joke. If your body isn’t used to the normal things that are in water, you’ll find yourself with a stomach flu, feeling terrible when a whole lot of people drink it with no ill effects.
It’s gotten to the point where germophobia’s turned into a self-fulfilling prophecy. People used to be afraid of touching the dirt or getting dirty for fear of, well, looking dirty or the germs in the dirt – now, with their immune systems laid low by all the alcohol and the handle sprays and the prissyness that doesn’t really do anything for you.
In fact, that handle spray is threatening to become a modern day standard – a few years ago, someone decided to invent something that automatically sprays the handle of any door to kill off all the bacteria there. I can get behind the idea of cleaning a public toilet seat – but the door handle? There’s being hygienic and being out of control and that’s pretty much bordering on it.
I’m not saying that people should live wild and like the floors of some Motel six. I mean, nasty stuff has been found there, from your generic fungus to, well, fecal matter. What people should realize is that there is a time and a place for people to be careful with their skin, to be careful with what they touch. Too much vitamin C will destroy your body – being too careful with your health actually does the same as counterintuitive as that would seem. It’s a matter of appropriateness – if you feel it’s taken over your life, it may very well have.
Take some good parts from germophobia – be careful in some places. Just don’t suffer from it. It may cost you more than the germs would.