Undoing the Phobia of Buttons

It is our belief that there is no such thing as a silly phobia. This is especially true to the person experiencing and suffering with it. With this in mind, this month's blog post looks at one of the lesser know, yet more limiting phobias.

Koumpounophobia (the phobia of buttons) is just such a fear. If you’ve never encountered a person with a phobia of buttons it might seem a strange, possibly humorous thing to be afraid of. Sadly it is true that people often make fun of button phobia sufferers without realising the very real distress they may be feeling.

It is possible to have a phobia of virtually anything. We can avoid dogs, spiders, snakes and public speaking. When it comes to buttons that becomes much more difficult. Take a look at what you, or the people around you, are wearing. Do you see any buttons? Take a look around you and notice any items of clothing, perhaps a coat, a shirt or blouse, or maybe a dress. Any buttons?

The fact is they are everywhere in society, at home and in the workplace. They are extremely useful things and a key element in many items of fashion. So why and how would anyone develop koumpounophobia?

Why Buttons?

Bad experiences in childhood are usually, but not always, the genesis of most phobias, even if they don’t become a problem until later in life.

Something as simple as an embarrassing button malfunction as a child can lay the foundation for a fear of buttons to develop. A later repetition of such an event can turn an anxiety about buttons into a full blown phobia.


If someone were abused or bullied as a child, there is a good chance that the abuser would have been wearing clothing with buttons. This may be just one of the characteristics to which the victim becomes sensitised.


Choking on a button can be a very real possibility for a small child that has been sucking on an item of clothing, maybe for comfort. The powerful emotions around such a traumatic event can cause the idea and sight of buttons to be a future source of anxiety or even terror.

Nevertheless it is possible to learn a phobia from a loved one such as a caregiver, or a sibling like an older brother or sister, especially when that person already has koumpounophobia. I believe this is what gives rise to the idea of button phobia being an inherited fear.


Our Solution

A phobia can be framed as the brain’s way of  protecting us from something it still perceives as dangerous, embarrassing or traumatic. Hypnotherapy allows us to retrain a sufferer’s brain to disconnect a memory from the lingering emotional response. This happens quickly and is often surprising to a person when they realise they cannot find the fear that has plagued their life. The past can then remain firmly in the past, as a memory, but no longer triggering powerful emotions.