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Fear of AIDS: Its meaning and implications for clinical practice

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Abstract

Clinical reports have appeared about patients who present for mental health treatment with the major symptom of fearing that they have AIDS. The clinical reports of patients who fear AIDS are similar to those made many years ago by patients who feared syphilis. As with the syphilophobia of years ago, the AIDS group represents a divergent set of patients. Some can be described as the “worried well” who have realistic concerns because of a recent history of high risk behavior; others have unrealistic fears that are secondary to a major mental disorder such as hypochondriasis, depression, or schizophrenia. Suggestions are made to psychotherapists who encounter patients presenting with the problem of fearing AIDS.

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Authors
  1. Samuel Knapp Ed.D.
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  2. Leon Vandecreek Ph.D., ABPP
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The views expressed here do not necessarily represent those of the Pennsylvania Psychological Association

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Knapp, S., Vandecreek, L. Fear of AIDS: Its meaning and implications for clinical practice. J Contemp Psychother 19, 239–247 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00946034

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