An anxiety disorder characterized by an irrational
fear of Santa Claus. The signs of clausophobia usually develop early in life during childhood. Signs of clausophobia include: automatically and compulsively looking for exits when sighting a fat bearded man in a red suit or feeling fearful on hearing Ho-ho-ho.

The most common type of treatment for clausophobia involves mental health counseling targeted to overcoming the fear and managing triggering situations.

Different types of strategies include:

* Relaxation and visualization techniques designed to calm the fear when in a clausophobic environment
* Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), an approach that involves learning to control the thoughts that occur when confronted with the fear-inducing situation in such a way as to change the reaction
* Relocating to Tehran
At the sight of Mr Ferguson, the PE teacher, dressed in a red velvet suit with a pillow stuffed in the top of his trousers, the little girls were struck by clausophobia and backed away in abject terror.
by Ria Bacon December 17, 2005
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