heliophobia

Heliophobia is the fear of the Sun, sunlight, or any bright light. It is a type of specific phobia.

== Signs and symptoms == The symptoms of heliophobia depends on the person. Mild sufferers may feel uncomfortable, shaky, nauseated, or numb. Severe sufferers may feel anxious or suffer panic attacks. Other symptoms include heightened senses, lack of focus, feeling trapped, irregular heartbeat, air hunger, rapid breathing, parched mouth, sweating, muscle cramps, and physical discomfort that is not actually caused by bodily injury, but is a physical manifestation of the panic and fear that the heliophobic person experiences when exposed to light. This physical pain may be expressed, for example, as a phantom sensation of their skin burning under direct sunlight, even when it is visually apparent that their skin is not actually burning any more than healthy skin would as a result of sun exposure, but nonetheless still feels like real pain for the sufferer. However, other differential diagnoses like the rare genetic defect erythropoietic protoporphyria characterized by a severe burning sensation of all exposed skin areas without leading to immediate visible signs have to be excluded.