Fears and Phobias

[hails]

I will literally lose all control when I see a spider of any kind, it's definitely gotten me into some embarrassing situations lately. Like the ride at Universal Orlando...lmao....

[TheCakeIsAlive]

I'm also afraid of the inability to escape from confined spaces. As long as I know I have an escape route, I am fine, but if I feel trapped, I start really panicking.

This. I need to have some means of escape (it's probably a control issue).

I also can't have people I'm not comfortable around too close to me, which makes lecture theatres hell sometimes. It's worse if they're male (bad experiences) and even worse if they are between me and an escape route. If people get so far into my personal space that any move from either may lead to touching with no possibility to avoid, I have been known to panic.

Sticking me in the middle of a tight-packed crowd would be the quickest method of inducing a full-blown panic attack.

Apart from that, arachnophobia, I start trembling when I get too close to a spider, regardless of whether I feel scared or not. It's been getting a bit better recently when it comes to tiny spiders, but I will not get close enough to remove it.

I'm not afraid of heights per se (happy mountain goat), but terrified if there's nothing underneath it. So I can be very happy standing on a tall mountain but terrified going up a ladder.

[Joal 555]

They'll run away and I won't be able to find them but I'll KNOW it's in my room

This ^^ exactly this!

By coincidence, I had one in my room last night. I suddenly looked down and there it was, the biggest one I've ever seen, practically taunting me and staring at me with a steely gaze (ok maybe not, but my heart was pounding). By the way, every one I see is "the biggest one I've ever seen" but this one really was huuuuuuuge. Anyway, I had to screw up my courage and deal with it as there is only me here, so I did. And then gradually my heart began to beat normally again, but I keep looking at the exact spot where I found it to make sure there isn't another one!

Pathetic? Maybe, but that's phobias for you........

[OhMeOhMy]

Apparently there's no scientific name for it, probably because it's not exactly an irrational fear, but I my biggest fear is the fear of asphyxiation or drowning. Any lack of oxygen, being in a place where I might run out of oxygen, drowning in a pool, having my face covered with something that could hinder my breathing.

To me, that would be the worst way to go out.

But you know, it doesn't stop me from swimming or doing other things. I know how to swim, and it's unlikely I'll ever be locked in a small room with no openings for an extended amount of time and run out of air.

[Graham Cracked]

God I just found another fear... Achilles heels, or more specifically, what can happen if they snap...*shudders*

[alias]

Growing up I was EXTREMELY emetophobic (fear of vomit). I still have a problem with it, but I've grown to at least not panic and drive myself crazy over it. It's mostly a fear of myself throwing up (something about the feeling is so horrible, and I'm sure a lot of it is mental, but it's hard to overcome, and hard to understand unless you experience the fear yourself). So often that also means fear of the stomach flu, because that is contagious. Now I can handle seeing it on TV, reading about it, talking about it, and being in the same vicinity of it if it is unrelated to the flu (but I'd really really really prefer not to on that one). I do still jump if I'm surprised with it in a movie or something though. It's a work-in-progress. I'm determined to completely overcome it someday and not have it hold me back from anything. I have come very far from where I used to be.

[walrus]

Balloons. And not just because they make loud noises. As soon as someone puts one in their mouth, I freak out and run away. The worst part is, all my friends make fun of me, and the male ones especially will blow up plastic or paper bags and pop them near my face.

Waterfalls.

I'm just so scared of falling over the top of one, and drowning at the bottom. I can handle heights, but not waterfalls.

Also the ocean. I wouldn't call it a 'fear' per-say, but it scares me quite a lot that there's almost no bottom in the deepest parts, and that you don't know what lurks in the dark water.

[megacycle]

I'm glad your all sharing your fears with me. I'm glad I'm not the only one with phobias.

Though I may have just gained a few more. XD

[VividBubbles!]

I don't have a fear of heights exactly, just jumping off something high. I guess I'm kinda like a cat. I'll climb a tree but I won't come down. However, I really want to go skydiving.

I have a fear of small, dark places. Especially getting stuck in them. *shudders*

I'm also deathly afraid of getting caught on this forum by my parents. I swear that while I'm on here I'm probably the most paranoid person ever.

[Bluebird]

I'm naturally a very anxious person and suffer with anxiety daily- luckily, I'm learning to keep it under control, but it still flares up every once in a while.

Big crowds tend to put me off and make me feel uneasy, but I'm working on it.

I have five actual phobias- emetophobia (fear of vomiting), athazagoraphobia (fear of being rejected), arsonophobia (fear of fire, although this one is starting to get better), arachnophobia (fear of spiders), and apiphobia (fear of bees). Fear of bees is relatively new- I got stung when I was young and they come in swarms on my school's baseball field...they were swarming me today and it was terrifying.

I also fear not being good enough. That's a very big one of mine. I think it ties into the athazagoraphobia.

[March Hare]

Of course, there is one thing we must all keep in mind, no matter how hard it is to live by it:

Pay no heed to your fears; they are LYING.

[Chanel_no5]

FEAR: False Evidence Appearing Real

Doesn't make it less difficult to battle though, but it is true. In most cases, anyway.

[Deadsh0t]

Natsuko, on 12 August 2012 - 03:55 PM, said: but I mean, a baby lives inside its mother for 9 months, right? It's kinda like a parasite... That is actually exactly how I feel about pregnancy. It just feels so wrong to me, I never want to have babies. No way.

I have this exact fear, it's called tocophobia. It's probably my biggest fear; I'm always terrified/paranoid that I'm pregnant even when I know that there's no way I could be (IUDs for the win <3). It's not just the idea of the baby growing inside me that squicks me out, though. It's just the whole parenthood thing in general. The process of giving birth and how plain messy it is, how you loose your dignity in front of complete strangers. The idea of someone else having my genetics, tied in with fears that I may pass my own imperfections onto this new person. I hate how fragile babies are, I hate vomit and ...other excretions *shudder*. It also squicks me out when I see an attractive man or woman getting all tender/loving over a child. I have no idea why.

I've been told several times by several people that I'm unnatural for feeling this way, or that I'm simply making it up, but it's very real to me.

So yeah, just the whole pregnancy/parenthood package makes me feel sick to my stomach, really.

[smooshi]

Coulrophobia- the fear of clowns. Thanks to Mr Stephen King. Clowns are creepy, creepy things with those pale faces and fake smiles.

I am also afraid of sleeping uncovered. I just think something will kill me if I fall asleep with my foot not completely under the sheets.

[Prongs]

Emetophobia

Can't hear it, can't watch it, can barely talk about it without getting all shaky and having a panic attack. It wasn't always this bad, but I've always had it.

Also the fear of losing my vision, whatever that one's called. Whenever I excersize in the heat without a break or water, my head starts swimming and I see little black dots moving in and out of my eyes and I feel like I'm going to pass out or 'v'...which is a bad combination with my other phobia, so panicking.

[Jamison Leigh]

I have too many to list them all, but the top ones are.

Water: If it's aquaphobia or hydrophobia, I'm not sure. I just remember I had a nightmare about being a room slowly filling with water when I was a little girl and have hated water ever since. Pools, rain, puddles, water bottles. No, no, no and no.

Outdoors: There could be bugs or other equally creepy things. Ick.

Driving: I had a car wreck in March 2011, and I still get a little panicky whenever I'm behind the wheel. Although now, I'm not sure if it's -my- driving that scares me or if it's everyone else on the road. But, I'm trying to concur it. I'm gonna have to drive the highway to and from college 5 days a week.

Sorry if these fears are a little...lame.xD

[Heavy-Chevy]

I would say I have a moderate fear of heights, but mostly just a fear of falling. But it's not something that I would totally freak out over, unless I was in real trouble. But my biggest phobia is centipedes! Now I'm not usually afraid of any other crawling bugs, I don't mind spiders and such. But there's something about those multi-legged crawling stinging things that just sends chills up my spine. The small ones are bad enough. I'm just thankful I don't live in south America or East Asia where they have REALLY big ones that can reach lengths of 2-3ft! GAHHH!!!

[megacycle]

I forgot to mention one other fear, the fear of being rejected or left behind/forgotten.

I don't usually mention this fear to to many people. But I don't want people to forget about me or just leave me with out saying anything. I fear being the outcast of a group. The last person to go to for anything.

The kind of person that gets invited to something because they are the last resort, not because they are liked or loved by said person.

My last fear is a fear of being alone, rejected, or forgotten. I don't think this fear has any special name like most, but its still very real.

[Bluebird]

Coulrophobia- the fear of clowns. Thanks to Mr Stephen King. Clowns are creepy, creepy things with those pale faces and fake smiles.

I have a minor-scale version of this. It...doesn't help matters that my marching band has to march a clown parade (I swear you just read that right) sometime in the fall...

Natsuko, on 12 August 2012 - 03:55 PM, said: but I mean, a baby lives inside its mother for 9 months, right? It's kinda like a parasite... That is actually exactly how I feel about pregnancy. It just feels so wrong to me, I never want to have babies. No way.

I have this exact fear, it's called tocophobia. It's probably my biggest fear; I'm always terrified/paranoid that I'm pregnant even when I know that there's no way I could be (IUDs for the win <3). It's not just the idea of the baby growing inside me that squicks me out, though. It's just the whole parenthood thing in general. The process of giving birth and how plain messy it is, how you loose your dignity in front of complete strangers. The idea of someone else having my genetics, tied in with fears that I may pass my own imperfections onto this new person. I hate how fragile babies are, I hate vomit and ...other excretions *shudder*. It also squicks me out when I see an attractive man or woman getting all tender/loving over a child. I have no idea why.

I've been told several times by several people that I'm unnatural for feeling this way, or that I'm simply making it up, but it's very real to me.

So yeah, just the whole pregnancy/parenthood package makes me feel sick to my stomach, really.

This basically sums up my feelings towards childbirth and pregnancy in one fell swoop. I mean...it's pretty far off into the future, but I've been thinking a lot recently about if I'm ever going to give birth to kids of my own or adopt them or what. The more I think about it, the more I would like to have at least one child when I'm older, but just the thought of pregnancy is enough to send me into hysterics.

I mean, I'm a twin and I always hear these horror stories from my mom about when she was pregnant with me and my sister and it's just not something I would want to go through. Vomiting is pretty much my biggest fear, along with the fact that this...this living thing is growing and developing inside of me and I have to bring it out. No thank you. As depressing as it's going to sound, I can even see my own anxieties getting in the way of childbirth and I'd be so scared that I'd screw up my own child.

TL;DR: What Midnight said covers all of my feelings and I'm a neurotic mess.

[Salamander]

Paws- a friend of mine was like that about pregnancy. All through her pregnancy she would periodically freak out and have anxiety attacks about having something living in her body... she had her baby and is suddenly the calmest and happiest Mum I have ever met. I can empathise though. It is weird. I really look forwards to getting pregnant so I can know what it's like.

[Deadsh0t]

Paws- a friend of mine was like that about pregnancy. All through her pregnancy she would periodically freak out and have anxiety attacks about having something living in her body... she had her baby and is suddenly the calmest and happiest Mum I have ever met. I can empathise though. It is weird. I really look forwards to getting pregnant so I can know what it's like.

You might be quite right there. If it's just a fear of pregnancy and not a fear of having the child and bringing it up, i'd say don't let it hold you back. But the thing that I have is a fear of producing and raising children as a whole.

[megacycle]

I wouldn't really know much about that, since I obviously can't have a child grow inside of me, but I can understand the fears of raising a child. Would I be a good parent? Would I be able to support a child? Would I set a good example for my child? Stuff like that really does scare me, but I don't plan on having any children anytime soon.

[Joal 555]

I'll add another one to my earlier entry

Fear of going blind - my late grandfather was blind, my father has glaucoma and I am borderline glaucoma. It's being monitored, so it's very likely that the worst won't happen (as it can be controlled with eye drops and/or other treatment) but even so, it's hard not to imagine the consequences sometimes.......

[March Hare]

Also, failing. I can't even wrap my head around failing. I will do EVERYTHING at ALL COSTS not to fail. I can't fail. I can't disappoint. I must be superhuman. No mistakes. No disappointment. I must not EVER fail. I DO fail of course. That results in intense unpleasant emotions and such.

THIS. No mistakes EVER. Never mind that failing is human, right? No mistakes. Nothing short of perfect. Nothing rather than something that's not perfect. This is why I've missed more deadlines than Phyllis Diller made husband jokes. It's incredibly stupid.

We should go to fail school together.

[Jorm]

Also, failing. I can't even wrap my head around failing. I will do EVERYTHING at ALL COSTS not to fail. I can't fail. I can't disappoint. I must be superhuman. No mistakes. No disappointment. I must not EVER fail. I DO fail of course. That results in intense unpleasant emotions and such.

THIS. No mistakes EVER. Never mind that failing is human, right? No mistakes. Nothing short of perfect. Nothing rather than something that's not perfect. This is why I've missed more deadlines than Phyllis Diller made husband jokes. It's incredibly stupid.

We should go to fail school together.

Is there room for one more in fail school?