All of these mentioned situations are caused by phobias.
A phobia is a persistent, irrational fear that causes a person to feel intense anxiety. Phobias are the most common form of anxiety disorders. According to the American National Institute of Mental Health, nearly 10% of people suffer from one or more specific phobias.
The full list of phobias is almost limitless. It can be anything that someone could fear. However, some phobias are much more common than others. Here’s a top ten list of the most common phobias.
Acrophobia - Fear of Heights
Acrophobia in general is a fear of heights. Depending on the phobia's severity, an acrophobic person may fear being on a high floor of a building, or even climbing a ladder. It is sometimes confused with vertigo - a physical condition that causes dizziness or disorientation when looking down from a great height.
Claustrophobia - Fear of Enclosed Spaces
Claustrophobia is the fear of having no escape and being closed in places like: small rooms, locked rooms, cars, tunnels, cellars, elevators, subway trains, caves, and crowded areas
Nyctophobia - Fear of the Dark
It’s one of the most common children phobias. In most cases childhood nyctophobia passes when children grow up. This fear is probably a natural consequence of evolution, because night is the time when most predators hunt.
Ophidiophobia - Fear of Snakes
Like nyctophobia, some researchers believe that this phobia may be evolutionary developed by our ancestors as a survival mechanism. However, would not explain why snake phobias are relatively common, while fears of predatory animals, such as tigers, are rare. People who suffer from this phobia are not only afraid of touching snakes. They also show fear when viewing pictures of snakes or even talking about them.
Arachnophobia - Fear of Spiders
This one is extremely common. Sufferers generally fear spider webs and other signs that a spider may be nearby. They also fear pictures of spiders.
Trypanophobia - Fear of Injection or Medical Needles
Trypanophobia is a medical phobia. It may result in serious physiological responses including very low blood pressure and fainting. In some cases, severe trypanophobia may lead the sufferer to avoid all medical care.
Astraphobia - Fear of Thunder and Lightning
Like nyctophobia it is mostly common among children. Both adults and children tend to deal with the fear by seeking shelter, securing themselves in windowless areas where the storm cannot be seen.
Nosophobia - Fear of Having a Disease
It is the irrational fear of developing a disease. Sufferers may become frequent visitors of the doctor’s office, or may try avoiding doctors because of fear of hearing bad news.
Mysophobia/Germophobia - Fear of Germs
It is similar to nosophobia. It is an intense fear of becoming contaminated by germs. People suffering from this disease very often repetitively wash their hands to remove the contamination.
Triskaidekaphobia - Fear of the Number 13
This phobia unlike the others does not fit neatly into a clinical definition of a specific phobia. The number 13 is not an object or a situation, and it can be impossible for the sufferer to avoid. Nonetheless, triskaidekaphobia has actually influenced the modern world. For example, it is common the hotels or offices don’t have the 13th floor. Many people refuse to live in homes with a 13 in the address. Even public transportation is affected; some airplanes don’t have the 13th row
So, what are YOU afraid of?
Do you have any of the common mentioned phobias, or maybe you have a rare unusual one?
Have you heard of any unusual or even funny phobia?
Why do we even have phobias? Do you think they are something natural?
So, What Are You Afraid Of?
ReplyDeleteFortunately nothing specific, works for me, etc. Of course, horrors are frightening some times as something sudden happens.
Do you have any of the common Mentioned phobias, or maybe you have a rare unusual one?
Fortunately, I have none of mentioned phobias, I also do not recall that I had any phobias at all.
Have you heard of any unusual or even funny phobia?
Yes, my mother persistently washes hands, she does it almost every moment. Even of it looks ridiculous, it does not stop her from doing so. But I think that for some people with phobias it is not ridiculous at all
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I found also very interesting phobia - the large 666, called "Hexakosioihexekontahexaphobia". I cannot repeat it: D can you ?
Even why do we have phobias? Do You Think They Are something natural?
I think this is a natural defensive reaction of our psyche after some dramatic events. For example, a person who sees the tragic situation full of the blood will be afraid of the blood - hemofobia. I managed to find the information that phobias occur in over 10% of the mankind population.
I think that everyone have something that makes him/her fear. Fear is a natural thing, something that alerts you and keeps you safe, but when it changes to phobia it can be a real problem.
ReplyDeleteI would never say that phobia can be funny. When you hear someone saying about his/hers phobia, you can think that it’s ridiculous but for that someone it can be even something that prevents from having a normal life. For example acrophobia – you can’t live a normal life when you’re afraid of going out of your home. It’s getting even more interesting when you try to think what a phobia really is. Is it something like an infection? No, it’s nothing physical, it’s something created by your mind, something that don’t exist anywhere else. I think that the best way to start from when you want to get rid of your fears/ phobias is to understand them and to realize that there’s no true threat out there.
I don't think I have any phobia, but there are few things in which fear may win. For example, I'm not afraid of heights but walking on a rope above canyon or from buildings top to top - I guess I would pass :)
ReplyDeleteI have one friend that (I think so- she don't) has Arachnophobia. After reading this article I must say that my another friend has Nosophobia - he's almost all the time in doctor's office, any kind.
I don't think that phobias are natural. In my opinion something must happened in these people past that they're so frightened of this exact thing.
I have strange phobia. When I was young I had an accident. While I was playing near apiary, bees swarm had left beehive and flew to the place where I was and stung me over 50 times. Now when I see bee I am really frighten.
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ReplyDeleteSo now I could know a have Trypanophobia but it's mayby related with needles and blood.. at vets I was terrified when it goes to taking dog's blood.
ReplyDeleteLike Rafal said phobia cannot be funny, even if all phobia is about is to take your sitting place in bus by Grandma;)
It's actually true there's this phobia, I called it TakeMySitPhobia and I'm first casualty.
Las weekend I was sitting with friends in Park with beers, suddenly 2 older woman arrived and asked something about bench. Before I answered that there's other bench somewhere she sat about us and when I tried to protest or send them where they came from they ware occupying whole bench without place for us!
When I was younger I had Claustrophobia, but now I think I overcome this. My friend is afraid of pigeons - which leads to funny situations sometimes.
ReplyDeleteWhen i was younger :), I had a night dreams fobia. Having the same dream (with witches) frequently repeted i was afraid to go to sleep, it was the time when i was going to kindergarden. But i can remember it till today.
ReplyDeleteThere is one thing missing in this post, althogh it is mentioned in the deffinition than the phobia is irrational fear, it is often mistake for people to think that phobia is just "big" fear. It is not.
ReplyDeleteThe key to distinguish a fear from a phobia is that while most people get the jitters if a spider climbs on their arm, people suffering from arachnophobia -- the fear of spiders -- are physically and/or psychologically impaired by it.
just my 0.02$