Are You Afraid Of Weird Stuff?

Ginger
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 08:22 am: [report]

Oh the fears that I could list.

Recently I had to explain to my mother that the reason I don’t use the microwave at work is because I feel it’s too smart. The thing is all shiny and has blue lights and it talks (because we have blind people in the office) about everything. Every button you hit, when the thing starts, when it ends.

It’s set up in the break room and I just feel like it is listening to everything. I won’t use it because I’m afraid it will kill me, and I won’t mention anything secret around it because I’m afraid that when I or someone else hits start, it’ll shout out “Guess what that girl did this weekend!”

I hate that thing.

EnfantDeLune
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 08:28 am: [report]

I have several. I just googled it, and I can’t find names for mine. Honest to goodness, if someone tells me to close my eyes and hold out my hands, it induces a really serious anxiety attack. I clench my hands and panic.

Oh, and maybe this is from watching too many crappy horror movies, but I freak out when I’m showering alone and I wash my face… eyes closed and soapy just makes my mind teem with ridiculous scenarios about how some killer-thing is going to be on the other side of the curtain when I open my eyes.

tigerstripe
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 09:12 am: [report]

I don’t know if it is a phobia exactly… but I really, really hate feet.  I freak out if anyone tries touch me with their bare feet, especially near my head and face, and I usually freak out if someone is trying to touch my feet.  I’ve improved in the past few years though, before then I would never even wear flip-flops.

Emi
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 09:16 am: [report]

I’m afraid of dead bugs. Not ones that are alive - I’ll pick those up and put them outside. But if it’s dead I don’t want to be *anywhere* near it.

msu.umich
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 09:20 am: [report]

i find clustered holes, or holes with depth, repulsive - lotus seeds, honeycombs, pancakes as they are cooking, midwife toads….I am so overwhelmed by how disgusting it is that I want to destroy whatever the object is.  I’ve heard that a lot of people have this, ironically!  its called trypophobia.

GreenAura
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 09:35 am: [report]

Well, I’m a pretty neurotic person so I have a whole list of things that freak me out.

I guess I have Calxophobia… fear of chalk.  I have a rather intense negative reaction around chalk.  Anytime I get near it, I start to grind my teeth, my stomach turns and I get tingles.  I had a tough time in school until high school when they finally started using whiteboards.  It’s probably been 20 years since I was able to even hold a piece of chalk.  And I’m only 26! 

And also, I can’t stand things being aimed at me (rubberbands, ponytails, pencils, whatever). I don’t care if it’s a feather, don’t aim it at me!

I don’t mind the dark, but I mind when it’s dark and someone is there and I can’t see them.  For example, my husband will turn off all the lights in the house while I’m still sitting on the couch.  Even though I know he won’t hurt me, I can’t stand thinking that he could jump out at me.  I will sit there and holler at him until he finally turns the lights on.  Its a nice source of entertainment for him.

Pills… can’t do them!! I can’t stand the thought of something being created in a lab, loaded with chemicals, swallowed, dissolving in my stomach and seeping into my blood stream.  I can’t even do vitamins.  Whenever I am in pain, I deal with it.  But I never go near pills.

n75nva
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 09:40 am: [report]

I’m afraid of kites. I’ve been trying to find the name of the phobia but I can’t.

powplz
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 09:51 am: [report]

@EnFantDeLune - I think about the same thing every time I wash my face in the shower, though it’s worse when the bf is traveling and it’s just me.

I’m also generally afraid of the dark, but only inside.  Walking 50 feet to pee behind a tree in the woods at night?  No problem.  Walking the length of my house in pitch black: not an option. 

I also get freaked out getting into bed after I turn the lights out because for no good reason, I fear that someone/something will reach out from under the bed and grab my ankle.  If I’m home alone that night, I put the dog in bed, then jump into bed after turning the lights out.  Then I can’t have my feet exposed for the same fear, which is odd because I always stick my feet out to cool them off.

And it’s not really a fear, but I get really anxious and worked up if someone tries to jam my bike in the back of a car/truck/suv and it takes repeated tries to find an angle that it fits.  I can’t figure out if I really just prefer to do things easily the first try or if I subconsciously see my bike as an extension of myself and get worked up when it’s manhandled and shoved into a space that it obviously doesn’t want to go.

rsonnack
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 09:51 am: [report]

@enfant
i have the same fear of closing my eyes in the shower! i always feel like when i open my eyes back up, there will be someone - or something - on the other side of the shower curtain waiting to get me. i always tell my boyfriend to announce very loudly if he’s coming into the bathroom while i’m in the shower or i will scream like a little girl when i see his shadow through the curtain.

LunaLena
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 09:59 am: [report]

Aww, they didn’t have my personal favorite on the list!  It’s papaphobia, an intense fear of the Pope or the Catholic church in general.

I’ve always considered myself lucky that I don’t suffer from any particular phobias.  Sure, I get scared of things like being alone in the dark (especially after seeing a scary movie), but nothing like the panic induced by a genuine phobia.

JournalisticallyBlonde
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 10:00 am: [report]

The Jonas Brothers. Seriously. They make me really nervous and uncomfortable.

abbylyn
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 10:01 am: [report]

I am terrified of dark open spaces.  My apartment in the dark, no problem.  Basements, parking lots (without lights) or corn fields in the dark?  I have a serious anxiety attack.  The worst was one night I was closing manager at the restaurant, it was 2am, all I had left to do was lock the back door, grab my stuff, and go.  As I’m locking the door, the entire block loses power.  I tried to call my boss a couple times (on my cell phone, because the land lines didn’t work), he didn’t answer, my boyfriend who was three blocks away wouldn’t come keep me company til I got things figured out.  I ended up freaking out, hardly being able to breath, and crying hysterically.  I nearly lost my job the next day because the power ended up staying out all night, we lost almost everything in the walk-in freezer and refrigerator, and my boss was angry that I didn’t get ahold of him to tell him what was going on the night before.

axdiva
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 10:02 am: [report]

Two fears I have that I have never found a word for:

1. Fear of water towers and wind turbines.

2. Fear of public restrooms - more specifically vents and fans directly above toilets or showers.

Anyone else?

Kati-Anne
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 10:08 am: [report]

I am afraid of rotting food and people touching my wrists (the soft side below my palm). I have no idea why, I’ve never been a cutter and I can’t think of anything that would have lead to this fear, but I flip if someone grabs my wrist or when doctors try to take my pulse from my wrist *shudder*

*sam*
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 10:33 am: [report]

my biggest genuine phobia is of snakes. (I literally just shuddered typing the word). I can’t even handle pictures of them without panicking.

other than that: I have a fear of deep water. I refuse to jump off of any sort of diving board (even if it’s like directly on the ground) and I wont swim to the bottom of a pool if it’s more than maybe 7 feet. I won’t swim in dark water (like a lake) because I’m scared of someone pulling me down, and I would *never* go scuba diving or go down in a sub. I’m terrified that if I were to actually embark on any of these things, I would never be able to make it the surface again without drowning. though, I know that this probably stems from the fact that I’m a terrible swimmer.

Like others here, I hate being alone in the dark (inside only). More specifically, I can’t walk down a hallway in the dark because I’m petrified that someone is going to jump out of a room, and if I get up to use the restroom in the middle of the night, I always have this image in my head that when I turn on the light, I’m going to see a dead person hanging in the shower. I also can’t be in a dark room with a mirror because I’m still scared that bloody mary or the candyman is going to jump out and kill me.

yeah, I’m a little neurotic.. :(

*sam*
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 10:36 am: [report]

Oh, and I also panic if I have to walk into a church (there’s a legitimate story behind that one though..)

PinkRanger
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 10:55 am: [report]

the deep dark ocean freaks me out. I’ve been scuba diving and love it, but if I can’t see any land I get a little panicky. The thing that gets me is the thought of giant sea creatures lol. I know that sounds ridiculous, but the thought of a giant squid, or those deep-sea-gigantism creatures scares the hell out of me. Even whales freak me out a little. Watching the discovery channel bits about these things is like watching a horror movie to me.

I also hate carrying huge stacks of paper because I feel like I"m going to accidentally get paper cuts, and I especially can’t stand for paper to get anywhere near my eyes because I hve this irrational fear of getting a paper cut in my eye. I’m an anxious nut to be quite frank about it lol.

Lilypie
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 11:37 am: [report]

My only phobia is of holding helium-filled balloons.  Put one on a string and hand it to me and I can’t handle it.  At my company, the directors have to hand out bouquets of balloons to associates on their company anniversaries (10 years = 10 balloons).  I did my handing out duty once because I felt like an idiot for not wanting to hold onto the balloons, but I ended up digging a few of my fingernails into my palm until they bled.  Since bloody balloon strings aren’t festive, I’ve shirked my duties ever since. 

My nightmare job would be the balloon seller at Disneyland.  I’d probably have a massive coronary.

MissMissy
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 11:38 am: [report]

I’m terrified - TERRIFIED - of Biz Markie. Yeah, the guy who sang, “Oh Baby Youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu Got what I neeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed. But you say he’s just a friend .. but you say he’s just a friend.” Yes, him. I don’t know why. I think it started w/the mailroom scene in MIB2. Now I can’t think about him, look a a photo, or hear his music without flipping out. I used to be able to just breathe it out, but now I have full on attacks. I was in a bar and someone started talking about him and my fear of him, and I started crying. My friend JUST NOW (bitch) texted me to tell me her phone advertised to her the opportunity to purchase a Biz Markie ringtone. Why did she text me? Because she knows I lose my sh*t. MEAN!!

bogart4017
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 12:47 pm: [report]

i have a fear of two door cars. I seriously can’t sit in the back seat of a two-door without hyperventilating and dripping cold sweat. It only started in my mid-30’s and i can’t figure out what caused it. And do you know those huge hair curlers and women with long hair use? The kind that used to be in the old dippity-doo commercials? I had a paralyzing fear of them until at least age 22. I made my ex-wife use one of those hand-held electric curlers. She thought i was abused by a 1960’s print ad model!

EnfantDeLune
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 12:56 pm: [report]

@rsonnack and joyy - Thank goodness I’m not the only one that has this problem. I actually feel a little better. I have to actually work myself up to washing my face in the shower, and sometimes I put it off ‘till last. I have to check outside the curtain first, then scrub like a maniac before I force my eyes open to see what figmentary intruder may have made his or her way into my bathroom to kill me. It’s ridiculous, and I almost always get soap in my eyes. I have started letting my dog sleep on the rug outside the shower. I feel that he may alert me if someone comes in, though he’s a pathetic excuse for a guard dog.

WhiskeyJenn
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 01:13 pm: [report]

@LunaLena….who WOULDN’T be scared of the current Pope? I mean, John Paul II was like a nice grandfatherish image…and now we have Benedict looking like Emperor Palpatine. Eeesh. And now that I’ve said that, I’m sure the Vatican is going to bust down my front door and revoke my Catholic-ness.

IAgrl
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 02:24 pm: [report]

Not a fear… but I hate loose teeth.  When little kids wiggle their loose baby teeth it makes me shudder, and I have to look away. So gross!  Though I never remember it bothering me when I was young.

IrishErin
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 03:29 pm: [report]

Clinically diagnosed with Scoliodentosaurophobia over a decade ago. The phobia of lizards. And not just the ones you should be afraid of, like gila monsters and komodo dragons, but simple garden ones as well. I feel I have made amazing strides in the last 10 years. I live next to a woman who has botanical plants EVERYWHERE and I live in New Orleans, so it’s very tropical. Every night I inevitably end up with a few gheckos or anoles on my screened in porch. I have formed a method of identification, acceptance and removal. I walk outside. Identify the locations of all lizards. Slam the door hard. This forces some of them to scatter. The ones that are left, I accept that they’re not going anywhere and make a quick move for the door. I sling it open (to make sure there are none on top - that happened once and it fell on me - I didn’t leave the house for 2 days) and run down the steps. 4 years ago I would have given up and moved to a new house. I even managed to go see the komodo dragons at the zoo 6 months ago. My boyfriend had to hold me up, but I did it…and with minimal tears. I did, however, go with him to the reptile house on our last zoo trip and had a panic attack b/c I felt closed in and one started hissing. I blacked out and when he got me outside I threw up. Don’t think he realized how serious it was until that moment. #&@$% SUCKS man. I don’t know where it came from (no bad experience with one as a child) and I have done my dead level best to work on it. But it’s truly a paralyzing fear.

Sofjna
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 04:17 pm: [report]

I am scared to death of water- oceans, lakes, ponds, swamps- anything of that nature.  I live and work at the beach, and have to explain to people all the time why I don’t go to the beach (besides the fact that I won’t wear a bathing suit.)  I think it has something to do with the plant life in water; algae and marsh grass and all that stuff freaks me out.  I can’t even look at a pretty picture of a tropical island because if I see stuff in te water I get freaked out.  I even once scratched up a boyfriend’s face badly (on accident) because he picked me up and threatened to throw me in the ocean.

@IrishErin: I can’t even image being afraid of lizards.  I love them soo much and am such a super nerd when it comes to knowing about them. It makes me sad for some reason to know that you’ve been diagnosed with that.  I’m going to go home and tell my iguana that I love him now (even though I always do.)

nikkialli
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 07:36 pm: [report]

Lice and automatic flush toilets.

fallonthecity
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 10:10 pm: [report]

@nikkialli: me too.  I hate hate hate hate automatic toilets.  I would rather hold it for 15 minutes to drive back to my apartment than use a bathroom with an automatic toilet.

Also, industrial things I can’t see the other side of, like large vents, gratings, and, ironically (I’m in the aerospace business), large wind tunnels.

diane227
wrote on September 2 2009 @ 10:46 pm: [report]

I HATE being in a tall building in a room where the windows go all the way down to the floor.  I also hate taking a shower with I am alone in the house.  (We can all thank the movie Psycho for this).  If you just Google phobias you can get a list of all the names for all types of phobias, some that you have never heard of.  I have a MAJOR fear of falling.

Western_Red
wrote on September 3 2009 @ 12:06 pm: [report]

The thought of teeth on anything wooden (for example, popsicle sticks or toothpicks) makes me so uncomfortable I shiver and get goosebumps and feel slightly sick to my stomach (even just typing this). 

Of course, this has more than one occasion led to me loudly proclaiming (while slightly tipsy) “I just hate the feel of wood in my mouth.”

diane227
wrote on September 4 2009 @ 02:45 am: [report]

Dear Western_Red:  Your comment reminded me of the time I walked into the very crowded place to meet my friend for lunch and said loudly “I am so horny” instead of “I’m so hungry”.