Common Fears and the Down Right Bizarre

One thing Halloween is known for is fear. So, I decided to look at some of the most common and the down right oddest fears that we have names for. Well not even fears but phobias. There’s a difference. Fear is an emotional reaction to a real or perceived threat while the key difference is that the anxiety caused by a phobia can also interfere with a person’s ability to function and/or the way they live their life or their quality of life. The word phobia comes from the Greek word phóbos which can mean anything from fear or aversion to morbid fear. Generally, the system used to name a phobia is to use the Greek word for the object of fear and add the suffix -phobia. As well as that, phobias can be broken down into three main groups:

• 1. Simple (specific) – the most common and focused on certain objects
• 2. Social – which causes extreme anxiety in public situations
• 3. Agoraphobia – this is anxiety brought about by being in places or situations from which it might be difficult or embarrassing to escape from.

Though there are thousands of phobias for the millions of people on the planet and probably some that don’t even have names yet, these are just a few of the most common and downright unusual phobias I could find. But enough of all that, let’s keep this short and simple and have a look at the most common fears first. Enjoy!

Common Phobias

Pteromerhanophobia – A bit of a mouthful, yes, but with media coverage of air disasters over the years, a fear of flying is actually pretty understandable. It can also be called aviophobia or aerophobia.

Claustrophobia – a fear of enclosed spaces; people say that it feels like the walls are closing in on them. Some believe that there is a genetic link to fears like this one, a kind of dormant survival mechanism. This fear can lead to people avoiding any sort of enclosed spaces, including their car, and perpetually staying at home

Entomophobia – they creep, crawl and can even bite and people are expected not to be afraid of them. This is a fear of spiders and insects. Arachnophobia is the specific fear of spiders though and Myrmecophobia is the specific fear of ants. Also women are apparently four times more likely to suffer from this than men are.

Trypanophobia – nothing like getting jabbed in the arm with a pointy piece of metal to give you a fear of needles. It’s unpleasant to think about but generally a needle is worth the pain.

Acrophobia – “it’s not the height I fear; it’s hitting the ground.” A fear of heights is one of, if not, the most common fear among people. Between 3 and 5% of the population have a fear of heights; that’s a lot of people.

Taphophobia – I’d assume most people would have this fear. The fear of being buried alive is one that probably came about in the 1700s when plague was running riot and people were pronounced dead and buried before actually being, well, dead.

Unusual Phobias

(These phobias are generally brought about by traumatic incidents.)

Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – this name was created by someone with a twisted sense of humour. This is a fear of long words and can sometimes be associated with people who have severe dyslexia.

Pogonophobia – Movember is probably a nightmare for people with this phobia. This is a fear of beards. You can’t blame people though, they can be scratchy and prickly. Like a cactus attached to a face.

Turophobia – Whether it is the taste or the sight of it, the fear of cheese is a thing. People with this phobia would refuse to look at or consume cheese and being in proximity with cheese could cause a panic attack.

Thalassophobia – Ever get the feeling there’s something lurking out in the deep blue sea? Well people with this phobia fear oceans or deep open water. This phobia is generally rooted in a fear of the unknown.

Omphalophobia – if you thought your insides would fall out through your belly button, you’d be afraid of them too. People with this phobia don’t like to see or touch belly buttons, even their own.

Lutraphobia – How people could be afraid of these adorable critters is beyond me but the fear of otters generally stems from a person being bitten by an otter or witnessing someone else being bitten.