Monday, September 16, 2013

What are you afraid of? : Top 10 Weird Phobias People

 


It is no surprise that every second person on Earth does face some kind of fear. It could be fear of anything and maybe have developed in a human being at a very tender age. Very often, this fear stems itself as a part of us. On many occasions, this fear defines who we are, and this is when we face the real symptoms of this fear. Phobia, as this fear is defined, is found in a lot of people. Different phobias, different individuals and different perceptions. Here are some of the phobias, the most common ones that are found in human beings:


10. Trypanophobia


A person having trypanophobia is afraid with anything to do with the needle. In simple terms, it is the fear of needles. Such people face problems when it comes to taking medical aid through injections and blood tests. Trypanophobia frequently causes people to suffer from blood pressure and causes their heart rate to drop. People with needle phobia avoid visiting the doctor or dentist. Although the actual phobia is of needles, the more generalized fear is of medical and dental healthcare providers. As a matter of fact, people suffering from needle phobia try and avoid routine checkups as much as possible.


 9. Arachnophobia:





Are you scared of spiders? Ever encountered a weird spider experience in your childhood that still haunts you today? Arachnophobia is the fear of spiders. Here, one doesn’t just hate the look of these creatures; they also feel uneasy in a place that might shelter many spiders. Arachnophobia causes people to fear spider webs too. Imagine you are with your friend in an old house, with spider webs everywhere. You might dislike the presence of spiders and spider webs and can still stand in that room. However, your friend will be immensely uneasy and would be reluctant to stand with you any longer. Your dear friend has intense arachnophobia. They just won’t enter a given area even if they know there is just one spider there. An arachnophobic person quite naturally feels a spider is crawling up his/her arm the moment he spots a spider in a niche. Such is the fear of a spider in arachnophobes. This phobia, however, can be treated with hypnotherapy sessions over a phase. Try telling your dear friend who is extremely scared about spiders that some communities in South America include spiders in their daily meals. His face will be one of extraordinary complexions, good enough to frame for the wall.


8. Brontophobia:




Brontophobia is the fear of storms. It also is the fear of thundering and lighting alike. This fear has symptoms like panic attacks, quick breathing, and rapid heartbeat. Most children take to hiding whenever thunder and lightning strikes. They hide under beds, inside closets or tuck themselves up under the blankets. Storms are natural phenomena that tend to inspire strong emotions in both humans and animals. Most people enjoy watching these phenomena. The might sit down in their verandah with a hot bowl of soup, enjoying the weather. At the opposite extreme, both humans and animals may develop brontophobia, or a fear of thunder and lightning.


 7. Sociaphobia:






The fear of socializing and being judged in society is Sociaphobia. Such a person feels he is constantly being watched in the society, and that his every move his being supervised. Social anxiety takes over a sociaphobic person completely. ‘What will people say if I do this?’, ‘what will people say if I do that?’’No, if I do so and so thing, people will watch me’. Such are the thoughts of people who feel the fear of being evaluated in the society. This often happens in a large gathering especially, where a person fearing social interaction refuses to speak out. Again, he/she thinks of public evaluation as a fear factor. A sociaphobic person refuses to act out on a public level, thinking personal humiliation is round the corner. Such people are anxious about public gatherings, public speaking and even interviews. Excessive self-consciousness often takes over a person who is afraid of mingling in the society, thus placing him on a backward step. The consequences of this phobia aren’t the best, as it can hamper individual performances in school or at work. It must be noted here, that this phobia differs from shyness to an extent. A person might be excellent on stage, with his performances. However, he might still feel uncomfortable being in the social arena, surrounded by people who he thinks is watching him. Very often, sociaphobia causes people to not be free while eating in front of other people. Many people, as mentioned above have the fear of public speaking. It is not because they are afraid of speaking in public, it is because they feel whatever they say might come under scrutiny. Again, it’s the fact of being judged by society that creeps in.


 6. Aviophobia:






An aviophobic person can never be superman, for obvious reasons. You thought correct! A person with aviophobia is afraid of flying. Scientific studies have tried to find the exact reasons that give people the fear of flying. Studies suggest it could be the fear of heights, or the fear of not being in control of the plane. Here, a passenger might feel he isn’t controlling the plane and cannot get out at will. Other common causes are fear of hijacking, terrorism and panic attacks. The past decade has seen a rise in airplane crashes, thus increasing the fear of flying amongst specific people. However, it has surprised researchers that the fear of flying has such a high percentage, keeping in mind that travelling by road has more risks involved. But, in a world where moving quickly from place to place by air is more prominent, those who fear flying brave themselves and get into those planes. The human race would like to thank the Wright Brothers for not having Aviophobia! Had they suffered from fear of flying, would we have all those big planes today


5. Claustrophobia:






Claustrophobia is the fear of being in a confined space. Many people feel this sense of anxiety whenever they find themselves in areas that are extremely enclosed. Individuals suffering from claustrophobia suffer from panic attacks on most occasions whenever they find themselves in closed areas like elevators, closed cabins or an aircraft. Panic attacks often prevent an individual from escaping the situation of being confined. The mind’s ability to think reduces, making a person more aware that he/she is in a confined area. Intense research says this fear could be due to traumatic experiences during childhood. A person find them-self in the lift when there is a power failure. S/he is thus stuck in the lift, and immediately starts to panic instead of being calm and thinking practically. S/He starts suffocating and breathing hard as a result of the panic attack that grips him. Such a person is claustrophobic.


4. Acrophobia:






Acrophobia is the fear of heights. People with this phobia avoid getting themselves at huge heights. However, once they find themselves on extremely tall buildings, they suffer a panic attack that makes them anxious about getting down safely. People with acrophobia also suffer the fear of flying, for obvious reasons. Scientists pointed out an important conclusion of acrophobic people, and that is they can never suicide from tall buildings. A big advantage in their favor one would imagine. Why do people fear heights? The most logical explanation put forth is that they fear falling from a height that can cause death. A person with the fear of heights has it in his head that he will still fall from a height even if he is standing safely away from the edges of his compounded area. Such is the fear that an acrophobic person faces. Acrophobic people live as near to the ground level as possible. I sit here and wonder what an acrophobic person would do on the 135th floor of the World’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa. It certainly would be interesting to see how that person behaves.


3. Emetophobia:






Emetophobia is the fear of vomiting or being around people who vomit. Such a fear could have developed during childhood. If a small kid vomits badly, and he finds it a very disturbing incident, he will fear vomiting for the rest of his life. Emetophobia grips him. As a matter of fact, most people with this fear try desperately to avoid vomiting themselves. Interestingly, people who fear vomiting take active steps to avoid falling sick. Hence, they avoid situations where they might face vomiting issues, thus keeping them on a very healthy road. On the other hand, emetophobic people taking every single step to distance themselves from people who vomit. These people avoid being in place where the risk of people vomiting are more. Emetophobic people, who take every step to avoid vomiting, follow certain eating diets that non-emetophobics might find unusual. To name a few of these habits, emetophobic people avoid eating food that has been touched by others while some may eat in a way that they digest their food properly, reducing the risks of vomiting. Emetophobics always make sure they eat ’safe’ food and are hence very particular wherever they eat. Getting back to those Emetophobes who avoid being next to people who vomit. Such people, when they see a person vomiting feel they have been infected even if they are standing at a distance. They get a sense of uneasiness and can often get dizzy at the sight. Most emetophobics fear vomiting themselves, but in many cases, they fear seeing others vomiting which can induce an even greater phobic response than if they were to be sick themselves. On a basic level, all emetophobics take to avoiding sick people, overeating, compulsive hand-washing and compulsive expiration.


2. Carcinophobia:






Carcinophobia is the fear of cancer causing people with the fear to face extreme nervousness. This fear of cancer alters the lifestyles of many people and also forces them to stay away from their loved ones. People with the fear of cancer often feel nauseated and experience  panic attacks, rapid breathing and increased sweatiness. People with the fear of cancer miss out on the joyful experiences in life, while they sit to battle their fear of cancer. It isn’t necessary that the person suffers from cancer, but the thought of being attacked by cancer just takes away the quality of their lifestyle. Fear of cancer affects the working class people to a large extent. People with this fear see their performances reduce in the workplace as a result of a diverted mindset, and increased anxiety, thus causing them to lose out on income potentials. Cancer phobia is caused by the subconscious mind. It could be that you encountered with an incident linking you to cancer in the past that is stimulating the cancer phobia inside you. Many people see incident involving cancer, like watching a movie or a serial that depicts cancer and this increases the fear of getting cancer in them. They constantly try and think how they can avoid cancer and what they can do to be safe. The fret, and spend their time on these issues, thus losing out on more important things in life.


1. Nyctophobia:






Nyctophobia is the fear of dark. Fear of darkness is mostly present in children. However, as the child matures and grows bigger, this very fear of the dark gets subdued. Most people avoid getting into dark spaces alone, and often prefer companionship. It could be walking down a dark alley, or walking on the streets at night. People who find the darkness scary often tend to think of the spookyness that closes in on them in darkness. They become cold, and feel the immediate need to get out of that darkness. Such people often sleep at night keeping the night-light on too. It’s more prominent amongst children given their immature mindset at their tender age. When people who are afraid of the dark are left alone in a dark room, their body generally shows nervous responses in the form of stiffness and increased heart-beat. To them, it’s more a sense of horror and scariness.

Courtesy: listdose.com

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