What Scares You?

[ephemery1]

I'm not scared of the dark, per se... but I'm TERRIFIED of bad things happening while I'm sleeping, especially if DH is away and I'm alone for some reason. When I was little, this was my biggest fear... I always thought there was somebody just outside my bedroom door, waiting until I fell asleep to come in and kill me/take me/whatever. Now, if I turn the lights back on and get up and read or watch TV, I feel fine... but as soon as the lights go off again, I feel like I'm signaling the bad guys to come out and get me.

Other than that, I'm okay with flying, spiders, heights, and all the regular phobias... although the older I get, the more wussy I get, I've noticed.

ETA -- Oooh Danielle, I forgot, driving is a fear for me too... for some reason it just gives me the WORST anxiety, which usually leads to a tension headache, which then ruins the rest of the day. Fortunately I live in the city and only really leave on weekends, and DH drives then. But driving on highways, at night, in rain, etc... ugh, hate it.

 

[princesss]

Ummm....a lot.

Flying, driving...actually, most modes of transportation scare me. I''m most comfortable on trains and ships, even though I know flying is safer. But I can swim and I can walk...without a plane, I can''t fly. No matter how safe it is, I''m still miles above the ground.

Spiders. Big time.

Roaches. Not the little baby roaches that live in the dorms at school. No, I hate tropical roaches. The ones that are as long as your ring finger and aren''t scared of anything.

Doctors and hospitals. Also, needles. No matter how much good they do me, I''m still terrified.

The dentist.

But, as scared as I am of some things, I missed the "scared of public speaking" gene. I love it!

 

[DivaDiamond007]

I am so scared of heights - I seriously cannot even stand up on a chair before I start freaking out. Rollercoasters are okay though because you''re up and then down so I don''t really have a chance to think about high it is.

I am also afraid of clowns. Hate them and avoid them at all costs. There is just something so freaky about them.

I also do not like other people''s dogs. Maybe not scared of them per se but I just do not trust them. I know that my dogs are nice and clean, etc. but you never know about other dogs.

I am terrified of driving in the snow. I live in the midwest and we get a fair amount of snow in the winter months so I''m forced to do it but I hate it and will avoid it if I can. There are always so many fatal accidents in the snow/ice around here and I don''t want to become a statistic.

Jess

 

[snogirl17]

My biggest fear is needles and I do not like to talk about blood. I have been to see a therapist about my fear but it does not help. I am 25 years old and would still need my mom to come if i need shots or blood drawn, not only for support but for someone to drive me home after i pass out. I have been passing out since i was 2 and a few years ago started to add mini seizures to the mix. The odd thing is I have a tattoo, belly button pierced,ears pierced and HAD my tongue pierced with out any problems. So the therapist things it is "White Coat Syndrome"

I think i should open a clinic that had neon signs and metal music playing, maybe then i wouldn''t mind having my blood drawn!

Oh and i don''t like spiders either, at least i just scream and squirm with those!

 

[Phoenix]

Without a doubt, spiders and worms (caterpillars, not earthworms)!! I don''t care how big or small they are, they totally FREAK me out!! Big time!!

 

[KimberlyH]

Wow, lots and lots of "I'm scared of.." I thought of a couple more: I'm afraid of bees and scary movies. I have no fears about death, violence, anything that could truly hurt or endanger me. Weird.

ETA: I forget who said it, but we have coyotes in our yard all of the time...I love them! I obviously don't approach them, but I do enjoy watching them.

 

[zoebartlett]

I''m really surprise at how many people are scared of spiders. I used to be really afraid of tarantulas when I was younger but then I was told they''re not found in New England. That made me feel so much better. I used to be afraid of thunder storms and lightening. Now I love storms but the cracking thunder is something I still cringe at. I like suspense movies and books but horror movies and books are awful.

I hate bees and wasps of any kind. My parents live in an OLD house and unfortunately, old houses come with little places for bugs and bees to sneak in. We always had them in the house in the summer and if I found one in a particular room, I''d avoid that room altogether.

I hate ticks. I had a horrible experience with a tick when I was little, so now I have a great fear of finding one on me again if I''m in an area where they''d be.

I''m afraid of roller coasters and I generally hate all rides at amusement parks...even the merry go round.

 

[Aloros]

BIG fishies. Ones that are 100+ pounds.

Sharks

Bears

Large bees.

It''s funny...the only one I think I''m actually afraid of in real life are large bees (I''ve only been stung by a wasp, once). The others just make me shudder to think of them, but I''ve had no problems seeing them in front of me.

 

[Girlrocks]

1. Clowns...seriously, can not even look at one.

2. Balloons...in high school, I worked at a party supply store, and we had to fill latex balloons. We used to put a squirt of this clear goop in each one, that was suppose to make it deflate slower, but when you were blowing them up, if one popped in your face, you would get covered in this clear, sticky goopy stuff that was disgusting.

3. Doctors/hospitals.

4. Ticks...I was just diagnosed with Lymes Disease, so DH keeps yelling at me because I won''t let my kids play in the yard.

5. The ocean...while I LOVE how beautiful it is, I''m terrified of being swept out to sea (or worse, my kids).

6. Heights...just took my kids to an amusement park this weekend, and my fear is so overwhelming that I actually get panicked to the point of feeling the need to jump off of whatever the ride is. Horrible.

That''s it for now, I''ll probably think of 10 more tonight.

 

[princesss]

zoe, you''re lucky. After my spider fear peaked, I discovered one the size of my hand (full hand, including fingers) on the wall of our house. I should have known it would happen at some point, we were living in the tropics in a newly built up area....but holy cow. It freaked my 14-year-old self out completely. I vaguely recall making my maid hit it until it was dead dead dead and then vacuuming it up (she was scared, too, but I figured she got paid to do things around the house and I was happy to add spider killing).

 

[Lynn B]

I can't really think of anything that I consider truly dreadful in a way that impacts my daily life. I mean, I don't like spiders, but if I see one in my house, I just kill it and forget about it. I am not wild about heights, but I do enjoy tall amusement park rides and I don't mind flying. I don't enjoy thinking about death, but I'm not fixated on it. (Although I can certainly see why some people are.) I don't mind the dark... I love the ocean... I don't like scary movies or books but I'm not afraid of them. As a parent, I will always fear something happening to one of my children, but I never held them back from opportunities because if it. I don't enjoy small spaces, but I went through an elevator breakdown and an MRI once without any trauma. I don't mind public speaking and I even do public karaoke!

Hmmmm... maybe I'm not as *crazee* as I always thought I was???!!

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 7/5/2007 11:31:22 PM
Author: Skippy123

I am afraid of:

Giving presentations

I''m also afraid of giving presentations. Total stage fright. I even took a lower grade in a business communications class I took JUST to avoid giving a speech in front of the class.

My other fears are:
fires
bears
flying in airplanes (must take a Xanax or have a drink for that!!!)
e-coli & food poisoning

Funny thing is I have NO fear of little spiders. I even think they are cute. It''s the big, hairy ones that creep me out. We live out on 1-acre of land, so we have TONS of spiders. Luckily, most are just the "cute" garden spiders!

 

[Beacon]

This is a great thread b/c I see that other people are afraid of things and that makes me feel better as I am not the only one.

I am afraid of flying and it is very bad and is messing up my life so I have to get help for it. I have several large trips coming and they scare me so much.

I hate getting a mammogram, especially since mine a is big production with magnifications and ultra sound. It scares the crap out of me the whole time just waiting for the axe to fall. I have to try hard not to pass out. It is somewhat better now as I know in advance it will be like this and I have to get through it. But it is an ordeal b/c my mother had breast cancer and that is why I go through this at an early age.

Tall buildings that sway or vibrate bother me a lot. I think they are having earthquakes even if they are not. I hate them.

I worry about bad things that might happen, like my house being robbed or burning down or something bad happening to my birds.

I recently caught myself being a little scared of driving over the huge bridges here (northern california). Two friends told me they were scared and I believe they influenced my mind. So, I quickly drove over those bridges so I would NOT develop a new problem! That worked, after the first one I wasn''t scared. Drove 4 bridges.

Rollercoasters - dream on - I detest that.

For all the posters who are scared of someone coming into their house at night and "getting" them: Install an alarm! I have a really good alarm with heat activated motion detectors and all doors and windows wired, plus a back up motion detector. It all is monitored 24/7. I love that thing! I never worry about intruders sneaking up. Plus, if some one breaks in while I am gone I will get a call on my cell phone (plus the police will get called). This way I can travel and as long as my cell phone is with me I don''t worry that my home is totally vulnerable while I am gone. This is a huge, huge thing and makes me feel so much better, cannot recommend enuf.

 

[Dandi]

I''m the same as a few here... I''m not fazed by the classic phobias like spiders/bugs, heights, flying, enclosed spaces etc, but the thought of being totally submerged in water and weighed down, ie. scuba diving gives me palpitiations!

 

[risingsun]

Flying
Spiders
Driving on freeways
Cancer--I've had recurrent skin CA
Something happening to my husband or daughter
Getting older
Not getting older, eg., death

In general, I have a lot of anxiety and can't seem to get past it