What is an irrational fear that you have?

[kittybean]

Flying. Xanax is the only reason I can travel. There''s nothing like the sheer panic I feel on an airplane [shudder].

 

[Kunzite]

Date: 1/17/2010 3:28:55 PM
Author: kittybean
Flying. Xanax is the only reason I can travel. There''s nothing like the sheer panic I feel on an airplane [shudder].

Ditto! I fly pretty regularly for work and because we love to travel. Without Xanax I have a serious panic attack just walking into the airport. I''ve tried quite a few different meds to see what works best, and Xanax was the clear winner. I tried the natural, meditative, route for awhile but my poor DH was about to have a break down from always dealing with me when we fly. If I didn''t find a solution I''m pretty sure he was about to veto vacations all together!

 

[luv2sparkle]

flying makes me a little nervous as well. I find myself taking deep breaths and talking myself through it. Last year I went on a trip with some girlfriends and we ended up on
one leg in a really small plane with 2 seats on one side of the aisle and one on the other. I sat next to a very old man and I thought for sure he had died! I really had to talk
myself through that one. I kept thinking, how am I going to get out of this seat. Turns out he was a really quick sleeper. He slept with his mouth open and his head lolled to one
side! Creepy!

I can''t go on rides where my feet dangle. Freaks me out. I try not to listen to anyone talk about some awful disease because then I worry I am going to get it.

 

[Prana]

Yes! the ring! How could I forget..

 

[Iowa Lizzy]

Date: 1/17/2010 11:34:36 AM
Author: Christiana

Date: 1/17/2010 10:32:29 AM
Is your mother Greek, sweetie? Because the description above reminds me of something....

She''s half Russian, half Serbian. A dangerous combination.

 

[Gleam]

Date: 1/16/2010 12:17:45 PM
Author: April20
I refuse to walk on grates in sidewalks. I''m afraid they''ll collapse and I''ll end up in some kind of nasty water. I always walk around them.

YES! Me, too! I''ve noticed most dogs hate them, too! lol

 

[marlie]

clowns...i saw poltergeist at 7 thanks to my sister and haven''t recovered.

cockroaches...i have a fear of them touching me. when i see them i dry heave.

being shot from behind...i know that''s weird but i hate the idea of it. no idea where the fear came from. a dream maybe?

 

[kittybean]

Date: 1/17/2010 5:23:42 PM
Author: Travel Goddess

Date: 1/17/2010 11:34:36 AM

Author: Christiana

Date: 1/17/2010 10:32:29 AM

Is your mother Greek, sweetie? Because the description above reminds me of something....

She's half Russian, half Serbian. A dangerous combination.

My mom and grandmother are the same way--we are Ukrainian. My husband calls it The Blackness (always believing that the absolute worst will occur). I blame communism.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

I am afraid of grease. Sounds crazy (but this is an "irrational" fear thread, right?).

The thing is, I love greasy food and feed it to my family. I just have issues with it possibly smearing on my kids clothes or on our furniture and leaving stains.

All the other moms have their kids wash their hands before they eat. . .mine wash theirs after. lol

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 1/17/2010 3:28:55 PM
Author: kittybean
Flying. Xanax is the only reason I can travel. There''s nothing like the sheer panic I feel on an airplane [shudder].

This reminds me. . .I have a massive phobia of public speaking. I took a huge drop in a grade by not doing any of the front-of-the-class speeches in my Business Communications class. It was a required class and was horrible.

That was years before I knew what Xanax was. Even now (if a dr. gave me a sedative), I''d just take the 2.5 grade rather than freak in front of a class. lol!

 

[Gypsy]

I have a few. One that is standout though... Sharks. Not irrational you are thinking? I have a fear of sharks when I'm in the swimming pool

. Too many bad eighties late night shark flicks.

Spiders and bugs freak me out too... but I consider that a perfectly RATIONAL fear, personally.


Oh, and I'm terrified of aliens. Gray aliens freak me out like little else. Give me a Great White Shark any day.

 

[Cehrabehra]

my biggest irrational fear is talking about all of my other irrational fears - seriously. So I can talk about being afraid to talk about them but I can''t actually tell you what my fears are lol

 

[zoebartlett]

I have a few:

* Things catching on fire:
1. I''m always afraid of furniture being too close to baseboard heaters.
2. I won''t ever buy an electric blanket because I''m terrified of them.
3. Leaving lights on too long (''cause the light bulbs could catch on fire).

* Tarantulas: I don''t live anywhere near where they''d be found, but I hate seeing pictures of them.

* Feeling panicky in public. I have panic attacks occasionally, and they''re really bad when I''m feeling overwhelmed and stressed. The WORST is when they happen in public. I''m not sure if this is really an irrational fear, but it''s one I have.

 

[zoebartlett]

I have a few:

* Things catching on fire:
1. I''m always afraid of furniture being too close to baseboard heaters.
2. I won''t ever buy an electric blanket because I''m terrified of them.
3. Leaving lights on too long (''cause the light bulbs could catch on fire).

* Tarantulas: I don''t live anywhere near where they''d be found, but I hate seeing pictures of them.

* Feeling panicky in public. I have panic attacks occasionally, and they''re really bad when I''m feeling overwhelmed and stressed. The WORST is when they happen in public. I''m not sure if this is really an irrational fear, but it''s one I have.


* Bees, wasps, hornets...

 

[radiantquest]

Spiders! I have to be able to kill the smaller ones on my own, but the big ones make my skin crawl. Since a lot of people are scared of them I do not really consider it irrational. I do have irrational fear of dark colored water things, as in sinks, toilets and tubs. I cannot go into a bathroom that has them. Also pools that have a dark liner.

 

[princessplease]

Spiders and heights. Nothing too extraordinary!

 

[jewelz617]

Most of these fears are actually completely rational! Not many people are afraid of evil clowns, or sharks in the swimming pool here I see!

 

[zoebartlett]

Date: 1/18/2010 9:26:32 AM
Author: PinkAsscher678
Most of these fears are actually completely rational! Not many people are afraid of evil clowns, or sharks in the swimming pool here I see!

The ones I posted are rational (I think), but it''s the level of fear that I have about them is what I consider irrational.

 

[jewelz617]

Date: 1/18/2010 9:31:15 AM
Author: ZoeBartlett

Date: 1/18/2010 9:26:32 AM

Author: PinkAsscher678

Most of these fears are actually completely rational! Not many people are afraid of evil clowns, or sharks in the swimming pool here I see!

The ones I posted are rational (I think), but it''s the level of fear that I have about them is what I consider irrational.

I just feel silly now that I''ve admitted my fear of zombies are harmless cats

 

[Bella_mezzo]

sharks (just i the ocean, not in pools)
that fish in lakes will eat my feel
(these two are esp. hilarious b/c I love water and swim in oceans and lakes all the time, but will have periodic freakouts about it
that things will catch on fire
that someone is in the house with me when I am home alone

 

[isaku5]

Leeches!!!! As a teen, I went swimming at a friend''s cottage and came out with my legs covered with those slimy blood-sucking creatures

. My gf thought it was hilarious and didn''t bother helping me remove any, BUT a super-nice guy who was standing nearby came to my rescue.

 

[packrat]

My brother used to yell JAWS!! whenever I was jumping into Gramma''s pool..I did a lot of bellyflops, trying to reverse trajectory back up onto the cement. That''s why I don''t swim by myself. I *know* there are no sharks in the pool. I do. But..I have a hard time treading water b/c I think of Chrissie. And we all know what happened to Chrissie. My mom bought us a yellow floatie thing..well, Alex Kitner had one too. I will also admit that I didn''t take baths for years, and I was well into my 20''s before I could close my eyes under the shower spray. Mom had a dark blue bath mat, and I always had to pull it up and take it out of the tub and just hope I didn''t slip b/c it was a dark dark blue and reminded me of deep ocean water. Mom still teases me about that.

Crustaceans freak me out. On vacation one time at a lake, I waded out, thinking to go swimming, and there was a crawfish, and it came at my foot clicking it''s pincer things..boy I screamed bloody murder and took off for shore. My mom and dad came flying out of the cabin to see what was going on..and yeah, I was like, 26 I think. When we went to Vegas we ate at one of those World type buffets, and JD and Dad gorged on those nasty things..and they still had their eyes and everything..I sat w/my plate on my lap, facing away from JD and dad b/c those things just give me the heebie jeebies. SO when I went to get more food, I came back to stacks of crawfish, piled up by my place at the table, staring at me. Nice. I still hear about that too.

 

[sba771]

I am petrified of escalators and open-back stairs, especially the ones they have at water parks. I don''t actually go to water parks, but have been in my youth and those stairs scare me. I think I will fall through which is impossible, I know.

 

[soocool]

I think I used to have a lot more fears when I was younger, but I think exposure to those "fearful situations" have made me not feel anymore fear.

However, after Sept 11, I have a developed a fear of flying, but only before the actual flight. I am fine at the airport and fine when we takeoff and are in the air and land. Kind of like pre-flight jitters. I will make excuses not to fly anywhere and prefer to drive.

Now, also I am more fearful in the car when someone else is the driver (like DH or anyone else) and would rather drive myself. I am perfectly fine when I am the driver. I really tense up when DH drives and he is really a great driver. He has threatened to drug me! lol But when I say, let me drive, he says no way! Last time I drove him was when he was drugged up after surgery.

Funny thing, I have no problems in taxis or buses. There I an fine when someone else does the driving. Go figure!

 

[Gleam]

OMG, I don''t know what I''d do if a leech stuck onto me. I assume I''d just pass out and drown in the water.

 

[jewelz617]

I also have an ongoing paranoia that I left my iron on, even if I didn''t use it that day.

 

[Gleam]

Reading this thread has made me feel a lot better. I thought I was the oldest person afraid of the dark.

 

[OcMrsB]

i have to "beep" my car 6 times or i''m not confident its been locked

 

[doodle]

Palmetto bugs. I have seriously injured myself trying to get away from one before...not to mention that, in the process of typing this, I just almost snatched my hair off the back of my head because my braid grazed my shoulder and scared the hell out of me.

That''s really my only legitimate phobia...I have a few things I seriously dislike (needles and boats come to mind) but those have perfectly logical explanations for them. The bugs though is ridiculous. In the summer, I search the bathroom before bathing or using the toilet, I can''t drive with a car window down at night, and the slightest little rustling noise will have me up at 4 am tearing the bedroom apart just to make sure there isn''t one in the room with me!

 

[Octavia]

My biggest fear is developing postpartum depression. I''ve never been pregnant and don''t plan to be anytime in the very near future, but the thought of PPD scares the heck out of me...and I honestly don''t know why, but I have this horrible feeling that I will deal with it someday. I''ve already started educating DH about it, just in case. If I get through childbearing and never have to face PPD, I really don''t know what else I''ll fear (except that I''ll probably develop mommy-fears like some of the other ladies here).