Do you have any phobias?

[Tim Brownson]

I just wrote a post on how to get rid of phobias in about 30 minutes and it got me to thinking, how many people truly have a phobia as opposed to a strong fear?

Lots of people are scared of things like snakes and spiders, but I don't know many people that would have a full on phobic episode.

Do you have a phobia, or do you know anybody whose life is completely dominated by one?

[moonrambler]

There are things I absolutely cannot do because of fear, but I don't know if it's strong fear or phobia. I can't go up any significant amount of floors in a glass elevator and I can't climb up a look-out tower beyond the third stage or so.

[The Rock]

It's funny but I actually have fear of syringes. My phobia makes taking blood out for testing or vaccination a highly unpleasant experience. I was also afraid of stray street dogs when I used to be in India ever since I heard about rabies (and many stray dogs in India can give it to you if they bite you)...

[Tim Brownson]

@ Moonrambler - You say you can't do it, what happens of you do?

@ The Rock - That is a really common one and the fast phobia will help with that.

[Diandra25]

i have one very specific:speaking in public.

[moonrambler]

Originally Posted by Tim Brownson

@ Moonrambler - You say you can't do it, what happens of you do?

I can't do it. They would have to drag me kicking and screaming to make me do it. I get paralyzed.

I've thought that with the glass elevator, if left to myself for a day, I could practice it by going up some floors and back down, and going higher as I got more used to it. I can deal with a glass elevator that only goes up to a second floor

Heights really give me the willies.

[gigij]

I used to have a really bad bridge phobia. Going over or even under a bridge just freaked me out. Not just large ones either - even highway on and off ramps. Even looking at pictures of bridges would get me hyperventilating. Weird eh?

It's much better now - but I still admit to little twinges.

[CopperCoin]

I used to have what I would classify as a phobia of speaking on the phone. I would regularly have full-out panic attacks if I had to speak on the phone, except to my father or sisters, as long as they were identified as the ones on the phone before hand.

I have downgraded that phobia to just an intense fear now. I can make phone calls and answer the phone if necessary, but it still bothers me an awful lot.

[Tim Brownson]

@ Diandra - That's a fear based in social anxiety and effects over 25 million Americans. I wrote a long post on that one a few months ago.

@ moonrambler - Yep, that sounds like a phobia. The fast phobia cure if done properly should help with that.

@ gigi - Bridges is another common one so not that weird ;-) People that have that fear nearly always talk about driving over bridges. I usually encourage them to drive 'on' then rather than over them. The language is crucial.

@ coppercoin - That's classic social anxiety and probably not a phobia per se. Way, way more common that you would imagine and very treatable.

[bluedragon]

Stray DOGS! I am more and more angry about this and overcoming it is one of my goals for 2010 ! Has anyone overcome a phobia effectively ? How good is NLP for that ?

I'm going to attend a module from the NLP Practitioner course that includes "quick elimination phobias". I don't know if it will be enough to destroy this phobia once and for all though.

Originally Posted by The Rock

It's funny but I actually have fear of syringes. My phobia makes taking blood out for testing or vaccination a highly unpleasant experience. I was also afraid of stray street dogs when I used to be in India ever since I heard about rabies (and many stray dogs in India can give it to you if they bite you)...

How did you escape from the fear ? I dream of India all the time - I will one day need to go there. I would want dogs to be the least of my problems.

[cacheborn]

Blood, surgery, cutting up organs. I cannot stand it.

[Aleksander Krstic]

Fear of strangers, fear of talking to people, fear of getting-beaten-if-I-look-into peoples-eyes, fear of darkness, fear of heights, you name it.

But I'll get over it.

[KaleidoskopicVision]

I used to be petrified of needles. My pediatrician would have me drugged up before I came to the office when I was younger, so I wouldn't ~accidentally~ kick anyone where it hurts

I overcame that fear by donating blood whenever I can.

The two fears that I still have are being caught in a burning house and the fear of swimming in deep water. I shouldn't have let myself be so fascinated by sharks when I was younger. At least dinosaurs have been extinct for millions of years. I want to go scuba diving someday. Not just on any scuba diving trip though, I want to see the hammerhead migration off the Australian coast. I still don't know how I'm going to get over the fear of being trapped in a burning building though. Maybe volunteer as a firefighter?

The best way to overcome a fear is to face it head on imo.

[bluedragon]

Do you think your phobias define you ? (I'm asking everyone). Or are you able to live with them and still feel good about yourself in other areas ?

[dsc]

The only thing I really fear is having something unfortunate happen and being crippled to the point where I am in a vegetative (yet conscious) state for the rest of my life. This would suck to be like this for decades.

Death, public speaking, getting into a fistfight or beat up, getting mugged, shot, stabbed -- sure I would feel some anxiety/tension for each of these as they are not everyday events.

The latter bunch of these can be minimized by choices I make, however, so no I don't feel outright fear for those.

[dsc]

I thought of another..

I do fear the sudden, unexpected loss of income (ie. getting fired or laid off from a job), although the times in my life this has happened to me, I have been able to "land on my feet" not too long after.

This is why it's so important to develop an income outside of the ol' J.O.B. (and I'd imagine most or all reading this would agree with me).

I'm still working on my PT business, but I'm fed up with the control employers have had over my life.

I look forward to the day when I can permanently walk away from the need for a job..

[The Rock]

Originally Posted by bluedragon

How did you escape from the fear ? I dream of India all the time - I will one day need to go there. I would want dogs to be the least of my problems.

I escaped from the fear by moving to the US... lol Stray dogs aren't really a problem for tourists though, the dangerous ones are usually only found near crowded residential areas.

Originally Posted by KaleidoskopicVision

The fear of swimming in deep water. I shouldn't have let myself be so fascinated by sharks when I was younger. At least dinosaurs have been extinct for millions of years. I want to go scuba diving someday. Not just on any scuba diving trip though, I want to see the hammerhead migration off the Australian coast. I still don't know how I'm going to get over the fear of being trapped in a burning building though. Maybe volunteer as a firefighter?

The best way to overcome a fear is to face it head on imo.

The fear of deep water (well "deep" here means anything over 6 feet ) is another one I have. Scuba diving is different though, you probably won't feel that fear since you'll have oxygen with you.