Common and Strange Phobias

Every person grows up with an inherent fear of something. An individual develops a fear of an object or something that embeds itself in his/her being. The fear might result from a sad event the person experienced in his/her childhood or as he/she grew up; or from hearing, seeing or reading about something that induced fear of that thing.

Phobia is the term used to refer to fear of an object or something. This article will compile a list of both common and strange phobias though it’s not exhaustive.

As stated above, there is something that might have triggered a person to develop a fear of a particular object or thing. The only plausible way an individual can fight a fear of something is to find out why he/she fears that thing (the root cause of the fear) and to face the fear (by reaffirming that what he/she is fearing is not something to fear). If a person cannot be able to face his/her fears alone or he/she doesn’t know why he/she fears something, the person might want to pay a therapist a visit. The therapist will guide the person from finding the cause of her fear to how to fight the fear.

The following is not an exhaustive list of phobias or things people fear:

1. Arachnophobia

This is the fear of spiders.

2. Ophidiophobia

Many of us fear snakes, which is understandable. Their menacing face, perhaps, causes many people to become afraid of them.

3. Bananaphobia

As hard as it is to believe, there are people who fear bananas. They don’t want to have a look at them, let alone touch them.

4. Androphobia

This is the fear of men. Some women, especially young girls, fear men. It might result from the woman having gone through a traumatic experience, such as if they were raped as a young girl by a man or group of men. If the woman was abused by her father or a male figure as she grew up, it might lead her to develop a fear of men.

5. Metathesiophobia

This is the fear of change. Some people don’t want to change their untoward/negative behaviour/attitudes or something about their bodies. Change is good, but some people are afraid of accepting that fact.

6. Vehophobia

While I am a fan of different models of vehicles, I don’t like driving. It doesn’t mean I fear driving. Some people fear the thought of driving. They would rather sit in the passenger’s seat than do the actual driving.

7. Achievemephobia

While in high school, I feared succeeding or excelling in my examinations. I think it stemmed from low self-esteem. I would wonder what my fellow students would think about me. Nowadays, I no longer have that kind of fear. Don’t fret about what other people would think of you if you succeed.

8. Xenophobia

We cannot control the events that will occur or predict that something will happen. Some people fear the unknown. When they don’t know what will happen or how things will turn out, they become fearful of what they cannot control.

9. Ailurophobia

Some people don’t like cats, and then there is a group of people who fear them. There are a number of reasons why this group of people fear cats, one of them, being, the belief that cats are used by witches or sorcerers to bid their wishes.

10. Deipnophobia

Dining. You might be the one who fears dining with other people, even with family members. The thought of dining makes some people feel like crawling in a hole.

11. Thanatophobia

No human being is guaranteed to live for eternity while here on earth. Each of us will die at an appointed time. Thus, we should prepare ourselves when death seems to call us yonder.

We shouldn’t fear death because we cannot avoid it.

12. Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia

Quite a long word. Well, some people fear the thought of reading long words. When faced with long words, they become fearful of reading them. They would try all they can to avoid coming across long words.

13. Didaskaleinophobia

This phobia is particularly the case with children. They dread going to school. They don’t want to hear anything about school and all that makes up a school.

14. Nomophobia

When I bought my first Smartphone, it took time before I got used to it. Not really an hour; some few minutes, but there are people who fear smart phones. They better make use of a telephone booth (if they still exist), landline telephones or basic (feature) phones.

15. Ephebiphobia

Some adults fear teenagers or adolescents. They don’t want to be near them or come across them. It might be that there was a sad or depressing event that occurred in their teenage years, or simply the ‘evils’ that are always associated with adolescents. The many not-so-good-changes that occur during the adolescent period makes some adults dread coming into contact with a teenager.

16. Nosocomephobia

The smell of the hospital, the sense that death always roams in the hospital, the syringes, medicine and the various types of ailments a person can come across in the hospital makes many of us shudder the thought of paying a doctor or a patient a visit.

17. Technophobia

Technology can make someone look stupid if one doesn’t know how a particular device works. This is the essence of people who fear technology, such as smart phones. It appears as a threat which forces an individual to flee from it, thereby staying away from anything related to technology.

18. Ombrophobia

Rain is good, but too much of it can be destructive. Some people fear rain, even if it is not raining much. They will postpone their journey or arrive late at work even if they have an umbrella.

19. Telephonophobia

The thought of talking with someone on the phone makes some people shudder. I am not good in talking with someone on the phone. Sometimes, I dread the thought of talking with someone when I am required to call someone or when my phone rings. What will I say? What if I have none words to utter or anything to say?

I always pray my phone never rings.

20. Numerophobia

Ever hear the Ministry of Education in a country uttering that mathematics is a national disease after announcing national examination results?

Well, I am among the majority group of people who find it hard to come to an agreeable agreement with mathematics. I don’t fear maths, but I never seem to do well whenever faced with anything involving it. There are people, though, who fear mathematics. They dread doing mathematics assignments, and when faced with a mathematics question paper, they feel as if their world has ended.

21. Gerascophobia

They say old is gold, but nowadays, fewer people think it’s the case. In this era, not many old people want to be called old. And for those who are not old, they fear the thought of becoming old. Thus, they will browse through magazines and websites to find if there is a new technology or a breakthrough in making a person look younger, even in their nineties.

22. Cibophobia

This is the fear of food. Even though people who suffer from this phobia cannot avoid eating because they want to live, it takes strength in fighting this fear to eat.

23. Gamophobia

A relationship requires commitment; however, some people are afraid of committing themselves to a relationship. They may engage in a relationship without committing themselves or avoid engaging in relationships altogether.

24. Philophobia

There is another group of people who fear falling in love. It scares them, as they don’t want to experience emotions related to love. They try their best to avoid falling in love or experiencing emotions related to falling in love.

25. Athazagoraphobia

Being forgotten is not a pleasant thought. Some people fear being forgotten. They want to feel or have the constant assurance that they are remembered. Again, there are people who fear not remembering something. They dread forgetting something, thus, doing all they can to remember everything so as not to forget even if it involves cramming.

26. Triskaidekaphobia

The number 13 is associated with bad luck in some countries or regions. Thus, some people fear coming across number 13. They believe that if they read it, hear it or come across the number, something bad will occur. Thus, they work hard to avoid coming across such a number.

27. Monophobia

This is fear of being alone. The thought of being left alone or living/staying alone causes these people to get scared. They don’t want to be on their own, even for a single minute, because they will freak out.

28. Kinemortophobia

I like watching zombie films. The most characteristic feature of zombies is their walking styles that are quite fancy. However, there are people who won't watch a zombie movie or play a zombie game because they fear them.

29. Tokophobia

Some women are scared of getting pregnant. Even if they get married, they will work hard not to get pregnant. Carrying a pregnancy to maturity and all that is associated with pregnancy makes them shudder at the thought of ever wanting to become pregnant.

30. Gynophobia

This is fear of women. There are men out there who fear women. A male child who was raised by an abused mother will grow up fearing women, or a man who experienced repeated abuse in the hands of a particular woman/several women might develop a fear for women.