I have high self-esteem, but occasionally get myself all up in a knot thinking that everyone hates me.
Also, trampolines.
It skeeves me out just to watch other people touch their own eyes. The eye doctor told me I have special (sensitive) eyes, and I've always wondered if that is part of the reason I have such an intense fear of/sensitivity to eye contact and injuries. Also in kindergarten some kid did that trick where he flipped his eyelids inside out and the image has stayed with me, as one of terror, ever since.
I wouldn't say irrational, but spiders. They're Satan's little assassins and the second I let my guard down, I'll end up hanging in a web.
I love spiders, too, for the exact same reason! It is really counterintuitive for me when I have to be wary of them in countries with Black Widows and stuff...
Heights are it for me, but very specifically heights where it wouldn't be my fault if I fell. Hate airplanes, suspension bridges, glass elevators. It's gotten better over the past couple of years, because I've had use those with friends and I wasn't going to look scared in front of them. However, with cliffs and mountains and stuff, where if I fall, it's my fault, I'm pretty much fine. On the more metaphysical side of fear, the idea of dying without some sort of legacy absolutely terrifies me.
Wrists. I really. Really. REALLY. hate the insides of wrists. i hate when I have to have blood drawn and they make me expose the inside of my wrist and then they keep TOUCHING IT. ugh
Hey! Wondering if any heights more specifically get to you than others. Kind of like how jleopold specified. I ask because while heights are definitely a big fear for me there are specific kind of "heights" that are worse. For instance do not ask me to walk on a railroad that goes over water - being able to see between the slats, even though I know I couldn't possibly fit through them, really intensifies my height problem. Even docks can have this impact on me, since you can see through the boards. I try to reassure myself because hell, it's a dock and even if I did fall the water's not that deep and I'd be fine - but the fear's still there and more intense than it would be if I couldn't see through the boards. For me it honestly seems more a fear of falling than heights themselves. I stay far away from edges. I agree with b_b's thought that it is probably more a control thing than anything else. Also, I have those intrusive thoughts we've talked about before - where I compulsively think about destroying objects (my cell phone usually) or what-if-I-just - my "what-if-I-just" thoughts are usually, "swerve my car into oncoming traffic" or "jump off this bridge," etc, so...you can see why I stay away from edges of things.
That's really it more than heights I guess. I'm with you on the edge paranoia. In my case I'm not sure if it's a control thing or a 'I can't differentiate the call of the void from suicidal ideation' thing.For me it honestly seems more a fear of falling than heights themselves. I stay far away from edges.
I am terrified that when I go to the bathroom some kind of creepy crawlie is going to climb up inside of my cunt. I always check the toilet, but I still don't ever really feel safe.
wait i hate heartbeats too! when i had my first boyfriend i was like "oh boy it's gonna be so romantic to hear his heartbeat" ... it fucking wasn't i hate that sound. i had a kitty with pretty bad fleas and i started having dreams about picking them off ughhh
Whenever I am a passenger on a long journey I fear going to sleep because by doing so I'm convinced I'll cause the vehicle to crash.
As soon as I begin to doze off I jerk cold-sweat awake, and then have to force myself to keep my eyes open for the rest of the journey. I'm really quite fearless otherwise. I have no idea where this fear comes from, but it feels very primal.
Is there even such a thing as irrational fear? It sounds to me like people gladly covering their lack of knowledge with ignorance where otherwise an answer could be found. Exempli gratia: Makes perfect sense: you think highly of yourself and believe that everyone may have a reason to hate you, even though in reality most people don't care. Do you crave attention, by any chance? That would explain why you'd reach out into others' minds and try to turn them against you: at least in that case they notice you. So is with other things. I'm afraid of insects in general, partly because I don't like being touched by things I didn't authorise it for and partly because, perhaps, subconsciously I believe that they may spread disease or carry poison, which both might be lethal for my brain (which, like the rest of humanity, is still at the cave people stage).I have high self-esteem, but occasionally get myself all up in a knot thinking that everyone hates me.
I disagree with the idea that irrational fears are simply ignorance. It's not as if someone simply says, "Oh, I am scared of heights. Oh well." People have a tendency to self-explore and evaluate who they are as a person, so most would know of what the fear is rooted in. That said, even when they figure out what it is rooted in, their response is still unreasonable to the situation and difficult to alter. That's where a fear becomes irrational.
I was coming from the idea that the fear itself - be it of heights, mannequins or tomatoes - was irrational, which doesn't seem to hold water, as you seem to agree. If I were to take up your definition of an irrational fear - that it's the inadequate response to those objects that matters... It makes sense. Thanks for peeling some of my own ignorance off me.
Mannequins. I think that the moment my back is turned, those fuckers are going to come to life and grab me on the shoulder. I think it's called "autonomophobia"
Ever since I was a kid, I have had a weird fear of pennies. Don't even ask, I have no idea.
I have had a recurring dream since I was about 12. My friends and I used to have contests where we would be on the swing set and go as high as we could and then jump as far as we could. In my dream right before I hit the ground I would realize I had gone too far and would be severely injured when I hit the ground. I would bolt upright in my sleep. It took many variations but would be the same theme throughout the years. Always jumping. Always about to severely hurt myself. Could be skis, snowboards, parachute, anything. It suddenly ended when I graduated from grad school but I will never forget the fear that I had. I have never hurt myself from a jump. Makes no sense but to my unconscious self it does.
Popsicles, for some reason. It's not like I'm going to freak out if you put one near my face, but I'm kind of scared of eating them.
could it be the wooden sticks? I cringe whenever my mouth touches untreated wood.
I think it's just that my teeth are very sensitive. I have had nightmares about it though.