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Phobias: What is Wrong with These People? |
You’re walking down the halls of the high school, and you notice
somebody walking towards you whom you know. Most people would wave, but
then you are suddenly overcome with a panic, which makes you start gasping
for air, and then your palms become sweaty. If you’re one of the people
who suffer from cymophobia, a fear of waves or wave-like motions, you are
not alone.
There
are hundreds of phobias that have been affecting people since the
beginning of time. Chances are, there is a phobia for almost anything.
Some phobias may seem a bit on the ridiculous side, but trust me, these
are very serious. In fact, they have an extremely large impact on
the person who has them and the phobia tends to rule the person’s life.
In case it is unclear what a phobia exactly is, it is have a fear of
something, and yes there is a phobia of phobias. It is called phobophobia.
The
origin of the phobia can be named in most cases as a traumatic event that
took place at one point in the sufferer’s life, but in others, it can be
difficult to tell when they actually developed. In the serious case of a
social phobia, the phobia is most caused by bad social experiences and in
most cases, rejection by peers. Though these phobias are difficult to deal
with and can alter a person’s life, they can be treated. Most sufferers
of phobias tend not to deal with their problem, they just avoid it. There
are some phobias that are impossible to avoid such as ablutophobia (the
fear of bathing) and because of that, people go to their doctor and can
receive medication to decrease their anxiety attacks.
At one point, most children suffer from bogeyphobia, fear of the
bogeyman and because of this they most likely are clinophobic, which is
the fear of going to bed. Some phobias can be cured or people do grow up
and learn not to be afraid. As they grow up, most of them overcome their
fears and stop checking under the bed or in the closet and don’t need a
nightlight anymore.
One of the more serious phobias is agoraphobia. This is the fear of
public places and this phobia can alter a persons life extremely. Usually
an agoraphobic person will avoid going anywhere public at all costs and
its not necessarily because they don’t like the place; but rather
because they fear a panic attack will occur in a place where they wont be
able to escape. In a very severe case, the agoraphobic person will only
find safety in their own home.
There
are also some phobias out there that can be a bit on the ridiculous side
of the spectrum. For example, imagine someone who is ambulophobic (fear of
walking) or even chronomentrophobic (fear of clocks). There are some
people who claim to be didaskaleinophobic (the fear of going to school)
and they most likely are epistemophobic (the fear of knowledge) too.
It’s vital for everybody to remember never to tell a nomatophobic their name, never to give a papyrophobic a piece of paper, never to write a long word for a hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobic and NEVER give clothes to a vestiphobic person because this might cause their hands to break out in a sweat and begin gasping for breath.