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pet lover
Joined: 02 Jan 2004
Location: not in Seoul
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 Posted: Sun Sep 25, 2005 3:57 am Post subject: |
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I am afraid of heights. Whenever I'm looking to change jobs at the end of a contract, two of my questions are ALWAYS: on what floor is the school? On what floor is my housing? I used to not be able to handle third floor places and above. But, I lived on the fifth floor for an entire year. Granted, it took me two months to look out the window and more than four months to venture out onto the balcony, but I survived!!! (Never again, though, will I let my greed of a spare room overcome my proximity to the ground and safety) Now, I live on the second floor. I can freely look out the window. I even stick my hand out sometimes to check the temperature. I do NOT, however, look straight down. I work on the third floor. Same thing...NO looking straight down as that could lead to FALLING straight down.
Escalators frighten me, but that's because they tend to have nothing on either side to prevent a person from plunging to her untimely demise. Elevators can be tolerated as long as I'm not going very high and they are not those glass-walled death traps.
Flying in an airplane requires a great deal of mentally denying that I've ever left the ground and no, I certainly do not go back to visit the folks all that often.
Extreme Phobias on Discovery Channel on Tuesday, October 4 at 9 pm Seoul time. Just saw the commerical as I'm waiting for the one-hour special, "Tokyo Dogs" which will start in about 10 minutes. |
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VanIslander
Joined: 18 Aug 2003
Location: Geoje, Hadong, Tongyeong,... now in a small coastal island town outside Gyeongsangnamdo!
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| Posted: Sun Sep 25, 2005 3:57 am Post subject: |
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| the_beaver wrote: |
| VanIslander wrote: |
| the_beaver wrote: |
Technically, I guess gamophobia.
But I don't think that's an irrational fear. |
*sigh* By definition a phobia is a fear that becomes irrational in its degree or kind. |
It was a joke. |
I don't get it.
Wait.... "Be phobic. Avoid marriage at all costs!" I get it now. |
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mole
Joined: 06 Feb 2003
Location: Act III
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| Posted: Sun Sep 25, 2005 5:04 am Post subject: |
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My close friend developed an unhealthy fear of buildings in earthquakes.
Especially in Asia. There's apparently the 'soft-side' theory. You know
how tall buildings here have all glass fronts on the first floor. Maybe a
restaurant or store, then apartments above.
He knew all the stats on earthquake rating vs. damage.
I actually experienced an earthquake down south in Namwon in 1997.
Didn't think much of it till I saw the news a few hours later. Luckily, not
much damage. But earthquakes do occur here, and as he said, "I
worry about buildings that are taller than they are wide." Just a thought. |
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Corporal
Joined: 25 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Sun Sep 25, 2005 5:11 am Post subject: |
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| VanIslander wrote: |
We are talking about fears that one has to unusual extremes or of odd sorts, that are irrational.
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Yeah. That's what I said. I don't have any phobias. Everyone has fears. |
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Corporal
Joined: 25 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Sun Sep 25, 2005 5:23 am Post subject: |
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| VanIslander wrote: |
| Corporal wrote: |
| My fears are all rational. |
Corporal has no phobias? She's either rare or in denial.
Most people experience above average levels of fear about something or another. A phobia is simply a fear deemed irrational because it's unusual or else more extreme than usual.
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You're wrong.
A little web research tells us that a small percentage of the general public suffers from phobias. So really, it would be relatively rare if I DID have phobias.
Here are some quotes and stats all from different medical health websites. They all differ in their estimates, but you could scarcely claim that any of them indicate that "most people" have phobias.
1) About one in every ten people will have troublesome anxiety or phobias at some point in their lives.
2) Phobias are irrational fears of something that most people are not afraid of, such as spiders, crowds, small spaces or flying. Phobias can cause considerable disruption to life. Phobias affect 4% of men and 13% of women.
3) The National Institute of Mental Health has reported that 5.1-12.5 of Americans have phobias.
4) About 18% of all Americans are tormented by irrational fears that interfere with their daily lives. They are not "crazy"-they know full well their fears are unreasonable--but they can not control the fear. These people have phobias.
5) Of American adults ages 18 to 54, about 3.7 percent of people in this age group in a given year, have social phobia.
Of American adults ages 18 to 54, about 2.2 percent of people in this age group in a given year, have agoraphobia.
Of American adults ages 18 to 54, about 4.4 percent of people in this age group in a given year, have some type of specific phobia. |
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JongnoGuru
Joined: 25 May 2004
Location: peeing on your doorstep
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| Posted: Sun Sep 25, 2005 6:28 am Post subject: |
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| Corporal wrote: |
Here are some quotes and stats all from different medical health websites. They all differ in their estimates, but you could scarcely claim that any of them indicate that "most people" have phobias.
1) About one in every ten people will have troublesome anxiety or phobias at some point in their lives.
2) Phobias are irrational fears of something that most people are not afraid of, such as spiders, crowds, small spaces or flying. |
About 1 in 10 people will have anxiety or phobia at some point in their life? Okay, that number seems too low to me, if for only one reason. You'll notice that the list of common phobias in Point (2) leaves out the biggie -- snakes. Snakephobia. (Sounds like a Homer Simpsonism  )
Based on nothing more scientific than my own gut instincts and what I've heard other people say my whole life long, most people (and if it isn't "most", it's still a damn sight higher than 1 in 10) have what I think we must call an "irrational" fear (and loathing and disgust) of snakes.
To my mind, recoiling in fear/revulsion/mortification from a snake is nearly as common as stepping out of the way of a charging bus. We don't recoil this way simply because we're startled by the sudden appearance of an animal ("eeek!! it's a squirrel/deer/cat/frog!"). And I don't believe we do this mainly out of fear the snake could be deadly poisonous and might bite us. A snake could be slithering away in the opposite direction, behind bullet-proof glass, or proven to us to be non-venemous and totally harmless. Doesn't matter. The reaction of (I believe) most people is still the same. And, according to the definition, "irrational". Isn't it?
Oh, and I've held snakes before. Never had one as a pet though. Yet I still find them fairly terrifying, irrationally so, just as I'm sure well over 10% of mankind does.
Or must we tremble in constant and mortal terror every day -- too fear-striken to leave the house lest we encounter a snake -- for this to be called Snakephobia? |
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Corporal
Joined: 25 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Sun Sep 25, 2005 7:14 am Post subject: |
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| JongnoGuru wrote: |
| Corporal wrote: |
Here are some quotes and stats all from different medical health websites. They all differ in their estimates, but you could scarcely claim that any of them indicate that "most people" have phobias.
1) About one in every ten people will have troublesome anxiety or phobias at some point in their lives.
2) Phobias are irrational fears of something that most people are not afraid of, such as spiders, crowds, small spaces or flying. |
About 1 in 10 people will have anxiety or phobia at some point in their life? Okay, that number seems too low to me, if for only one reason. You'll notice that the list of common phobias in Point (2) leaves out the biggie -- snakes. Snakephobia. (Sounds like a Homer Simpsonism )
Based on nothing more scientific than my own gut instincts and what I've heard other people say my whole life long, most people (and if it isn't "most", it's still a damn sight higher than 1 in 10) have what I think we must call an "irrational" fear (and loathing and disgust) of snakes.
To my mind, recoiling in fear/revulsion/mortification from a snake is nearly as common as stepping out of the way of a charging bus. We don't recoil this way simply because we're startled by the sudden appearance of an animal ("eeek!! it's a squirrel/deer/cat/frog!"). And I don't believe we do this mainly out of fear the snake could be deadly poisonous and might bite us. A snake could be slithering away in the opposite direction, behind bullet-proof glass, or proven to us to be non-venemous and totally harmless. Doesn't matter. The reaction of (I believe) most people is still the same. And, according to the definition, "irrational". Isn't it?
Oh, and I've held snakes before. Never had one as a pet though. Yet I still find them fairly terrifying, irrationally so, just as I'm sure well over 10% of mankind does.
Or must we tremble in constant and mortal terror every day -- too fear-striken to leave the house lest we encounter a snake -- for this to be called Snakephobia? |
Fine. Go with the 18% then. I really don't care. But until some study appears that says more than 50% of the general population has phobias, I won't accept that I'm either rare in not having one or in denial about having one--okay? |
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little mixed girl
Joined: 11 Jun 2003
Location: shin hyesung's bed~
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| Posted: Sun Sep 25, 2005 12:10 pm Post subject: |
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japanophibia? what about all the other countries????
i have a fear of some stranger walking into my house. |
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plokiju
Joined: 15 Mar 2005
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| Posted: Mon Sep 26, 2005 3:37 am Post subject: |
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| Centipedes, which probably means I'd be scared of millipedes too but I've never really run into any. I remember once I saw one in the basement and started to run upstairs but then I saw my dog go over to sniff it. I had to make a quick decision and decided to run and pick her up since she was in mortal danger and all. Other insects I don't have any problems with, only those hundred legged ones. Definitely, irrational. |
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VanIslander
Joined: 18 Aug 2003
Location: Geoje, Hadong, Tongyeong,... now in a small coastal island town outside Gyeongsangnamdo!
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| Posted: Mon Sep 26, 2005 6:22 am Post subject: |
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| plokiju wrote: |
| Centipedes, which probably means I'd be scared of millipedes too but I've never really run into any. |
OMFG... then you may be in for the scare of your life.
I'm a little queasy at the sight of them back home but I've never seen anything like - never knew there were any near the size of...
the 30+ cm centipede-type thing (no kidding!) I found crawling in the teacher's office at my hagwon here in Korea.
I caught it in a box and put it out the window. In hindsight I should have hairsprayed it to death and kept it as a keepsake. It was incredible. |
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ChimpumCallao
Joined: 17 May 2005
Location: your mom
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| Posted: Mon Sep 26, 2005 6:31 am Post subject: |
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my irrtational phobia is Linda Blair from the Exorcist. I have at least one nightmare a month about it, and am usually scared of the dark a couple of days after. Whoever had that avatar of the throw up scene had me running scared of this damn board!
(I will also not be checking this thread again for fear of someone posting a picture and or video which would trigger a day long case of 'the nerves')
I am also scared of going to big empty bathrooms with many stalls because I always think that a serial killer might be lurking there...
hows that for irrational? |
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tzechuk
Joined: 20 Dec 2004
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| Posted: Mon Sep 26, 2005 6:58 am Post subject: |
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| coldcrush wrote: |
| tzechuk wrote: |
What? No Americanophobia?!
Anyway... Now that I have Letty, I always think and cry when I think of how I could die tomorrow and no one will look after her - that really upsets me totally. |
What about your husband? |
Yeah, he will be around - but I nurse (i.e. breastfeed) Letty. I have not ever left her side for more than an hour since she was born. She gets upset when she doesn't see me for any length of time.
It might sound very attached but I cannot live with her and vice versa since she was born....
I mean, I am pretty sure that she would get used to it, but it's a thought that I really don't want to entertain and it just saddens me whenever I think about it. |
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JacktheCat
Joined: 08 May 2004
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| Posted: Mon Sep 26, 2005 7:02 am Post subject: |
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That's a beautiful baby you've got there tzechuk.
I wouldn't want to be her father 16 years from now. |
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VanIslander
Joined: 18 Aug 2003
Location: Geoje, Hadong, Tongyeong,... now in a small coastal island town outside Gyeongsangnamdo!
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| Posted: Mon Sep 26, 2005 7:05 am Post subject: |
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| ChimpumCallao wrote: |
| my irrtational phobia is Linda Blair from the Exorcist. |
There are no rational phobias, all phobias are by definition irrational fears, so adding irrational to the term phobia is at best irrelevant, likely misleading, and at worst wrong by implication.
(sigh, conceptual confusion is the bane of a philosophy student's existence)
You mean this then-sweet young actress?
If you do peek again at this thread, maybe this picture could be therapy for you, to see the real girl not just the gruesome character she portrayed. |
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tzechuk
Joined: 20 Dec 2004
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| Posted: Mon Sep 26, 2005 8:54 am Post subject: |
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| JacktheCat wrote: |
That's a beautiful baby you've got there tzechuk.
I wouldn't want to be her father 16 years from now. |
Thanks, Jack  |
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