# "All fears are really the fear of death" Agree or disagree? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 27, 2017, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-fears-are-really-the-fear-of-death-agree-or-disagree/792284 "2017-07-27T20:46:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![anomalous1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e56c9b/32.png) [@anomalous1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anomalous1)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2017, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-fears-are-really-the-fear-of-death-agree-or-disagree/792284/41 "2017-07-30T07:27:29Z")
_backs out slowly_ Well, I had developed some weird phobia months ago about plugs being half way out of sockets, I got over that quick. I asked questions on here non stop about it until one day Ideliberately left the plugs ajar and forced my way out of the house for the day… nothing happened, so I went to sleep with them like that… nothing… worry gone. Ironically i’m fascinated with electrical now. I was worried about a fire and losing all my shit and dying, it _ **was** _ a fear for sure, definitely about death and losing it all. What i’m trying to say is maybe if you developed it suddenly you may be able to break it/beat it quickly by forcing yourself into one of those claustrophobic situations and struggling through it. Then the realization may come that nothing will happen, consciously and subconsciously. Of course I don’t want to recommend it if it is too painful for you mentally. Just giving unsolicited advice.😛 The old “face your fears” thing seems to have a bit of truth to it. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2017, 8:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-fears-are-really-the-fear-of-death-agree-or-disagree/792284/42 "2017-07-30T08:55:20Z")
Isn’t the second most common fear public speaking?\* No death there. I don’t think I fear death specifically, I fear experiencing pain and loss and not seeing tomorrow. I guess they’re associated with death, so maybe they still count. \*_I got over that when I started to perform on stage_ ---
**Author:** ![Kimera757](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kimera757/32/3765_2.png) [@Kimera757](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimera757)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2017, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-fears-are-really-the-fear-of-death-agree-or-disagree/792284/43 "2017-07-30T11:57:43Z")
I’ve read that embarrassment triggers the “fear” center of the brain, so it could still be related to a fear of death (just not directly). Supposedly this is why embarrassing memories stick around; for the same reason as frightening memories (to ensure you remember what to do and what not to do). I wonder if, for some people, claustrophobia is the fear of being _trapped_. Being trapped somewhere could lead to a slow death. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2017, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-fears-are-really-the-fear-of-death-agree-or-disagree/792284/44 "2017-07-30T17:05:12Z")
> [@anomalous1](#): > > . . . Well, I had developed some weird phobia months ago about plugs being half way out of sockets, I got over that quick. . . . Well, just because it was a phobia doesn’t mean it was also not valid. Leaving plugs halfway out of their sockets exposes electrically charged metal, and bad things could happen. A paper-clip might fall across the contacts, etc. It’s a minor risk, but it’s a needless one. > [@GuanoLad](#): > > Isn’t the second most common fear public speaking?\* No death there. . . . . You’ve never heard a comedian talking about dying on stage? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2017, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-fears-are-really-the-fear-of-death-agree-or-disagree/792284/45 "2017-07-30T18:19:13Z")
Another dissenter here. To me the biggest fear was coercion and humiliation, to the point that I think I assumed that was so for everyone, that that was their biggest fear. I’m only afraid of death when I’m in a situation where it’s a genuinely likely immediate outcome. Then it stops being a philosophical consideration and becomes an OH SHIT moment, quite terrifying. But otherwise it’s an eventual inevitability and at the same time a remote possibility as far as the immediate near future is concerned, and I don’t lose sleep over it. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2017, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-fears-are-really-the-fear-of-death-agree-or-disagree/792284/46 "2017-07-30T19:22:36Z")
I don’t think people worry much about death at all. Old people often chide young people for thinking they are immortal. But old people aren’t much better. I think people are far more afraid of physical pain and social embarrassment, than actual death. Perhaps “loss of control” covers both bases. ---
**Author:** ![Khendrask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3e96dc/32.png) [@Khendrask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khendrask)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2017, 11:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-fears-are-really-the-fear-of-death-agree-or-disagree/792284/47 "2017-07-31T11:35:54Z")
100% disagree with the original premise. I really don’t have any fear of death, but I do have a fear of pain. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2017, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-fears-are-really-the-fear-of-death-agree-or-disagree/792284/48 "2017-07-31T17:30:09Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > Well, just because it was a phobia doesn’t mean it was also not valid. Leaving plugs halfway out of their sockets exposes electrically charged metal, and bad things could happen. A paper-clip might fall across the contacts, etc. It’s a minor risk, but it’s a needless one. Sure, but if you check every one of your wall sockets three times a day, there’s probably more going on than general safety consciousness. I knew a guy with OCD who was obsessed with order. He had to defrag his computer… twice… every day before he left work. His daily shut-down ritual took about two hours a day, but with treatment, he got it down to about a half an hour. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2017, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-fears-are-really-the-fear-of-death-agree-or-disagree/792284/49 "2017-08-01T03:19:33Z")
Very clearly wrong. Take people with social anxiety. Are they afraid of dying? No, I’m afraid that someone won’t like me. Take people with panic disorder: are they afraid they will die? Not after a while. They’re afraid that the panic will never stop. There are fears that are death related, like being afraid when you’re sick or being afraid of heights or many animal phobias. But nowhere near all of them are. Hell, most teens aren’t afraid of death at all, really. But they can still have tons of fears. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2017, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-fears-are-really-the-fear-of-death-agree-or-disagree/792284/50 "2017-08-01T03:24:27Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > Sure, but if you check every one of your wall sockets three times a day, there’s probably more going on than general safety consciousness. > > I knew a guy with OCD who was obsessed with order. He had to defrag his computer… twice… every day before he left work. His daily shut-down ritual took about two hours a day, but with treatment, he got it down to about a half an hour. Reminds me of a guy I knew. His compulsion was that he had to exit a building through the same door he entered it. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2017, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-fears-are-really-the-fear-of-death-agree-or-disagree/792284/51 "2017-08-01T03:43:49Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > These are all death oriented behaviors. > > Embarrassment means loss of social status. Humans are social animals with a dominance hierarchy. Loss of status = lower chances of survival = death. > > Fear of disappointment = loss of ability to survive in a hostile world. This sounds like one-size-fits-all reasoning, shoehorning every fear into “fear of death.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-fears-are-really-the-fear-of-death-agree-or-disagree/792284.md?page=2)