# Are you capable of pretending that your phobia does not exist? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 25, 2015, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565 "2015-02-25T02:32:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/21 "2015-02-26T00:57:49Z")
> [@Asimovian](#): > > I’m not speaking for **EmilyG** , but my phobia related to flying is quite the opposite. Takeoff and landing are the easiest parts of the flight for me. I’m most nervous during the leveled-off part of the flight because of my absurd apprehension of unexpected turbulence. And if the flight is anything but the world’s smoothest flight, I’m not going to be able to hide it. > > It is, after all, an _irrational_ fear. Yes, what I can’t take is the turbulence. That’s what freaks me out. I get motion-sick unbelievably easily, and in addition to that, I get incredible anxiety if I even\* think\* I’m going to get motion-sick. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/22 "2015-02-26T01:06:31Z")
The last time I completely ignored my phobia, I got attacked by it, sent to the hospital, had to get rabies shots, and and lost my bicycle. As I wrote on the board at the time, I may have been better off being uncontrollably terrified of dogs. 😃 ---
**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:** [February 26, 2015, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/23 "2015-02-26T02:08:20Z")
Ironically, even though I’m scared of heights, I’ve twice gone skydiving from 10,000 feet. It doesn’t seem to have cured the fear. ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/24 "2015-02-26T03:01:54Z")
> [@EmilyG](#): > > Yes, what I can’t take is the turbulence. That’s what freaks me out. I get motion-sick unbelievably easily, and in addition to that, I get incredible anxiety if I even\* think\* I’m going to get motion-sick. I spent the last couple of days having to work near the airport. I actually get anxiety just thinking too much about flying, even when there is no such prospect in my future. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/25 "2015-02-26T03:08:29Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > I’m terrified of spiders, but a teeny-bit less terrified of tarantulas. . . . > [@Wallaby](#): > > Interesting. My fear of spiders is based entirely on size. . . . I squeak in terror at both! Little garden-type orb spiders make me melt, and great big honkin’ tarantulas (“tranchlers”) give me the haunts. What’s really weird is that scorpions don’t bother me (to look at. I don’t want to handle one, but that’s rational thinking. I have no phobia of scorpions.) How the hell can the neural filter be so incredibly precise? ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/26 "2015-02-26T03:11:06Z")
My important lesson was a few years ago, when I tried to hide my phobia from a nurse giving out flu shots at a clinic (didn’t want to be a drama-hog crybaby and annoy everyone). I got lightheaded, stood up to go to the bathroom to splash water on my face, and woke up in a pool of blood from where I’d passed out and got a concussion. Nice ambulance ride and everything; still have a weird scar on the back of my head. Since then, when I go in for medical or dental car, I tell every single person I meet, from the receptionist on up, about my relationship with needles. It’s tremendously important that I NOT try to hide the phobia. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/27 "2015-02-26T04:44:23Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > What’s really weird is that scorpions don’t bother me (to look at. I don’t want to handle one, but that’s rational thinking. I have no phobia of scorpions.) > > How the hell can the neural filter be so incredibly precise? I don’t know, but it definitely is. Often times I’ll see a bug that I think is a spider and get that jolt of adrenaline/terror but then just as fast I realize that it only has 6 legs and immediately I am perfectly fine. It could be the creepiest looking bug ever but as long as it has 6 legs, I have no problem just picking it up. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Urbanredneck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ea5d25/32.png) [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/28 "2015-02-26T05:51:47Z")
Well water, horrible fear of drowning. I just get in and forget about it. Same with heights, snakes, and spiders. If I was to ever stop and think I would have problems. ---
**Author:** ![Steken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@Steken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steken)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/29 "2015-02-26T07:15:52Z")
I probably could. I would tense up, clench my jaw a bit, and generally not feel very good at all, but I _think_ I could act fairly normal nevertheless. Phobias: Wrists and certain other body parts, like certain parts of the thumb etc. (yeah I know how crazy that sounds). ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/30 "2015-02-26T11:33:54Z")
I have a mild phobia about walking barefoot on asphalt. I am afraid I will stub my toe and grind the flesh off it down to the bone. Just thinking about it gives me the willies. I can suppress it, but it is always in the back of my mind. ---
**Author:** ![Uniqueorn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uniqueorn/32/2807_2.png) [@Uniqueorn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uniqueorn)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/31 "2015-02-26T12:09:56Z")
Someone helped me get rid of my fear of dogs in 15 minutes, after I had learned the technique, I got rid of my fear of heights in 5 minutes. Still phobic of lions, but that doesn’t really limit me and I could probably control it if I had some time to prepare. Why don’t you check out brief therapies like NLP, EFT, etc, rather than trying to control your phobias with your mind? ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/32 "2015-02-26T12:10:07Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > I have a fear of balloons (latex, not mylar - I am afraid they will pop) … My god, I thought I was the only one with that weird-ass phobia! 😛 Several years ago, I walked out of a meeting at work because they were batting balloons around. Everyone acted like I was being difficult on purpose…because trembling and being teary is a normal reaction to balloons. ☹ I also have a hell of a dental phobia. Come near my mouth with sharp poky things and I have to be medicated or I’ll try to leave. Nope, can’t hide either. ---
**Author:** ![sandra\_nz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@sandra\_nz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sandra_nz)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/33 "2015-02-26T12:30:55Z")
Not a chance, unfortunately. I suspect if I could, then it wouldn’t really be a phobia, it would just be a fear. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/34 "2015-02-26T12:40:18Z")
I used to have quite bad claustrophobia and it’s got worse over the last couple of years. I think it’s down to my rheumatoid arthritis - both due to the immobility (so less ways of getting out of there) and the medication (methotrexate can cause anxiety). I can kinda deal with it most of the time because I have to, but it is noticeable. Cold sweats, etc. Had an MRI and was very glad I’d taken a change of clothes because although I thought I’d done OK I came out with completely soaked clothing (and bruises on my head). Tube travel sometimes causes the same, just less pronounced (I adjust my clothing so that I’m wearing a really heavy coat for outside that’s easy to take off, and a loose shirt underneath for travel), and often affects my breathing, which is noticeable. I take my coat off when using lifts/elevators and recite things in my head or otherwise distract myself and I doubt it’s noticeable then, but that’s for about thirty seconds because lift journeys are not long. Got stuck in a lift a little while ago and then it was noticeable but to be fair to me it was a particularly bad way to be stuck and I think most people would have been worried at least. So it’s noticeable but somewhat manageable if you prepare yourself, which I guess could count as “concealing” the phobia. ---
**Author:** ![DummyGladHands](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/49beb7/32.png) [@DummyGladHands](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DummyGladHands)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/35 "2015-02-26T14:23:09Z")
> [@sandra\_nz](#): > > Not a chance, unfortunately. I suspect if I could, then it wouldn’t really be a phobia, it would just be a fear. This was my first thought–if mind over, well, “mind” worked, I would. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/36 "2015-02-26T16:04:57Z")
> [@Asimovian](#): > > I’m not speaking for **EmilyG** , but my phobia related to flying is quite the opposite. Takeoff and landing are the easiest parts of the flight for me. I’m most nervous during the leveled-off part of the flight because of my absurd apprehension of unexpected turbulence. And if the flight is anything but the world’s smoothest flight, I’m not going to be able to hide it. > > It is, after all, an _irrational_ fear. I’m also afraid of flying. Medicine usually controls it, but the worst experience I ever had was in the middle of a long flight. Most everyone was asleep…and I had a sudden realization that we were all in a tin can hurtling at high speed through the sky. I was \>\< this close to throwing myself on the floor and screaming, “Put me down! Put me down!” ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/37 "2015-02-26T18:00:44Z")
I can pretend I don’t have a fear of spiders, or some other bugs, or public speaking. I’m incapable of not going weak in the knees when it comes to heights though because fuck heights ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/38 "2015-02-26T21:04:26Z")
> [@Uniqueorn](#): > > Someone helped me get rid of my fear of dogs in 15 minutes, after I had learned the technique, I got rid of my fear of heights in 5 minutes. . . . > > Why don’t you check out brief therapies like NLP, EFT, etc, rather than trying to control your phobias with your mind? A little more detail, please? What (briefly; not the whole nine yards) what’s the process? What are NLP and EFT? re public speaking, the first time I ever addressed a group, I walked up to the podium, took off my glasses, and began, “You’d be amazed how much easier it is to lie to people if you can’t see them.” Got a laugh, and everything went well from there on. (But the truth was it’s easier to address a group if you can’t see them!) ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/39 "2015-02-26T21:08:44Z")
Of course I could _lie_ about it, so long as I’m not actually exposed to it. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2015, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565/40 "2015-02-26T21:09:51Z")
I am terribly afraid to fly, but I decided I didn’t want to pass that fear on to my kids, so I found a way to fly and not look like I’m in terror while doing it. Still very afraid, but I can suck it up. I’m not sure what I’d do if we had a really problem or bad turbulence. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-capable-of-pretending-that-your-phobia-does-not-exist/713565.md?page=3)