# Ask the hydrophobe! **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 7, 2006, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811 "2006-05-07T22:34:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2006, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811/1 "2006-05-07T22:34:42Z")
1. I don’t know if I’ve been like this all my life, mostly because I rarely come into contact with large bodies of water. 2. Showers are fine, medium-sized pools are fine, but anything mmore than that and I get the heebie-jeebies. When I see a lake or river in the window when I’m going somewhere, I look away as quickly as possible. These are the only basic things I can think of. Anyone curious? ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2006, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811/2 "2006-05-08T00:17:25Z")
Would this make you our first self-acknowledged rabid poster? ---
**Author:** ![MonkeyMensch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@MonkeyMensch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MonkeyMensch)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2006, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811/3 "2006-05-08T00:18:07Z")
And here I thought the thread was going to be about someone who’s foaming at the mouth! 🙂 Seriously, though, was there ever a traumatic experience with respect to water in your past? ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2006, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811/4 "2006-05-08T01:04:31Z")
> [@MonkeyMensch](#): > > Seriously, though, was there ever a traumatic experience with respect to water in your past? Not that I can remember. I never had any particular issues with taking a bath, and storms don’t especially bother me. I think part of it might be that I was (and am) very uncoordinated, which made it very difficult for me to learn to swim; in fact, I didn’t until I was 15 or so, and I still can’t do it remotely well. I’m sure **tom** ’s joking, but just in case anyone got whooshed, I’m not rabid. (If I were, I’d be in serious trouble, because this is not a recent thing) ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2006, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811/5 "2006-05-08T02:49:33Z")
You know, usually “Ask the …” threads get a lot more posts than this. Maybe people just aren’t that curious. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2006, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811/6 "2006-05-08T03:06:36Z")
So does the thought of an aquarium disturb you? Can you cross bridges? ---
**Author:** ![dnooman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/839c29/32.png) [@dnooman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dnooman)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2006, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811/7 "2006-05-08T03:11:22Z")
I grew up in California and loved to go boogie boarding. I would often try to go out farther than I had been out previously. No problems there. At some point, I must have become afraid of large bodies of water. No traumatic incident though. I first realised my fear of large bodies of water when we visited Epcot center and rode a Norse ride called the Maelstrom. It was pretty tame all in all, but there is one part where the flume goes down a little slide and you end up in a scene that looks like you’re out in the middle of the coldest most remote ocean in the Netherlands with only a few oil rigs visible in the distance. I was very uneasy. I swim just fine, I even used to be on the swim team. I think my fear is equal parts “what might try to eat me under the water” and “could I swim back to land before becoming exhausted”. I have to be pretty far from land in order to get scared. I was not scared in the least when I went on a cruise a few years ago. I think it’s only if I’m swimming far from shore. It’s my only real fear, and even then, it’s not crippling. I know you wanted questions, I just wanted you to know that you’re not alone. ---
**Author:** ![Myron\_Van\_Horowitzski](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de053/32.png) [@Myron\_Van\_Horowitzski](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Myron_Van_Horowitzski)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2006, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811/8 "2006-05-08T03:11:26Z")
What about showers and baths? ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2006, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811/9 "2006-05-08T03:29:26Z")
> [@Love Rhombus](#): > > So does the thought of an aquarium disturb you? Can you cross bridges? _Thinking_ does virtually nothing. Aquaria are generally fine, except for the really big zoo aquaria. I’ve never really had to cross a bridge on foot, and in a car, I just try as hard as I can not to look at the water or think about it (obviously, in this case, thinking makes a difference). Ferries scare the crap out of me, mainly because it’s much harder to ignore the water all around me. As I said in my OP, hygiene is fine. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2006, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811/10 "2006-05-08T03:38:46Z")
You obviously drowned in a past-life. Maybe you were a pirate. That would be pretty cool, actually. ---
**Author:** ![Sal\_Ammoniac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8dc957/32.png) [@Sal\_Ammoniac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sal_Ammoniac)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2006, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811/11 "2006-05-08T13:39:01Z")
Do you worry more about the water itself, or what might be under the water? I’m a little bit phobic about swimming in a pond or lake, but I think it’s the mucky bottom, and the thought of snapping turtles, that wigs me out. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2006, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811/12 "2006-05-08T14:46:07Z")
The vastness of oceans freaks me out. I get uncomfortable watching deep sea science programs on TV. I find Big Water way scarier than Outer Space for some reason. I know…it doesn’t make a lick of sense. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2006, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811/13 "2006-05-08T15:33:17Z")
Would watching a movie, such as “Titanic” or “Poseidon Adventure” freak you out? How about “Open Water”? Also, do you get an oogie feeling looking at interactive maps(a la Google Earth)? Personally, zooming in on a body of water gives me the vertigo. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2006, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811/14 "2006-05-08T15:53:34Z")
I saw a picture once of a submerged town; I think a river was dammed to create a lake. The pic was of a road (still above ground) then went down into the new lake, and one could see some of the submerged buildings and street signs (if memory serves). For some reason, this picture and the memory of it creeped me out. Regarding your phobia, is this situation worse, or no difference? ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2006, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811/15 "2006-05-08T16:16:48Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUB](#): > > Would watching a movie, such as “Titanic” or “Poseidon Adventure” freak you out? How about “Open Water”? > > Also, do you get an oogie feeling looking at interactive maps(a la Google Earth)? Personally, zooming in on a body of water gives me the vertigo. Open Water totally creeped me out. And it ended just I thought it would. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2006, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811/16 "2006-05-08T18:28:34Z")
My guess is that **dwalin** ’s hydrophobia goes back to when the Wood Elves put him in a barrel and sent him floating down the river…or have I got him confused with someone else? ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2006, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-hydrophobe/355811/17 "2006-05-08T22:43:13Z")
I think it’s more the water itself, but murky water is a bit worse than clear. In regards to movies, pictures, etc.: They don’t really bother me. Generally I have to be seeing the body of water directly for it to affect me. Well, I’m off to go look at a creek. On Saturday, I’m going to Busch Gardens – and on water rides (not the ones where you get wet personally, just the car going in the water, e.g. Pirates of the Caribbean or It’s A Small World After All). I know I’m going to be terrified, but I refuse to let this fear control me.