# So I seem to be scared of whales. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 8, 2003, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967 "2003-05-08T20:53:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Faerie\_Nuff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/76d3ee/32.png) [@Faerie\_Nuff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Faerie_Nuff)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2003, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/1 "2003-05-08T20:53:05Z")
Not the country, mind you, the big friggin water mammals. I discovered this while looking through a National Geographic magazine. I saw a picture of a whale, screamed, and threw the magazine across my living room. This was two years ago, and I have found that I cannot even look at a picture of a whale without freaking out. I don’t know what I’d ever do if I actually saw one in person. So my question is this: Am I completely insane? ---
**Author:** ![CRorex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CRorex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CRorex)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2003, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/2 "2003-05-08T20:58:25Z")
Yeah you’re a freak. On the plus side, unless you go to Sea World you have a totally non life impacting phobia. Sometimes the brain gets wired in odd ways. ---
**Author:** ![Sionach](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Sionach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sionach)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2003, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/3 "2003-05-08T21:00:57Z")
Maybe you were Jonah in a past life. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![CRorex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CRorex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CRorex)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2003, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/4 "2003-05-08T21:12:29Z")
Hrrm I ment to add: Look at it this way, they are water based mammals and you’re land based, you’ll NEVER have to meet them. ---
**Author:** ![Beadalin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@Beadalin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beadalin)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2003, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/5 "2003-05-08T21:31:06Z")
So how do you like that Mountain Dew commercial where the blue whale inexplicably swallows that kayaker? ---
**Author:** ![Sock\_Munkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Sock\_Munkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sock_Munkey)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/6 "2003-05-09T00:13:07Z")
Is it just whales or large sea creatures in general? ---
**Author:** ![sidle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee59a6/32.png) [@sidle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sidle)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/7 "2003-05-09T00:18:35Z")
Don’t sweat it. I have the same reaction to any image of a Manta Ray (also aptly known as the Devil Ray.) I don’t care how gentle they are-those things are so frightening to me. Oh-get a little wigged out by butterflies too. Yeah, we’re weird, maybe. What can ya do? ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/8 "2003-05-09T00:20:51Z")
When I was in Osaka I went to the Aquarium where they have a Whale Shark. (not a whale, I know, but…) Even though these gentle giants are plankton eaters, I gotta say that if I ever saw one in open water it would scare the crap out of me! It was way cool. As big as a bus! Your phobia is a little odd, but hey, who’s it hurting? ---
**Author:** ![SnootQueen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@SnootQueen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnootQueen)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/9 "2003-05-09T01:11:42Z")
I admit, I am the same way, except with fish and frogs. I am afraid of them. If there is a frog in my backyard, I will run! They are disgusting! My family loves to tease me about it, every Christmas. I receive a fish or frog ornament for the tree. ---
**Author:** ![NinjaChick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71c47a/32.png) [@NinjaChick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinjaChick)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/10 "2003-05-09T01:18:40Z")
Big small fish creep me out. Y’know, like the type that you get at the pet store to stick in your aquarium? We’ve got a tank full of the awesome tiny glowey ones (neons, methinks they’re aptly named). They’re awesome, and I love to just sit and watch them. But put anything over an inch long in there, and I won’t go near the tank. ---
**Author:** ![llfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a698b9/32.png) [@llfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/llfan)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/11 "2003-05-09T01:30:13Z")
LOL! I’ve heard of some phobias but this seems a bit too much! Scared of a whale…hm…what would Freud say? =) While we’re on phobia’s I’m petrified of Spiders…a little more normal phobia… =) ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/12 "2003-05-09T01:39:42Z")
I have a similar reaction when I’m flipping through a magazine and I come across a picture of a big hairy tarantula. Spiders in general don’t really bother me _that_ much but I can’t even bare the sight of tarantula’s. I’ve never considered myself afraid of whales but FWIW there was a picture in National Geographic several years ago that was a silhouette of a diver at the mouth of a Sperm Whale. That one actually creeped me out a bit. ---
**Author:** ![Faerie\_Nuff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/76d3ee/32.png) [@Faerie\_Nuff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Faerie_Nuff)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/13 "2003-05-09T13:51:02Z")
It’s just whales, the bigger the scarier. Big fish don’t freak me out much and sharks I can watch on T.V. and I’m fine. But even the big fake blue whale hanging in that room in the NYC Natural History Museum. Man! I have to shield my eyes if I try to walk through that room. And I forgot to mention that this is probably related to my fear of water. And can drink water, so I’m pretty sure it’s not rabies. But I’m terrified of being submerged and I can’t swim. So the whales probably just remind me how much water there is. Plus they look like they probably just eat people all the time and no one ever finds out. ---
**Author:** ![green\_bladder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/73ab20/32.png) [@green\_bladder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/green_bladder)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/14 "2003-05-09T14:03:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Faerie Nuff \* > \*\*It’s just whales, the bigger the scarier. Big fish don’t freak me out much and sharks I can watch on T.V. and I’m fine. But even the big fake blue whale hanging in that room in the NYC Natural History Museum. Man! I have to shield my eyes if I try to walk through that room. > \*\* That’s fair enough 😃 (ok ok, I’ll stop) But I guess we all have some things that freak us out. I can’t stand anything to do with bugs, whether I’m just looking at pictures in a magazine or watching them on TV. I scream like a wuss when I encounter a cockroach in my home and I’ll usually proceed to lock myself in a room. ---
**Author:** ![green\_bladder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/73ab20/32.png) [@green\_bladder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/green_bladder)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/15 "2003-05-09T14:05:53Z")
…let me finish… 🙂 Your whale thing is strange though… and you have to wonder what triggered it ---
**Author:** ![Broken\_Doll](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbce88/32.png) [@Broken\_Doll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broken_Doll)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/16 "2003-05-09T14:49:23Z")
Fairy Nuff - I’m also afraid of water. I can’t swim and I avoid pools, lakes, rivers and the sea as much as is possible. But instead of being afraid of whales, I’m afraid of dead bodies in water. Not dead bodies, but dead bodies in WATER. _shudder_ Do you also have nightmares about the sea? ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/17 "2003-05-09T15:10:31Z")
Well, I see you live in CT which was once a major whaling center. And eventually the whales are going to take their revenge, wiping out Mystic Seaport with their mighty flukes, and then swimming up the Quinnipiac and Connecticut rivers in great waves devouring helpless boaters and causing massive, devastating floods from water displacement. So really, I think this is not a phobia but is based on a solid evaluation of a terrifying future reality. ---
**Author:** ![Leifsmama](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a698b9/32.png) [@Leifsmama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leifsmama)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/18 "2003-05-09T15:14:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Broken Doll \* > \*\*Fairy Nuff - I’m also afraid of water. I can’t swim and I avoid pools, lakes, rivers and the sea as much as is possible. > > \*\* A bit of a hijack, bit this reminds me of the time when my aunt, her friend and I were going snorkeling. When we got out to the spot where we were going to snorkel the guide hopped in and no one followed. It turns out that my aunt can’t swim. Her friend is afraid of water and I’m scared to death of fish. We all eventually got in, but my aunt and I ended up back in the boat before too long. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/19 "2003-05-09T15:20:05Z")
I have difficulty watching under-water programs. It just freaks me out. I love to swim in a pool, and even at the beach, but not very far out. The underwater scene is terrifying to me. And I wouldn’t feel bad about being afraid of whales. Their huge muthas! ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2003, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967/20 "2003-05-09T15:21:55Z")
**Faeirie** , don’t _ever_ go to New York’s [Museum of Natural History](http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/permanent/ocean/?src=h_h)—in fact, don’t hit that link, either. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-seem-to-be-scared-of-whales/173967.md?page=2)