# Things that send shivers down your spine... **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 11, 2003, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859 "2003-01-11T00:22:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![habs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ecae2f/32.png) [@habs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/habs)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/1 "2003-01-11T00:22:19Z")
I was just curious what were some of the things that sends shivers down your spine. For me, personally, it’s the thought of scratching a bar of soap with my fingernails. :eek: I also can’t stand even the thought of scraping my teeth along a rough brick wall. So… what are yours? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/2 "2003-01-11T00:30:17Z")
Such matters belong in the IMHO forum, and there it has been sent. ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/3 "2003-01-11T00:33:39Z")
When just after I hit “submit” I realize I posted to the wrong forum. Eeeehhhgghghgh! To throw a GQ into the mix – I once saw a documentary a LONG time ago when I was a wee lad. I remember them analyzing the squeaks of Styrofoam and scraping of chalkboard and coming up with some surprising results – when they separated the sounds the parts that had the “shiver” effect came from the _low_ end of the spectrum. Did I hear that right? Do I remember that right? Any further info? RhythSCREEECCCHdvl ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/4 "2003-01-11T01:02:37Z")
I can’t stand it when someone folds a piece of paper in half, and then run their fingernails over the crease. EEEEOOOOOWWWW!!! ---
**Author:** ![RadioWave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/91b2a8/32.png) [@RadioWave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RadioWave)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/5 "2003-01-11T01:31:35Z")
Come here **ivylass** … A little closer pffffffttthtftfhtfhfthftfhftfhtfhftfhfthfthfthttttttttttttttt heh, heh, heh, For me, it’s when someone clips their fingernails or toenails at work. ---
**Author:** ![I\_can\_t\_believe\_that\_s\_butter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@I\_can\_t\_believe\_that\_s\_butter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_can_t_believe_that_s_butter)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/6 "2003-01-11T01:40:33Z")
This actually used to send shivers down my spine: When I was young, I used to bite down on popsicle sticks and yank them out of my mouth with my teeth still clamped down on them. Ah, the stupidity of youth. ---
**Author:** ![DLurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecd19e/32.png) [@DLurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DLurker)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/7 "2003-01-11T01:48:58Z")
If by shivers you also mean makes you want to kill someone on the spot, it would be chewing on ice or eating potato chips right next to you with their mouth open… I don’t know, must be a frequency thing… ---
**Author:** ![TVeblen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@TVeblen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVeblen)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/8 "2003-01-11T02:28:28Z")
Overall I have the sensitivity of a rock (sedimentary) but a few things still conjure up involuntary heebie-jeebies: [ul] - the subliminal flickering/buzz of malfunctioning fluorescent lights - the feel of anything “nappy” on my tongue, e.g. popsickle sticks, fabric, etc. (Think: licking velvet.) Never ask me to lick a wooden spoon. - metal grates in sidewalks, webbed or solid. (The mysterious entries to the guts of nearby buildings.) They’re scarier than hell, just by existing. I never trust that they’ve been properly secured from underneath, and by merely walking over them I’ll plummet helplessly into whatever scarey stuff lurks floors below. - anything tight around my neck. I can barely tolerate turtlenecks for daily wear; anything binding around my neck at night, even covers, spooks me out. - that incredibly hideous, three-tone phone signal when you need to add an additional pre-fix number. It’s always like listening to, well, styrofoam being scrunched or nails down a chalk board. [/ul] Veb ---
**Author:** ![Mephisto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/48db29/32.png) [@Mephisto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mephisto)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/9 "2003-01-11T02:53:36Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by TVeblen_ > \*\*\* metal grates in sidewalks, webbed or solid. (The mysterious entries to the guts of nearby buildings.) They’re scarier than hell, just by existing. > \*\* Wow. I like that stuff. Seriously. I especially like to walk over metal grates when I’m wearing my boots . . . _k-klank, k-klank_. If there’s steam or something rising up out of the grate, all the better. I’ll admit that there’s a scary element, but for me it’s always a “cool scary,” like a short story by Stephen King or H.P. Lovecraft or somebody. > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Rhythmdvl \* > \*\*. . . when they separated the sounds the parts that had the “shiver” effect came from the _low_ end of the spectrum. Did I hear that right? Do I remember that right? Any further info? > \*\* Well, this site about [tiger noises](http://www.hindu.com/2001/01/11/stories/0811000e.htm) seems to support your idea that sounds from the low end of the specturm can affect somebody. I used to have some other websites like this stored in my Favorites, but I can’t find them tonight. And to give credit where credit is due, I think I originally found the website I provided a link to here at the SDMB . . . although I couldn’t find a thread about tiger noises when I searched. Aw well. That said, I thought I heard that many of the sounds that cause cold chills are similar in some way to the warning sounds given by perturbed snakes . . . sorry, no cite on that, it’s just something I’ve heard. Anyway . . . things that give me the cold chills . . . Sight: Plastic bags in baby cribs. I saw that at somebody’s house one time and my mind’s eye saw the horrible potential and . . . brrrr! Sound: The _skr-skreeeeeee-skreennn-skreeenk-k-k_ sound of metal grinding on metal that could frequently be heard at a factory in which I once worked really bothered me when I was new there. Of course the sound of metal on metal can be heard in lots of places. However, there was just something particularly bad about the sound at this one particular factory. I got over it, though. Sensation: A metal hook stuck between my teeth and gums. Really, anything stuck between my teeth and gums, but thus far in life it has mostly been a metal hook. ---
**Author:** ![kiz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/7feea3/32.png) [@kiz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kiz)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/10 "2003-01-11T02:58:04Z")
Fingernails scratching down a blackboard…EEEEEEEEEEEEK! The only thing worse than that are sirens. Doesn’t matter what kind. I hear one and I automatically want to crawl into a hole with my hands over my ears… ---
**Author:** ![Ringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@Ringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ringo)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/11 "2003-01-11T03:24:36Z")
Oddly enough, falling. And I used to skydive. ---
**Author:** ![scablet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@scablet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scablet)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/12 "2003-01-11T03:35:46Z")
York’s Peppermint Patties ---
**Author:** ![stochastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e19b73/32.png) [@stochastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stochastic)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/13 "2003-01-11T04:08:55Z")
I used to work in a research lab with an opthalmologist. She once showed me some of the pictures of various cases she had. One was of a guy that had a large fish hook snagged deep into his eye. Anytime I see anything to do with fishing, I think of that picture and the shivers start. (However, it didn’t bother me to slice up the eyes from people only a couple of hours dead and prepare them for histological examination, go figure) ---
**Author:** ![Skelji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b38774/32.png) [@Skelji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skelji)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/14 "2003-01-11T04:26:11Z")
The feel of brown paper bags, especially grocery bags. Oof. Plastic for me, thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e56c9b/32.png) [@Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mirror_Image_egamI_rorriM)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/15 "2003-01-11T05:05:15Z")
When anyone files their fingernails around me. It’s bad. I don’t mind the sensation of it, just the noise. My theology teacher would run her nails down the chalkboard to get our attention last year. It worked. Very well. ---
**Author:** ![TVeblen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@TVeblen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVeblen)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/16 "2003-01-11T05:32:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by stochastic \* > \*\*. One was of a guy that had a large fish hook snagged deep into his eye. \*\* (Veb sits down–quickly–with her head between her knees, uttering faint, bat-like wheezes.) I forgot to mention one. The Surgery Channel. Ulp, Veb ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/17 "2003-01-11T06:58:43Z")
My shivery (in a bad way) things are the sound of utensils on ceramic (think knife scraping across dinner plate - yeeze, I can hardly type now), fingernails on unglazed ceramic, and clipping and filing fingernails. I hate clipping my nails - I just have to grit my teeth and get it over with. Oh, and a snagged fingernail - yikes. Or when a fingernail gets snapped back. I think I have a fingernail thing. ---
**Author:** ![Skeezix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/839c29/32.png) [@Skeezix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skeezix)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/18 "2003-01-11T08:15:03Z")
Acckkk… me too, **lou**. Tile-top dining room table. Two year old Skeezling. Metal fork. It’s a race to see whether the Mrs. or I say it first. “Stop that **now** , please!” She, of course, thinks making mommy and daddy’s spines curl up backwards is hysterical. I keep asking her if she wants to make it to her third birthday, but she keeps laughing at me. [sub]By gum, I think she sees through me.[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![Washte](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/dc4da7/32.png) [@Washte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Washte)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/19 "2003-01-11T12:24:15Z")
Fingernails down a chalkboard drive me crazy. Makes me cringe, shiver and clench my teeth. My kids used to love doing this when they found out it was a bugbear of mine. People chewing ice. Just the thought of chomping ice, gives me goosies. Utensils screeching on a plate. Too reminescent of nails on a chalkboard. Hubby. Not in general, but he does these impressions of Gollum and Jack the Ripper that just creeps me out. Just too bloody realistic… ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2003, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859/20 "2003-01-11T15:53:05Z")
Chewing on a dry towel. I have no explanation for this. Sliding down a razor blade into a pool full of alcohol… unless it’s beer. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-send-shivers-down-your-spine/147859.md?page=2)