From Wikipedia: “A phobia is an irrational, persistent fear of certain situations, objects, activities, or persons. The main symptom of this disorder is the excessive, unreasonable desire to avoid the feared subject. When the fear is beyond one’s control, or if the fear is interfering with daily life, then a diagnosis under one of the anxiety disorders can be made.” Here are the top 10 Bizarre phobias!
1. Ithyphallophobia – Fear of Erections [Answers.com]
Defined as “a persistent, abnormal, and unwarranted fear of an erect penis”, each year this surprisingly common phobia causes countless people needless distress. To add insult to an already distressing condition, most fear of erection therapies take months or years and sometimes even require the patient to be exposed repeatedly to their fear. Known by a number of names – Medorthophobia, Phallophobia, Ithyphallophobia, and Fear of an Erect Penis being the most common – the problem often significantly impacts the quality of life. It can cause panic attacks and keep people apart from loved ones and business associates.
2. Ephebophobia – Fear of Youths [Wikipedia]
The psychological and social fear of youth. The effects of ephebiphobia appear to cause damage throughout society. At least one major economist has proposed that the fear of youth can have grave effects on the economic health of nations. Coinage is attributed to a 1994 article by Kirk Astroth published in Phi Delta Kappan. Today, common usage occurs internationally by sociologists, government agencies, and youth advocacy organizations that define ephebiphobia as an abnormal or irrational and persistent fear and/or loathing of teenagers or adolescence.
3. Coulrophobia – Fear of Clowns [Wikipedia]
Coulrophobia is an abnormal or exaggerated fear of clowns. It is not uncommon among children, but is also sometimes found in teenagers and adults as well. Sufferers sometimes acquire a fear of clowns after having a bad experience with one personally, or seeing a sinister portrayal of one in the media. The weird appearance of the clowns, swollen red noses and unnatural hair colors makes these persons look so mysterious and treacherous. Adults who are victims of coulrophobia know what they fear is completely irrational and illogical, but they can’t escape the circumstance.
4. Ergasiophobia – Fear of Work [Wikipedia]
Ergasiophobia can be a persistent and debilitating disorder in some people, causing significant psychological disability and dysfunction. These individuals may actually be suffering from an underlying mental health problem such as depression or Attention Deficit Disorder.
5. Gymnophobia – Fear of Nudity [Wikipedia]
Gymnophobia is a fear or anxiety about being seen naked, and/or about seeing others naked, even in situations where it is socially acceptable. Gymnophobes may experience their fear of nudity before all people, or only certain people, and may regard their fear as irrational. This phobia often arises from a feeling of inadequacy that their bodies are physically inferior, particularly due to comparison with idealized images portrayed in the media. The fear may also stem from anxiety about sexuality in general, or from a persistent feeling of vulnerability associated with the thought that those who have seen the gymnophobe naked will continue to imagine the gymnophobe nude.
6. Neophobia – Fear of Newness [Wikipedia]
Neophobia is the fear of new things or experiences. It is also called cainotophobia. In psychology, neophobia is defined as the persistent and abnormal fear of anything new. In its milder form, it can manifest as the unwillingness to try new things or break from routine. The term is also used to describe anger, frustration or trepidation toward new things and toward change in general. Some conservative and reactionary groups are often described as neophobic, in their attempts to preserve traditions or revert society to a perceived past form. Technophobia can be seen as a specialized form of neophobia, by fearing new technology.
7. Paraskavedekatriaphobia – Fear of Friday the 13th [Wikipedia]
A Friday occurring on the 13th day of any month is considered to be a day of bad luck in English, German, Polish, Bulgarian and Portuguese-speaking cultures around the globe. The fear of Friday the 13th is called paraskavedekatriaphobia, a word that is derived from the concatenation of the Greek words Παρασκευή, δεκατρείς, and φοβία, meaning Friday, thirteen, and phobia respectively; alternative spellings include paskevodekatriaphobia or paraskevidekatriaphobia, and is a specialized form of triskaidekaphobia, a phobia (fear) of the number thirteen.
8. Panphobia – Fear of Everything [Wikipedia]
Panphobia, also called omniphobia, Pantophobia or Panophobia, is a medical condition known as a “non-specific fear”; the sufferer finds themselves in a state of fear but with no known target, and therefore no easy remedy. It has been described as “a vague and persistent dread of some unknown evil”. This fear is often seen as a secondary condition to schizophrenia.
9. Taphophobia – Fear of being Buried Alive [Wikipedia]
Fear of being buried alive is the fear of being placed in a grave while still alive as a result of being incorrectly pronounced dead. The abnormal, psychopathological version of this fear is referred to as taphophobia. Before the advent of modern medicine the fear was not entirely irrational. Throughout history there have been numerous cases of people being accidentally buried alive.
10. Pteronophobia – Fear of being Tickled by Feathers [Wikipedia]
Pteronophobia is the irrational fear of being tickled by feathers. Certain childhood events, such as tickling a baby, can lead to this fear as the child may feel trapped. It is related to the fear of tickling.
Bonus: Luposlipaphobia
The fear of being pursued by timber wolves around a kitchen table while wearing socks on a newly-waxed floor. This is actually a fictional phobia which was created by Gary Larson – author of the Far Side comics.
I think a lot of people have a case of Panphobia. You know – that feeling that something bad is going to happen but you don’t know what. And then nothing happens … and then go on to the next thing that can go wrong.
Andre: I would agree with you on that – I have that feeling from time to time though I normally relate it to a hangover
I have that feeling EVERYDAY, and it doesn't relate to a hangover or drug induced, just comes naturally.
Actually hangovers would lead to some Ergasiophobia, in my experience
Andre: A common experience I believe – one I can definitely verify in fact
I think a lot of people have mild Gymnophobia. I mean, a lot of people wouldn’t want to get naked anywhere or with anyone unless they’re alone or planning on having ***** (among other things). It’s understandable both ways; someone that doesn’t mind being with someone while they’re naked is fine, and the other doesn’t like it, fearing that they are overweight, just aren’t attractive, etc. is normal.
Dan, Andre: Its natural to have fears, but some things are intergrated. A lot of people fear spiders but not as a phobia, its usually caused because our instincs say "Hey, that could hurt you dont touch that!" And also, a lot of people (especially women) are insecure with the way they look, thus they dont enjoy getting naked.
Dont get phobias mixed in with day-to-day life, They are completely irrational and usually cripling, mild forms are rare. Its usually inbred fears over thousands of years and not a phobia that make us fear things.
Dan: that is true – we are all phobic in many ways – though thankfully not to the extend requiring therapy for the most part.
I’m ptrtey sure EVERYONE has that…so it wouldn’t be classified as a phobia. I would be nervous if someone walked around saying, “No, I wouldn’t mind being shot in the head”.
some of these phobias are weird but the one about timber wolves and wax floor how can someone be afraid of that i mean the chances of something like that occurring is like one in a billion so how could they be scared
mix- Did you read who the phobia was credited to?
Legolaphobia: Fear of Wood elves, If you don’t get it I’m not going to explain it. It’s fictional, No help groups please.
My favorite and most Ironic phobia:
Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia: Fear of Long words. HA HA.
Autophhobia: fear of yourself.
I could do this all day.
My phobia is almost too perverse to put on here: As it is still unamed, ill just tell you what it is. fear of animal STDs: I don’t lik it when an animal comes up and sits on my arm, I have cats and have to deal with this all of the time. I’m not “one of those people” I just dont want certain parts of an animals anatomy on me. My hands are actually shaking right now.
flagpolsittaphobia: fear if impailing yourself while skydiving???
Morphy: yea just read the whole thing my bad
mix2323: that one is a joke – but funnily enough, the though of running around a table on a newly waxed floor whilst wearing socks makes me tingle all over with horror – Larson may have been joking but I think there is some reality in his joke
crimanon: I don’t know whether to laugh or cry at those comments
oh – and I was so tempted to put the long words one on because I love Irony – but I managed to restrain myself.
p.s. top ten serial killers…. a clown! AAAGGHHH!
I dont know the proper phobia name, but..Nikola Tesla's "fear of pearls". That one always struck me as an oddity, allthough, for such an odd individual, any odd fear only adds to one's mysterious nature.
The fear probably is closer to that of being with round orbs..not so strange…anyway I'm just commenting.
i suffer from pearls phobia since i as little, i understand the fact its really odd, but i can’t touch or be near pearls and beads, so i guess its one of the worst thing that can happen to a girl, where i cant wear most jeweleries :/ also gave up my dream to be a fashion designer which require to work with jeweleries lol
christian: I have been working on a top 10 serial killers list but it is taking quite some time. Did you realise the clown picture I used is the one drawn by John Wayne Gacy? I used it for a bit of irony
I did know, that was my joke.
christian: ah – I did wonder
Glad someone got it 
I had never heard of ithyphallophobia before xD I LOL’d.
These ones are pretty bizarre too:
Anablephobia: fear of looking up
Lalophobia: fear of speaking
ImplosiveFire: thanks for adding those – I can kinda understand anablephobia as sometimes I get a bit nervous looking up if I am standing on something very high – though I think that is more a fear of losing balance and falling.
I suffer from selachophobia, which is developing into ichthyophobia, which could be a big problem for me. I think that perhaps when people say that they have a ‘phobia’ they don’t realize that they’re just really scared of it and its not a phobia, just a fear. For example, when my phobia is triggered it is a completely different kind of fear than seeing a spider 2″ away from me or a paranoia of showers after seeing Psycho. I just wish more people would understand that before spouting off that they have arachnaphobia or something like that. Good list though.
I don’t see how lalophobia can be considered funny. As a child I was excruciatingly shy, to the point that several of my teachers thought I was mute because they had never heard me speak!
I’m agoraphobic, which is defined as a fear of open spaces or crowds. Agoraphobes are those people who lock themselves in their homes – or even one room in their homes – because they are unable to leave their safe place without experiencing panic attacks or fugues.
I think it’s rather a narrow definition since most agoraphobes are afraid of the panic attacks that crowds or other situation can trigger, rather than the situation itself. I can handle crowds…as long as I know where the exits are in case I start feeling cornered.
kelsi: does it effect you in every day life?
Fe: Have you recovered as an adult from those problems? I think my sister had a mild form of agoraphobia as a child – it was very debilitating for her.
Another interesting phobia is arachibutyrophobia. It’s the fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of your mouth. It actually exists!
Monkey: I read about that while I was researching the list – I wonder what causes that phobia to occur in a person.
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH..i fear top 10 lists of phobias… but i also have ad/hd and a short memory span… so umm huh?.. AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH a phobia list!!!!! look a bunny what was that? a phobia list? AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH……
*spins around in chair*
lol.
Gr8flDdFn: hehe – very amusing
Jamie, as the mother of a son who eats only peanut butter sandwiches, I can tell you what causes arachibutyrophobia …the sheer panic when trying to remove the bread and Peanut Butter that is stuck to the roof of his mouth when he is gagging on it! (I’m sure you know which son we are talking about.)
Catriona: Seen in that light I can completely understand the fear
Before you described it like that I could really only imagine Mr Ed with his peanut-butter-induced chatting.
somniphobia: fear of sleep
Fruckert: that would be awful! I love sleeping! I wonder what would bring that fear on.
another wierd one is elektrophobia…fear of chickens…at least i think thats it
Fruckert: elektrophobia is fear of electricity – you mean Alektorophobia
ah well…they sound the same…im sound and word dyslexic
Fruckert: they do sound the same. Mind you – Alektorophobia has one extra syllable.
ah touche
if anyone wants some more odd ones go to phobialist.com
such as:
Russophobia- Fear of Russians
Ranidaphobia- Fear of Frogs
Pogonophobia- Fear of beards
Phronemophobia- Fear of thinking
Philophobia- Fear of falling in love or being in love
Parthenophobia- Fear of virgins or young girls
and lastly
Optophobia- Fear of opening one’s eyes
Ok, two questions:
1)How does a fear of *****s “keep people apart from…business associates?”
2)Why is the guy afraid of work black?
You should make a top ten weirdest myths/urban legends.. that would be fun.
I love urban legends, they’re so entertaining!
How about Helenologophobia – having a fear of lengthy, latin based scientific terms.
I’m scared of people walking behind me… and scared of door knobs.
If you watch the Maury show, there’s some people who are afraid of cotton balls, pickles, mustard, & they just go screaming & run away. I always thought those are weird but i HATE when the audience laughs at the people who are scared, it’s just rude!
what about hippotomontroseousquippedelaphobia…the fear of long words?
why isnt Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia
the fear of long words up there?
crabtree and brett: That is a made up phobia – I only put authentic phobias on the list.
my friend had a fear of ketchup. is their a phobia for that
Mortuusequusphobia: abnormally afraid of ketchup. Etymology from Australian rhyming slang "dead horse" for red sauce, aka ketchup.
Hippipoto…phobia, is actually not a fake phobia. It’s recognized as the longest word in the english language by whatever Webster’s association determines these things. And yes, it beats out antidisestablishmentarianism.
I have Agoraphobia, which can be very close to Panphobia in the worst cases. I deffinitely know the feeling of fearing everything. Its not something anyone should experience.
Ryan – from Wikipedia under Jocular or Fictional phobias:
Jen – I can imagine that it would be similar.
I have Telephonophobia. Guess what that is.
Oh and wasps. Childhood trauma thingy.
Apart from that my fears are rational. I fear anyone in a uniform, just like the next guy.
Che: I am guessing it is a fear of answering or using the telephone. I don’t like wasps either but I don’t mind bees.
Correct,Jamie.
Funnily enough, I have never had a problem with bees either.
What about a phobia for impossible things or things that doesn't exist? I have always had big fear just imaging a giant walking the streets or seeing a large bird soaring the sky.
I am also not spsruired that Firefox appears to have lost share to Chrome. In the end though I’ll be sticking with Firefox.
I was wodering if anybody else suffers from fear of taxidermy. I can deal with small birds, maybe a squirrel, but any bigger than that I just have to cover my eyes and be led out of the room. Bears are the worst, especially if standing on to legs. The natural history museum would be my worst nightmare.
yes yes yes..im not alone..it freaks me out so bad..any store or restaurant or museum..Philadelphia has a giant ox or something with long wooly hair.I couldnt look at it.I think i know where mine came from..as a child i was bitten by a dog..i had to see a plastic surgeon who was a big game hunter..his entire office was covered with dead animals from Africa..
I've been known to start shaking/crying and be unable to move when there's taxidermy nearby… totally freaks me out.
i also have this. Sometimes it’s so bad that I’ll have dreams where taxidermy falls on me, or i am impaled on antlers, or i am forced to put my head in the mouth of a stuffed bear. Sometimes if i see a deer in the wild i freak out because, duh, it looks like taxidermy.
I too have this fear (well, I’d really call it a phobia at this point.) I once had to accompany children to a nature museum for work, not realizing that the museum would just be rooms FULL of taxidermy animals. Huge panic attack.
You’re not alone.
I’m twelve years old; since I was about . . . six, I’d say? I’ve been terrified by taxidermy. I went on a trip to Germany a couple winters ago, and the bed & breakfast we were staying in was packed with taxidermy. thank god our room didn’t have anything, but it was humiliating — i literally had to be led in and out of the building by the hand, my head down, so i didn’t freak out. The one thing I could handle was the little bird by the stairwell, but even that sent a shiver down my spine.
For me, the bigger the animal is, the worse it gets. That’s the general rule for me. But all taxidermy just throws me into a state of panic.
The simple idea of animals being killed, having their skins peeled off and smacked up onto the wall is just horrifying for me. The ironic thing is that when I was about three or four, I would apparently visit my friend’s house and go in the basement to play with the taxidermy animals her father kept down there.
I think it was when I was old enough to realize that those things were DEAD animals, not stuffed playthings, that the phobia really started for me.
I suffer from this and I agree with the size thing – it definitely makes it worse.
Do the others here have issues with things the higher up they are too? I can usually deal with stuff on the floor, but if it’s above my head I tend to freak out.
I have this too! I’m 15 now, I have had it since I was 4/5 I start screaming and crying, I even fainted once. I can just about deal with small birds but anything bigger u totally freak out, does this phobia have a name?
I have the same exact fear. I always freak out whenever I am around taxidermy. I’ve actually had full blown panic attacks
Maria: wow – that is fascinating! I love stuffed animals – I just can’t imagine being afraid of them. What do you think brought that on?
Well, there are no childhood traumas that I can think of, but I have wondered myself why this is, many times, since my reaction is so severe, not just thinking stuffed animals are gross. I simply cannot enter a room if there is one of those things there.
I also have this fear and everyone just tells me its rediculous. Its the first thing I look for in a steakhouse or a cabin. I KNOW that they can't hurt me, but its still just creepy. I am of Indian decsent and my father used to say it was because we could feel their souls. Little strange I know, but its the only explanation I can think of. I just think it is a sick practice that our society needs to let go. I feel it is just as unacceptable as stuffing a human body. Its sick and wrong.
I am also terrified of any and all taxidermed animals. I have never met anyone else with this fear so I'm glad I'm not the only one. I tried getting over it by waitressing at a restaurant where we had many dead animals on the wall- I only lasted a few months and it was a nightmare for me everytime I walked into work. We had a fieldtrip in 5th grade to a natural history museum, I tried walking in and had to run back out and sit outside the entire time with a teacher b/c I was having a panic attack from going in. Has anyone found a way to get over this fear?! I am okay with fish and the occassional bird but anything else freaks me out. It's also the first thing I look for when I walk into any restaurant or unknown place which could possibly have them…AHHH!
No exactly! I don´t have a problem with toy stuffed animals, of course, but taxidermy just like you Wowzer. If I suspect that there are any in a store or a house I usually have someone check it out for me. Like in the local Viking restaurant, were I totally panicked and the people there probably thought I was completely crazy…! I am glad I am not the only one!!!
I have the same problem! Museums are the worst. I have nothing from my past that could have triggered it. Are you also afraid of wax dummies and things behind glass with spotlights on them like in museums?
Hi,
It is interesting to hear that so many of you have the same fear as me. For me though it is taxidermy, skeletons and large plastic animals.
We have recently just had all the skeletons from the university museum moved into the lunch area! Needless to say i can no longer go get my chocolate bar from the machine there or… eat my lunch anywhere near it!
I had know idea how this started, but I do remember when i was 17/18 going for an interview at Cambridge University. They have a museum there that contains lots of skeletons and taxidermy. I was just talking about this with one of my colleagues and she thinks that i may have associated the stress of the interview with these objects. As this is when i believe the fear kicked in! There were two elephant skeletons at my old university that i could not walk past. They were in a creepy dark room.
Also when i worked at HMV, i had to go into a storage room to pick something up and there was a statue of batman, that had been moved so it looked like it was sitting on a chair. I freaked and could not go in there. Small space with a plastic model of batman. No chance!
It is really strange and i feel so irrational but I just have images of it coming to life! Night at the museum is my worst nightmare!
Does anyone know what this phobia is called? I might have missed it in earlier posts!
Laura
I just read that back and must apologise for my grammatical errors. I blame just the thought of the taxidermy etc….. lol…. I can see how incoherent that message is! This is what it does to me!!!!!!!
Maria: I sympathise. Though I don’t have a fear of stuffed animals (such as teddy bears, plushes, whatever), I am uncomfortable around taxidermied animals. I haven’t a clue why, but I get away from them as fast as I can (I refuse to enter a furniture store at the local mall because it’s covered in taxidermied elk heads.) Just thought that was noteworthy.
I have monophobia. That is the fear of being alone. Not as in life-long loneliness (not getting married etc.) but being alone with no one else around. Growing up I used to turn my radio up really loud and turn on all the tvs just to similate the presence of another person. I would also spend my alone time in chatrooms just to have a sense of someone there. In my car again with the radio turn up loud and singing along. I get real panicky and constantly have to look out the windows and go from room to room not knowing what to do. Not fun, not in the least bit.
I have the same phobia, I cant be alone. When Im alone id open music, open the tv, open all lights around the house and id usually stay in one room and go online and talk! if there was no internet i would freak out. I dont know why though, But when im alone im scared that someone is watching me. Is there a fear of being watched? But the other thing is, i LOVE performing on stage. So im not sure why im afraid of being watched when im alone. I hate it when im walking down a stair case alone, I always feel like im being watched.