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13 Most Unusual Phobias That Really Exist

13 Most Unusual Phobias That Really Exist
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We all are afraid of something or the other – heights, water, closed spaces, spiders and lot more. Well there is nothing wrong in that. It’s quite all right. But it happens at times that the fear of something becomes so strong that it turns into a phobia. This post will tell you about some of the most unusual phobias that you have ever heard of.

Phobia is not about just being afraid of a particular thing. When you face such a situation or an object you panic and lose control over yourself. It is believed that phobias are mostly caused by some traumatic experience in your past. For instance, your fear of heights might have been caused by one of your trips to the mountains or the fear of insects may have been triggered back in school science class by an experiment that went terribly wrong. So the cause of phobia can be any.

It is believed that phobias are mostly caused by some traumatic experience in your past. Click To Tweet

13 Most Unusual Phobias

From the fear of chair to the fear of number 13 phobia sufferers are tormented by the most unusual things. So here is a list of the most unusual phobias that I have ever heard of.

most unusual phobias1.Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – The fear of long words

As ironic as it may sound, Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia is the fear of long words. People who suffer from this phobia feel anxious and start to panic when they come across really long words.

The irony is not lost on this one as the name of the phobia itself is a terror to behold even to those not suffering from this.

most unusual phobias2. Xanthophobia – The fear of the colour yellow

People suffering from xanthophobia may fear anything yellow, including the sun, sunflowers and even the yellow paint. Anything in the shade of yellow will cause anxiety in them. In its most severe form xanthophobic symptoms may include an overpowering fear of even the word yellow.

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most unusual phobias3. Turophobia – The fear of cheese

Sufferers of Turophobia usually associate cheese with a traumatic memory. From basic cheddar to mozzarella, turophobes run away even from a single slice of cheese. Some turophobes may fear one type of cheese while others may fear cheese altogether.

most unusual phobias4. Deipnophobia – The fear of dinner parties

Deipnophobia is one of the most unusual phobias wherein the person is afraid of dining with people and holding conversations with them alongside. A person with this phobia prefers to eat alone.

most unusual phobias

5. Chaetophobia – The fear of hair

The fear of hair is typically developed due to a bad experience with hair or a hairy person. The brain remembers this incident and reacts with panic and fear when the person sees hair or someone who has too much of it.

most unusual phobias6. Omphalophobia – The fear of navels

Omphalophobia is the fear of belly buttons. Some people tend to have a bad connection with the belly button and they ultimately develop a phobia. They freak out if they have to touch their own or someone else’s navel. While it seems quite harmless to the rest of the world, just the thought of this makes them tremble. It’s not because they are grossed out by it but because of an irrational fear that, it is said, is linked with the navel’s association with the umbilical cord and the mother’s womb.

most unusual phobias7. Somniphobia – The fear of falling asleep

Somniphobia is one of the most unusual phobias that comprise often irrational and extreme fear of sleep. People suffering from this may fear falling asleep because they associate going to bed with dying. It may also result from a feeling of lack of control or from suffering frequent nightmares. Somniphobics may also fear losing time while sleeping. This is more common in children and people who are known to have night terrors.

most unusual phobias8. Nomophobia – The fear of being without mobile phone coverage

The phobia was coined about five years ago when researchers discovered an interesting phenomenon in individuals during a survey. The survey showed that more than half of the participants – in the UK – suffer from distress when they experience any mobile or smartphone related “crises” like losing signal, running dangerously low on battery, or just losing sight or misplacing the device itself even for a few, short seconds.

Literally, if you would spell the term out, it is “No Mobile [Phone] Phobia.”

most unusual phobias9. Trypophobia – The fear of holes

Trypophobes are people who fear objects with small holes. Most of the time, these are objects with holes that are clustered together such as honeycombs and certain kinds of fruit and plant. Although it is not yet considered by experts as an “official phobia,” there are thousands of people that are reported to suffer from it. According to a research, trypophobes associate these holes as a sign of danger .Symptoms of trypophobia range from nausea to itchy skin to full blown panic attacks at the very sight of an object such as, say, a sponge.

most unusual phobias10. Philophobia – The fear of falling in love

While the idea of being in love and falling in love is something that many of us desire, it is not the case for people suffering with Philophobia. Whether it’s the fear of making a serious commitment to a relationship or just the feeling of falling in love with someone, Philophobes are terrified even by just the prospect of emotional attachment to another person.

The cause of this fear may have stemmed from an experience that inoculated the person to the idea of love such as being abandoned by a parent or a partner or the having lost someone significant. They end up living a life of solitude.

most unusual phobias11. Chrometophobia – The fear of money

In the present era, when people value money more than relationships and are running after it day and night, there are a few who can’t bear the sight of it. People who suffer from this phobia may prefer being homeless as opposed to handling money.

most unusual phobias12. Coulrophobia – The fear of clowns

Coulrophobia is a comparatively common phobia, and usually present in children according to various surveys. The ‘scary clown’ has often been used in popular culture, for example in the form of the Joker in Batman comics and film adaptations. Coulrophobia has some celebrity sufferers- namely Daniel Radcliffe and Johnny Depp. Depp said of his clown fear: “it’s impossible, thanks to their painted-on smiles, to distinguish if they are happy or if they are about to bite your face off.”

most unusual phobias13. Triskaidekaphobia – The fear of the number 13

To the superstitious people, the number 13 is an unlucky number that invokes misfortune, bad luck, and generally anything that may happen to you that is associated with or by using the number.

However, Triskaidekaphobes take this a step ahead because of their fear of the number itself and what it represents. Closely associated with the fear of Friday the 13th, people with this phobia take great care in avoiding anything related to or even using the number 13.

These are some of the most unusual phobias I have ever heard of. If you know about any such unusual phobia or fear do share with us.


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