Many people have fears, whether it be snakes, clowns, ghosts, or even the little bubbles that form on top of a pancake when you are cooking it. Some fears are irrational and some make more sense.
Some scientists hypothesize that fears are what keep us grounded. It helps us become alert to danger and prepares us to deal with it. When we come across a fear, our blood pressure starts to increase, we start to sweat, and we prepare to either fight or run away. This is called our fight or flight instinct.
Shreya Shah (11) explains her greatest fears. “Spiders are pretty scary, and so are AP tests. I don’t know why I am scared of spiders, maybe it is because some are poisonous or maybe it is because it is a common fear.
Some of the most common fears, according to Talk Space, are Social Phobia (Fear of social interactions), Trypophobia (Fear of circle clusters), Atychiphobia (Fear of failure), Thanatophobia (Fear of death), Nosophobia (Fear of developing a disease), Arachnophobia (Fear of spiders), Vehophobia (Fear of driving), Claustrophobia (Fear of enclosed spaces), Acrophobia (Fear of heights), and Aerophobia (Fear of flying).
Irrational fears are fears that are surrounded by something where no threat exists. Some common irrational fears are the fear of dentists, the fear of school, the fear of balloons, and the fear of clowns. A lot of irrational fears are linked to anxiety disorders, but it is not the root cause of irrational fear.
Did you know that the rarest phobia is “Arachibutyrophobia,” which is the fear of getting peanut butter stuck on the roof of your mouth? Another rare phobia is “Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia,” which is the fear of long words. Ironic, isn’t it? There is even a phobia of phobias, “phobophobia”!
It is hard to get over your fears, but here are a few ways you can! A common way to get over your fears, is to face it head on, but that may not always be the best way to get over a fear, especially if it is something like Thanatophobia (fear of death). Accepting your fears can also help you get over them.
It is okay to have a fear, whether it is irrational or rational, but it is important not to live out your entire life in fear of something. Everyone should live out their lives to the max and prioritize what is important!
