We all have at least one...irrational fear

I was claustrophobic much of my life. At one time just being in a crowd of people could trigger it. i refused to let fear control me, so people around me never knew.

When i lived in NYC and worked in skyscrapers i'd ride the subway (at rush hours this was the worst--underground with no glimpse of 'outside/open space and people up against me on every side. Also elevators 30 to 80 floors (a temp assignment in the Empire State Building) worsened when they were crowded.

Sheer acts of will at the time. Took some self-work but have been clear of it for two decades.
 
Fire. Living in California and all the fires hasn't helped. I'm depressed over the drought and climate in general. I don't know if it's necessarily an irrational fear. I live on the edge of town with undeveloped hills not far away and forests further up.

I also have a literal fear of being yelled at. I think today I can deal with that one better.
 
I'm afraid of almost everything but try to behave like I'm not. I seem so brave to others and it's hard to grasp because inside I'm quivering like jelly about many things. :ROFLMAO: Today, gas went up to $4.39 per gallon at my favorite cheap station and I almost had a stroke. Then I found it 4 cents cheaper than that at another place on my route and realized there are options but I'm still so afraid of everything deep down inside. I think this could be why I sleep so much. All that fear builds up inside and I need to escape.

sleeping red 54.jpg
 
Picking up the phone to call someone. I don't mind receiving calls, but if I have to call someone, it is a hurdle to overcome. I think it stems from not being able to make people understand what I want for some reason.

An example - calling the doctors office:
Office: Hello, how can I help you?
Me: I'd like to make an appointment with the doctor.
Office: Is it an emergency?
Me: No, just a routine annual exam.
Office: You're not having an emergency?
Me: No.
Office: Let me get someone that can help you. (I get put on hold for 10 minutes)

Office (different person): Hello, can I help you?
Me: I'm calling to make an appointment with the doctor.
Office: What times are good for you?
Me: Monday and Friday mornings.
Office: Let me check to see what's available (put on hold for 5 minutes).

Office: I'm sorry for the wait. The doctor doesn't have any morning appointments available on those days. We could book you on a Tuesday.
Me (sighing inwardly): I can only come on Monday or Friday mornings.
Office: Please hold.(another 5 minutes)

Office (another person): Hello, how can I assist you today?

And it starts all over again.
 
Bugs!! anything bigger than an ant or tiny spider. I live in a high rise, and during hot, humid weather those big flying roaches/waterbugs have conventions on my balcony. One evening one came in through the air conditioner vent, I screamed and screamed (and it ran back into the a/c) and I called down for someone to get it. They took out the air conditioner and all the insulation and failed to find it.
I spent the night sitting in the lobby with the overnight doorman.

Rational me, knew it went out through the vent again, but irrational me just took over.
 
Ants... Cockroaches and woodlice... I know it's nothing huge, it's not like the place is over-run with ants and woodlice, but I inwardly freak out when I see them.

We're very lucky in this country we don't generally have the bugs that other countries have.. termites, flying roaches.. in fact I've never even seen a roach in this country ..but in Spain, Greece, Cyprus and all the hot countries.. they're in many places.. and they freak me out..
 
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Ticks! I despise ticks. This is a desert terrain but ticks ARE here, found several on the dogs a few years back. If they drop off the dog in the house and crawl off into a crack, the female can lay hundreds(thousands) of eggs. When they hatch they instinctively crawl up the wall, where they can perch on the door frame or light fixtures, waiting to drop down onto any carbon dioxide exhaling warm blooded creature that walks by.
 
chic said:
I'm afraid of almost everything but try to behave like I'm not. I seem so brave to others and it's hard to grasp because inside I'm quivering like jelly about many things. :ROFLMAO: Today, gas went up to $4.39 per gallon at my favorite cheap station and I almost had a stroke. Then I found it 4 cents cheaper than that at another place on my route and realized there are options but I'm still so afraid of everything deep down inside. I think this could be why I sleep so much. All that fear builds up inside and I need to escape.
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Being afraid all the time is exhausting. Saps your energy, and having spent so much of that over the years, we have precious little now.
 
debodun said:
Picking up the phone to call someone. I don't mind receiving calls, but if I have to call someone, it is a hurdle to overcome. I think it stems from not being able to make people understand what I want for some reason.

An example - calling the doctors office:
Office: Hello, how can I help you?
Me: I'd like to make an appointment with the doctor.
Office: Is it an emergency?
Me: No, just a routine annual exam.
Office: You're not having an emergency?
Me: No.
Office: Let me get someone that can help you. (I get put on hold for 10 minutes)

Office (different person): Hello, can I help you?
Me: I'm calling to make an appointment with the doctor.
Office: What times are good for you?
Me: Monday and Friday mornings.
Office: Let me check to see what's available (put on hold for 5 minutes).

Office: I'm sorry for the wait. The doctor doesn't have any morning appointments available on those days. We could book you on a Tuesday.
Me (sighing inwardly): I can only come on Monday or Friday mornings.
Office: Please hold.(another 5 minutes)

Office (another person): Hello, how can I assist you today?

And it starts all over again.
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You're not the problem here, Deb.
 
Ferris wheels. I can go (or let's just say I *used* to go) on any terrifying thrill ride at the amusement park, but a dinky little Ferris wheel gives me the willies.

I CAN go on those gigantic super ones, the ones that are entirely closed in. I am a lot happier when the ride is over, though.

I have a cousin to blame for this irrational fear and I don't let him forget it, 65 years later....LOL.
 
I have this fear of being confined to a giant room for eight hours a day that is full of tiny rooms with five foot tall walls and just an opening for a door. In those tiny rooms, I'm forced to work at a computer and sometimes let out to go to meetings with other workers. There are a few people who have power over the workers, but often times, even though they have power, they have less technical knowledge than the workers about what they are trying to accomplish in the giant room.

This is actually a recurring dream I have, and I wake up covered in sweat. I tell myself, It's only a dream... It's only a dream...
 
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