A tree fell on our house when I was younger during a thunderstorm so everytime there's really bad weather... I start to freak out.
2006-10-12 15:53:24 · 12 answers · asked by PrettyProblem 5 in Social Science ➔ Psychology
My phobia, although it may not be considered full-blown, is of fire. In this, I don't mean that seeing a roaring fire on a cold winters night sends me into hysterics..that is if there is someone else in the house. Alone however, my mind wanders ( okay runs at breakneck speed) down a path were one spark is destine to fall out and consequently burn the entire house, including me down.
Why?
Well I think a lot of it is based on what is termed as the "heuristic bias", were one fears something that for the most part has poor odds of ever happening ( a fire from one spark, getting eaten by a shark,plane crashes) these fears or phobias integrate themselves into our unconscious mind when we hear of them on tv, in the paper, et al. They are featured foremost on the news at night, ( "If it bleeds, it leads") and eventually cause us to form a fear where there might not have been one before.
Okay, sorry about the novel.
Before you know it, I will have given you a fear of Yahoo Answers!
Yours on the other hand, sounds ligit-experience has shown you that is possible, therefore....
2006-10-12 18:03:00 · answer #1 · answered by jkautt 4 · 1⤊ 2⤋
"There are several different theories about why phobias develop. They do seem to run in families. But how much this is to do with picking up phobias from your parents and how much is inherited through your genes is uncertain. Young babies seem to be naturally afraid of animals such as snakes and of heights for instance, even though they need to learn to be afraid of man-made objects such as guns. So there is probably a natural fear response that gave our ancestors a survival advantage. It's possible that when phobias develop this natural fear response has gone wrong. Sometimes the start of a phobia may be triggered by a stressful life event, such as bereavement, illness or divorce. It might be possible to avoid phobias by encouraging children to face up to feared situations rather than stay away from them. However, this doesn't always work."
2016-03-28 07:04:05 · answer #2 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have no idea what caused my fear of spiders. I remember being three years old and pulling the leg off a daddy long leg. I don't remember if I had a dream or something in guilt.
I have a fear of crossing the street because in fifth grade one of my friends was hit by a car.
I'm a hypochondriac as well, I think that's genetic because my dad is. Or maybe it started when I was ten. My parents got really serious and kept secrets. I had no idea what was going on untill some family friends stopped by when my parents were out with a message saying "I hope your Dad doesn't have cancer, we brought some casserole..." He didn't have cancer though.
2006-10-13 13:42:08 · answer #3 · answered by epitome of innocence 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
most phobias are caused by a certain unpleasant incedent in their life.. like ur story.. but some ppl are actually born wit a higher possibility of hvaing certain phobias.. im not really surehow to explain it.. but i had a class on it like a month ago.. and some ppl are jus born wit some gene or something tht makes them more prone to some specific phobia.. so if u pair this wit an unpleasant incedent.. then the posibility gets higher..
i don remmebr the causes of most of my phobias.. well.. fears more than phobias.
2006-10-13 02:59:02 · answer #4 · answered by rag doll 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
When I was a kid i was about to get a shot and i freaked out and so they had this huge nurse come in and hold me down. Ever since then i've been terrified of hypodermic needles. Phobias usually do come from childhood traumas.
2006-10-12 18:10:50 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
When I was two or three years old, a big rooster at my grandparents farm chased me and had me cornered. My dad killed it.
After that I have always been afraid of feathers. My sister kept a feather and used to chase me all over the world with it!
I didn't know why till one day I heard my mom telling somebody about the rooster. I just gradually figured out what it was.
2006-10-12 16:18:29 · answer #6 · answered by NANCY K 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A summer when I was about 7 or 8 where there were spiders literally everywhere. I couldn't go anywhere without having them in my face, or falling in my hair, or crawling on me. Totally creeped me out. I have it sorta under control, but I was visiting a friend who literally lives in the woods a few weeks back, and the spiders on his property are humongous, and when I saw one about the size of my thumbnail in the shower, what control I had, disappeared. I had to go into the other room while he took care of it.
Brrrrrrr! Creeps me out just thinking about it.
2006-10-12 16:04:56 · answer #7 · answered by ccmonty 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You know I was thinking about this question the other day and I have no idea what caused my phobia. I wish I knew Its like a blank slate with me, but Yet I have phobia's that i'm still scarred of.
2006-10-12 15:58:42 · answer #8 · answered by jrealitytv 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Most people have no idea.
I used to have a great fear of heights. I have never fallen and was never dropped as a child. Years after I eventually got over this fear I found out that my mother had a great fear of heights and when I learn this from her as a child.
I never noticed her reaction to heights before. Her fear became very apparent after I was able to observe her (once my own fear was under control).
I was too young to have any conscious memory of learning this fear, but I am sure that this is where I got it.
2006-10-12 17:02:18 · answer #9 · answered by Richard 7 · 7⤊ 0⤋
When i was 6 or 7 i was in bed and i woke up to get a drink. as i was getting u i saw a shadow on my chest! i turned on my bedside light and it was a huge hairy spider!
i've hated spiders eva since!
2006-10-12 18:53:33 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋