10 Weird Phobias!

#1 Ablutophobia

Ablutophobia is the fear of washing, bathing or cleaning. It is a situational specific phobia and tends to be more common in children and women than in men. It is a relatively uncommon phobia but is serious because in the most extreme can lead to a complete fear of all types of washing. The cause of the phobia can vary but usually involves some traumatic childhood incident involving water and bathing and it can surface much later in life, sometimes in to adulthood. Left unchecked, sufferers can go weeks or months without washing, which can lead to skin infections, not to mention some serious, rather socially unacceptable body odour! Treatment usually involves a mental health practitioner carefully taking the patient back to the original traumatic experience and then discussing why the fear is unfounded, how they can come to terms with the phobia and ways to deal with the symptoms .

#2 Alektorophobia

Alektorophobia is the fear of chickens or other fowls such as roosters. It is thought that this strange phobia may be the result of an early childhood trauma involving an attack or aggressive behavior by chickens, or even by the daily habits and behaviors of chickens. People with Alektorophobia will tend to feel uneasy around chickens or around places such as farms where chickens are often found. In more extreme cases, sufferers can feel extreme dread, anxiety and panic including shortness of breath, dizziness, sweating, shaking and nausea. Treatment can include counselling, systematic desensitization, hypnoanalysis, and even medication.

#3 Ommetaphobia

Ommetaphobia is the fear of eyes and it develops when someone experiences a traumatic event involving the eyes e.g. seeing an eye pop out of a socket, getting hit in the eye or going blind in one eye. A variation of this phobia is when someone feels that someone else looking into their eyes will reveal things about them that they don’t want others to know i.e. a belief that someone else can know what they are thinking simply by looking into their eyes. This specific phobia is called Scopophobia. Ommetaphobia (sometimes call Ommatophobia) is considered a social phobia because it involves social situations such as looking into someones eyes, being looked at or touching your eyes and it can manifest as extreme anxiety or panic if not dealt with. Treatment can include counseling, hypno-analysis, neuro-linguistic programming and/or medication.

#4 Transphobia

Transphobia is an irrational fear of, and/or hostility towards, people who are transgender or who cross traditional gender norms. It is often associated with homophobia because lesbians and gay men often transgress gender norms. The cause is thought to be related to one’s own fragile gender identity, or by rigid, often obsessive ideals about gender norms in society. Transphobia usually manifests as nervousness or even anger when in the presence or transgender or homosexual people. Treatment can include counselling or hypnosis although many people transphobia do not seek help unless it becomes a negative problem in their life e.g. people who need to spend regular time in the presence of transgender people.

#5 Ithyphallophobia

Ithyphallophobia is the fear of a penis and this irrational fear can cause havoc in the sex lives of those who suffer from it. It is believed to originate from negative childhood experiences associated with having an erection e.g. being scolded by a parent. Treatment can include hypnosis or neuro-linguistic programming (NLP).

#6 Pogonophobia

Pogonophobia is the fear of beards and is far more prevalent in children than it is in adults. It is thought to originate from early-life experiences such as being abused or tormented by a man with a beard though internal predispositions may play a part. As with most phobias, symptoms can include nervousness or extreme anxiery when in in the presence of a man wearing a beard. Treatment can include exposure therapy, counseling, hypnotherapy and neuro-linguistic programming (NLP).

#7 Caligynephobia

Caligynephobia (pronounced cal-e-guy-nah-foe-bee-uh) is the irrational fear of beautiful women. It manifests as intense fear when in the presence of beautiful women and can be socially paralysing in such situations. Caligynephobia is thought to spring from past experiences with women e.g. past dating or relationship failures. It can also result from poor self-image where a person can feel they are ugly or unworthy, which causes feelings of vulnerability in the presence of attractive women. The condition is not helped when a sufferer has been programmed by the media to worship beauty. Treatment usually involves exposure therapy, desensitisation or hypnotherapy.

#8 Ailurophobia

Ailurophobia is the persistent and irrational fear of cats. The phobia affects some sufferers only when they see a cat whereas others experience it almost all the time, which can be much more debilitating. Like with all fears and phobias, Ailurophobia is a protective mechanism created by the unconscious mind and many sufferers won’t be able to tell you where the fear came from. It has been shown that in most cases, the phobia originates from a bad experience with a cat in early childhood or witnessing someone else have a bad experience. Treatment can include cognitive behaviour therapy, hypnotherapy or neuro-linguistic programming (NLP).

#9 Ephebiphobia

Ephebiphobia is the fear of youth or more specifically, teenagers. It is generally based in negative stereotypes and bad experiences from childhood and manifests as irrational and persistent fear and/or loathing of teenagers or adolescence. Research has shown that as the western world became more industrialised, the segregation between adults and youth increased (e.g. they were driven from the workforce and spent less time with parents). As this is not an accute phobia, but is a general fear that is developed socially, psychological treatments are not required, rather more communication and integration of youth into adult society.

#10 Phobophobia

Finally, Phobophobia is the fear of phobias, developing a phobia or the fear of fear itself. It is related to more general anxiety disorders and panic attacks directly linked to other types of phobias, such as agoraphobia or claustrophobia. Symptoms include intense anxiety and unrealistic and persistent fear of the body sensations and the feared phobia ensuing. Phobophobia is chiefly linked with internal predispositions and is developed in the unconscious mind which is linked to an event in which a phobia was linked to emotional trauma and stress. Treatment can include cognitive behavioural therapy, exposure therapy and sometimes medication. Courtesy of http://www.uncoverdiscover.com