The other day after returning from lunch, we were all walking (read: very slowly) back to our offices to resume our normal workday, when somehow (the rabbit trails we chase are impressive), the topic of getting sick came up.
It probably came up because currently there is all manner of viruses floating around and we’re all terrified of being the next victim, but anyway, I readily admitted to the fact that vomiting is one of my biggest fears.
The rule here at LPM is if you are sick: STAY HOME. Thank you very much. We love you, but we don’t love your germs.
I won’t go into detail on here out of respect for the fact that some of you might be catching up on the blog during your lunch break, but needless to say, there is nothing worse in my book than getting a stomach virus that produces this kind of reaction.
Lord help me if I end up being one of those that suffers from you-know-what during pregnancy. Speaking of that, I’m going to start asking the Lord to have a little grace on me in that area when that time comes. I’m believing God.
Anyway, once I admitted to that bizarre fear, she who will remain nameless, admitted another strange fear that may or may not have involved a parking lot.
I let she who will remain nameless expand on that if she wants.
We go so tickled that I immediately thought of how quirky we all were and then I thought of y’all. For some reason I have this feeling that if I asked you what your most bizarre fear was, you would deliver.
So, spill it.
Now, I realize we all have legitimate fears, but if you have something out of this world weird, we want to know.
You are in good company.
Oh, and for the record, the fear of vomiting has a term. (Could this post be any less girly? Laughing. Sorry, y’all. Just being real.)
It’s called Emetophobia.
Boom.
You’re welcome.
I have a fear of June Bugs. Seriously. They fly stupid, with no sense of direction or rational of purpose. And then.. when they hit you, they generally can finally figure out THE direction of your hair and make a bee line for it with their sticky legs!!!! and I don’t care what you say… JUNE is NOT thier only MONTH … bllllleehhhh! creepy
Jello. I have an unhealthy fear of it. I used to love it, but when I had my tonsils taken out when I was 5, hospital Jello was all they fed me. Now to even smell it makes me gag.
Also, I don’t like being in water that I can’t see my feet in. Everything from the Atlantic to a pond. There is NO telling what that is brushing up against your leg! Geesh…
SO AGREE with your #2, Kristin! Not to mention the fact that I can’t swim…but if I can’t see my feet or what’s around me…forget it!. I grew up 30 minutes away from Santa Cruz Beach in Northern California, and NEVER went in the ocean below my ankles (except when I was baptized there in 1983).
Thankfully I don’t have a fear of being sick, I suffered from HG when pregnant with both my boys, so had 20 weeks of it each pregnancy. Unpleasant but not scary.
IMy fear is not really a fear, I just feel sick to my stomach when I see mouth blood, this includes wriggly teeth.
During a trip to the UK last Christmas to see family, my son (age 7) was standing on his head on the couch I was sitting on, with his little bottom in the air I couldn’t help myself and had to play bongo’s on it, which ended up in him falling down, me elbowing him in the mouth and knocking his front wriggly tooth out, blood everywhere! Yuk, feel sick remembering it. He loves to tell people that the easiest way to get out a wriggly tooth is to smack your bottom!
Lindsee, your photo is not on the list of contributors, I think this needs to be rectified.
Don’t post this, just wanted to let you know.
Ingrid
I don’t actually have a fear of driving over bridges, but whenever I drive over the local one that’s 2 or 3 miles long, I calculate which direction I should swim in if I drive off the bridge into the river. Then I remind myself to roll down the window or open the door before I go under the water! (When I drive over the tall bridges in town, I just refuse to look or think about it, because I would be in the arms of Jesus from a heart attack long before I hit the water.)
Well, I’M right there with ya – Emetophobia!
Oh, this is fun! Some of my quirky fears…
– An elevator going haywire and plunging me down endless floors (have had many dreams about this one)
– Opening our ironing board. It squeaks so loudly it’s like nails on a chalkboard.
– Skunks. This have everything to do with our family getting sprayed by a skunk through a screened porch when I was a kid.
For the squeaky ironing board you can take a bar of soap & run it along the metal grooves & that will remove the squeak. You can also use any kind of oil. 🙂
I am terrified of vomiting as well. My mom shares that fear too. I can remember getting sick as a kid and my mom being at the foot of the stairs yelling up “Are you ok?” One tine I was staying with my aunt and I got sick. She came in the bathroom with me and was holding my hair back. It completely freaked me out. I couldn’t understand why she was not running for the hills. 🙂
I also completely freak out when I don’t have “fresh” air to breathe. I can’t pull the blanket over my head or sit in a car without circulation. I hate the few moments on the airplane when the air ducts are off. I begin to panic that I can’t breathe.
I live in Thailand and little did I know that I would be living wtih geckos, lizards, and tokays. When I first moved here 115 days ago I found myself in panic attacks. I was so fearful. BUT praise God I have made a huge break through, thank you Beth, because God used your simulcast on fear and God used a friend here to walk me through Freedom in Christ. I love how God uses His people. I honestly can’t say I am free. I will keep commanding the spirit of fear to go and I have and must continue to choose to beleive Truth no matter what I feel.
Ps. 38:9 “LORD my desire is known to you. my sighing is not hidden from you”.
The Freedom in Christ program is awesome! It set me free 12 years ago. : – )
Okay so I have an inability to eat any food that is not the right color. Blue frosting, no way. Green mashed potatoes on St. Patrick’s- not going to happen. When Heinz invented colored ketchup I thought they had gone out of their minds. If I can actually get the ill-colored food past my lips, well then bad goes to worse because I absolutely cannot swallow it. Then what’s a girl to do?
Lynda, I am the kind of person that would eat anything put on my plate when I was growing up. I’m not afraid of strange colored food but green mashed potatoes and green ketchup, no thank you. It doesn’t ‘compute’ in my mind.
Vomit. And poop.
I’m scared to death to watch friends’ children when they are not potty trained yet because I can’t bear to change a poopy diaper. I can’t bear it. I gag my way through.
So yeah vomit and poop are two of my biggest irrational fears.
This post has been cracking me up!! I think one of my biggest fears is walking out of the choir loft on Sunday morning and slipping and falling on my face in front of the entire congregation. I am known to be a little clumsy, so this will probably happen in my lifetime! Every Sunday when I make it safely to my seat I say a little prayer of thanks for saving face for one more week! Haha!!
I have a recurring dream where I am driving a car up a hill that is so steep I am frightened that the car will fall off the hill. If I do make it to the top, I can’t see over the front of the car & plunge off the huge drop.
OK, I have the same fear of the vomity thing. I have anxiety attacks if I think I may be headed that way. Happy to report it hasnt happened in years.
Now, you mentioned parking lots and I have a huge fear of either being unable to get out (say, after a concert or something) and a fear of losing the car and having to go. pee. Lost the rental car at Sea World once, and was having a bad tum tum day. I swore the car was at Shamu 6, when actually it was more like Sea Lion 10. Per haps it was Manatee 12. Had to get a security guard to drive us around to find the rental car and thankfully they had a facility outside the admission gate because I dont know if they would let us back in. Rule of thumb: Mark down the exact aisle you are in. If you are in Shamu 6, write it down and then know exactly where that is.
My biggest fear is dirt from the floor.
You will never catch me not washing my feet off in the bathtub before I put on my slippers and night.
I get mad when things (towels, etc.) fall on the floor, because I have to pick it up…and I hate that. I laugh to myself when I realize that I hate when things fall.
And I live in a fallen world. That would explain it.
The Wicked Witch of the West and the little munchkins. And tornadoes. Well, not the witch anymore now that I’m much older. But definitely tornadoes – even though I live in the northeast. When I was a child, I used to hide behind the big green recliner in the living room every time the “Wizard of Oz” came on and I would cover my ears whenever she did her wicked laugh … I was terrified of her. And those munchkins … they creeped me out!
My oldest daughter who is now 21 has always had a terrifying fear of the entire movie The Wizard of Oz…the flying monkeys freak her out!! She still refuses to be in the house if the movie shows up on the t.v.!!!
My brother was terrified of the flying monkeys from the Wizard of Oz. I don’t think to this day he has ever watched that movie all of the way through…. and he is 43!
revolving doors (shudders to think about them…)
I have to think on this one, I have plenty of fears, but in my mind, they are legitimate when in fact they may be bizarre to others…I have a fear of touching toilets. That might be bizarre. They are nasty, and I think germy no matter how many times you clean them. I don’t think they will be in Heaven. Just a guess, and I could be wrong, but stuff like germy toilets in my mind do not belong in the eternal Heaven.
Texas flying roaches! I just am terrified of them. They always seem to fly at me! I will run and scream like I am two and God help you if you’re in my way because I’m going to knock you over to get out of the way of them! I just can’t control it! I handle snakes, tarantulas and all sorts of other outdoor creaters with ease but a flyin roach…I turn into a complete baby.
Stacey….this is a justified fear! Those silly flying roaches thrive in our south Alabama coastal lifestyle! They smell our fear and attack. My children laugh b/c I call them attack roaches.
I have an irrational fear of stopping on a bridge for a red light. I think that because there are other cars stopped on this bridge the bridge can’t hold the weight and will collapse.
Lindsee, I am SOOO with you on the vomiting thing. I will do ANYTHING to avoid getting a stomach bug going around. I read on Pinterest that if you’ve been exposed to drink at least 3 glasses of Grape Juice. That’s what I’ve done the last few times and I haven’t gotten it…so just something maybe you could try! 🙂
But yeah, I fear it. I hate it. I despise it. It’s something I pray against in the name of Jesus, for myself and my famiy. I hate it.
My greatest fear is walking down the aisle at church with the back of my dress tucked into my pantihose (after a quick trip to the restroom between Sunday School and church services). This happened to a friend who walked from the back of the church all the way to the front row. Several of us tried to stop her but she simply shook our grabbing hands and smiled while prissing all the way to the front. We’ll never let her live it down…..
Roaches (I had a harrowing experience with a flying roach when I was single & living alone….I almost died 😉 )
Buffet’s (you know…the kind in restaurants that little kids go up and touch the food and then put it back! ugh!)
Being upside down (thanks to a broken fair ride that I hung upside down for 15 minutes)
Snakes (although I do not think this is an unhealthy fear!)
The muddy bottome of the river!
Sharks (I live on the Gulf Coast…there everywhere!)
And lastly….I can thank my Mom for this….being in an accidnet and having on undies w/holes in them or worse old and raggedy!
I have too have plenty of fears, so are ridiculous and more like insecurities (fear of rejection, of something I say being seen/heard as “stupid” (I keep most of my thoughts/comments to myself because of that one), not being good enough for anyone (a guy) to love…I could go on…
My bizarre fear, I guess would be of falling off a ladder. I cannot go above 2-3 steps on a ladder of ANY kind..even if there are handrails to hold on to. As soon as I get up there, I envision myself making a misstep or losing my balance and falling, breaking something or worse. Needless to say, working in retail P/T..this fear causes a LOT of “white knuckles” when I’m down stocking stuff from the overhead shelves,,,I always have one hand holding on to the ladder at all times, JUST IN CASE!
I have a fear of hard candies. I cannot eat them for fear of them getting slippery and then choaking on one. I never buy them and cring when my family eats them. I’m sure I’ve practiced the Hymlick manover in my mind thousands of times. My husband and teens won’t let me practice on them, what’s a mom to do. Oh, No sticky candies (caramels) either for the same reason. One more, wee ones and Playdough. You know they put stuff in there mouths……
Bridges, cliffs and elevators intimidate me. Please don’t move, wriggle or inhale deeply (wink) when I ride an elevator with you. It ain’t pretty.
My family and I also discovered last spring that I don’t react well when approaching the Grand Canyon, at dusk, for the first time, down a back road. A good book would have been handy to bury my nose in for that trip.
I guess for me, it’s the fear of mice and snakes. I’m a country girl to the core. We live on a farm in the middle of nowhere and have a garden, but when these little critters sneak up on me, I scream like a little girl. (Once, I was cleaning up some corn stalks that had blown in during the harvest. When I reached down and grabbed a handful, I also had a baby snake wriggling in my hand. If I remember correctly, I think I screamed so loud it frightened our dog.) Now, whenever I see them coming, I’m fine, but when they surprise me, that’s a whole ‘nother story all together.
We have also had these in our home on occassion. Again, I’m fine with them living outside. That’s where they are suppose to live. But when they enter my territory, it becomes war…and, I always win. ;>
My biggest fear is getting lost. And yes I’ve been lost plenty of times and have always found my way home. The idea of driving to a place I’ve never been before gives me a near panic attack…even with a GPS.
Okay…wasn’t going to post..but was cracking up and knew I can share with my “closest friends”. I have two…
1st: Wrinkled fingers from being in water then folding towels with those wrinkled fingers….ooouuuu~ gives me chill bumps just thinking about it (like fingernail on chalkboard for most)
2nd: spit on fingers!
The other that I am “better” with is riding in car over bridge of large body of water. Realizing I have some issues huh? …..Okay ~ don’t judge 🙂 love you guys!
ahhhhh! I hate touching PAPER with those water logged wrinkled fingers… chill bumps
I have a couple –
1.) Snakes – definitely part of the curse. No coincidence satan chose one to inhabit.
2.) Being under things – places like caves or tunnels. When my daughter lived in NYC, I prayed Ps. 139 for her all the time – the part “If I dwell in the depths of the sea, You are there”. Did you know there’s places in the New York subway system where you’re about 11 stories UNDER Hudson River?!
Anyway, she’s moved safely away from the city now – thank You Lord!
I’m a big scaredy cat! LOL! Friends laugh at me because I am afraid of everything! #1 Granddaddy long legs! I’ll have an honest to goodness heart attack if I see one and I can see them from a mile away! LOL! Also… The dark, puppets and being held under water. Ahhhh!!!
Ever since I was a little girl, I have had an intense fear of vomiting. Every time I feel nausea come on, I ask the Lord to please spare me from vomiting. How gracious He has been – the last time I had that unpleasant experience I was 9 years old (I am in my mid-50’s now). I’ve had some close calls, but made it through two pregnancies, and more recently chemotherapy without vomiting, thank you Lord. I have taken crazy measures to avoid it – like jumping in an ice cold shower to “shock” my body when I feel it coming on. Even worse, I absolutely cannot be around someone else who is vomiting. You’ll see me running for the hills! I taught my girls when they were little ones how to throw up in a paper bag. (I can deal with baby spit up.) I’m glad to see I’m not the only one with this phobia.
I canNOT stand jellyfish. This came about when I was snorkling on my honeymoon and found myself surrounded by baby jellies. I screamed bloody murder and swam away, only to find BIGGER jelly fish. No stings, though!
I didn’t realize it turned into a fear until I went kayaking in Cocoa Beach and saw a massive jellyfish next to the kayak. I’m talking the size of the biggest dinner plate you’ve seen . They were dee. tguss. ting. We went through tons of them that day and I was convinced they were going to jump in my kayak and eat me.
irrational? yes.
My crazy fear: Bathroom heaters.
It stems from an episode of the Walton’s I watched where the house burned down because Grandpa left the bathroom heater on. For years I would only turn on the heater until the bathroom was warm and then I would turn it off. And my grandma had a heater just like the Walton’s had in her bathroom…I wouldn’t even touch that heater mustless turn it on.
I also relatedly have a fear of my house burning down. 🙂
I have an irrational fear of walking into the wrong bathroom. This would not be so irrational if it didn’t mean that even in a building I am familiar with (say I work in everyday) I didn’t feel the need to check and make sure that it was the right one… then there is the panic that even though I did check I saw things wrong and I still ended up in the wrong one so hurry up and get done before a man walks in! Oh goodness.
Fireworks-unless it is a professional show and I am miles away watching. It scares me to death when my neighbors do them on July 4th and New Years Eve. EVEN SPARKLERS! Yes – I am THAT mom who has never let her kids do them.
I also have struggled with a fear of vomiting for as long as I can remember. I can recall being in preschool waiting for my mom to pick me up from school and being so afraid of getting sick.
This past April I decided this was a definite stronghold in my life and I wanted to fight back. There are so many times where God tells us do not be afraid in His Word, so I know this kind of anxious fear is not of Him. Honestly, it’s been a strange and frustrating journey so far. I even went through about two months of counseling this summer to tackle this issue with some professional help.
While it was helpful, I am far from cured. I pray continually that God would help me overcome this. I truly believe that if He wanted to He could remove this fear from me (if God can create the universe I think he can handle my irrational fears! 🙂 and He has yet to do that. So, I can only assume He will teach me something important in the process of overcoming it with his help.
Has anyone had success in overcoming the fear of vomiting? Or any irrational fear for that matter. If so, what are some practical steps to move forward?
Hey Lindsee – I just want to thank you for such a fun post! Who knew the fear of canned biscuits and clowns was so predominant?! Fun, fun! Just what I needed to keep me sane amidst all the busy holiday what-not ~
I have an irrational fear of alarm clocks. I can’t stand for an alarm to actually perform its function. At least 99% of the time, I awake before the alarm goes off. It doesn’t matter if the alarm is set for 9am or 4am…I will wake up prior to that time so I don’t have to hear it. And it doesn’t matter what pretty sound it makes, I still try to avoid it at all costs.
Scorpions, centipedes, tsunamis. I live in Richmond VA so no worry of scorpions or tsunamis but centipedes……
I share your fear of puking. Along with big fear of heights and roller coasters.
My biggest fears?
Snakes (we have a VERY strict “no reptiles as pets” in this house!)
I try and look at them in zoos or pet stores, but it gives me the shivers!
The other one is touching raw meat – I will never make meatballs! I’ll buy the premade ones… when I mix meatloaf, I put my hand in a ziploc and mix the meat that way and pray my way through it!
So silly, I know, but that’s who I am!
#1 lake fish. I think they are angry cuz they are locked in the lake (unlike river fish and ocean fish) and they want to nibble at my toes. I DO NOT GO IN LAKES.
#2 escalators…. I have to really prepare myself for the on boarding and off boarding. I have nightmares that they turn into roller coasters at the mall.
I came across one more while at church yesterday…a fear of sitting on the edge of the aisle and having to pass the communion and/or offering plate ALL THE WAY across the aisle to the other side. I avoid sitting on the end of an aisle at all costs at church! Irrational for sure!
A moth flying into my ear while I am unlocking the front door, ya know, cause the porch light is on and they like the light. Because it actually happened to me once and it. was. TERRIBLE.
I too am terrified of throwing up. Every time I feel sick no one can pray harder than me that the inevitable will not happen. I’m married and a grown up now and still call my mom when I have the stomach flu. Apart from being sick a physical fear that I have that makes no sense is that I’m terrified of birds! Big ones, little ones; doesn’t matter I run the other way, or have a breakdown an cry like an embarrassing incident at Disney World Animal Kingdom. I have never been attacked by a bird. I think it stems more from the fact that birds aren’t scared of me. I could walk into a flock of seagulls and pick one up. They don’t flee like they are supposed too
I have two very real fears
I hate bridges. Very small one’s are fine and I do mean small, but those tall long one’s, by the time I am over them I want to be on the floor board curled up in a ball. I have no idea why. As a young girl I use to climb to the top to do my thinking or just escape life at times.
I have a very real fear of someone biting my toes. That was a discipline my stepfather use to do to us as kids. When someone, even someone I trust grabs my foot, I start bucking, kicking, and screaming. Needless to say they think I am insane and leave my feet alone. I have long since forgiven him, but the fear of that pain is still with me.
I have a fear of opening cans of refrigerated biscuits. The “pop” scares me to death. You know it is going to come but you never know when…
Me too!! I hate that feeling….LOL
I’m 47 years old and cannot swallow pills. How silly is that? It is a fear or phobia that I cannot seem to overcome. It is rather embarrasing to have to tell a doctor to prescribe a chewable or liquid medication. I’ve learned to accept this quirky thing about myself.
*Sigh*
I have a fear of opening a can of refrigerated biscuits. I know the little “pop” is just that…but I have this fear that it’s going to explode into my face or something. I always make my husband open them up.
I also have an irrational fear of going bald. I had a nightmare that I had a 3 inch strip of bald scalp that went right down the middle of my head. Like a bizarre part. I’m sure you probably realize this, but I am female so the likelihood of my going bald is small…but still.