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Weirdest Phobias In The World

Weirdest Phobias In The World

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We all have fears – spiders, heights, darkness, or what have you — and these fears are all pretty common. But some people’s fears cause so much anxiety that it interferes with normal life. That’s when fear becomes phobia. Everyone is entitled to their own fears, but these are just plain weird. These are the weirdest phobias in the world.

Sources: List25.com, 2Spare.com, AnimalPlanet.com, HyperVocal.com, TheRichest.com

En.Wikipedia.org
En.Wikipedia.org

Oikophobia

A fear of household appliances? Though it may just be a clever trick to get out of doing the cooking, cleaning, or really anything useful around the house, that’s just what oikophobia is. Just imagine walking into a Sears or an Ikea – the HORROR!

Commons.Wikimedia.org
Commons.Wikimedia.org

Iachanophobia

While most of us would prefer a nice, caloric sandwich to a plate of veggies any day of the week, those who suffer from iachanophobia go above and beyond the norm to avoid eating their vegetables. Specifically, iachanophobia is the fear of eating certain plants, or more broadly, things that are grown in the ground. Maybe we should have tried that one on our parents to get out of those nasty brussel sprouts.

En.Wikipedia.org
En.Wikipedia.org

Aibohphobia

This is a mean one – aibohphobia is the fear of palindromes, or words that are spelled the same way forwards and backwards. Which is exactly what aibohphobia is – A – I – B – O – H – P – H – O – B – I – A.

En.Wikipedia.org
En.Wikipedia.org

Koumpounophobia

It’s a pain when a button falls off your favorite shirt, but if you suffer from koumpounophobia, it could be enough to send you into a wave of terror. Koumpounophobia, or a fear of buttons, apparently affects one in every 75,000 people, many of whom are children, according to British organization Anxiety UK.

En.Wikipedia.org
En.Wikipedia.org

Hylophobia

Taking a walk in the woods takes on a deeper level of horror if you have hylophobia, or the fear of wood, forests, trees, and everything else that has to do with that kind of stuff. Nature be damned. Hylophobics are having absolutely none of that.

En.Wikipedia.org
En.Wikipedia.org

Genuphobia

The hip bone’s connected to the thigh bone. The thigh bone’s connected to the leg bone. The leg bone’s connected to the — aaaaargh! That’s the way the song goes for those who suffer from genuphobia, or a fear of knees. It’s unclear how one copes with this one, given that you’d assume the sufferer has two of the offending body parts, but it’s a diagnosed phobia to be sure!

En.Wikipedia.org
En.Wikipedia.org

Hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia

Also known as the fear of long words. Really?

En.Wikipedia.org
En.Wikipedia.org

Lepidopterophobia

There are some scary animals out there, but most of us wouldn’t include butterflies in that grouping. Those who suffer from lepidopterophobia are irrationally terrified by the gentle flapping of a butterfly’s wings, and can’t think of a worse fate than having one of these monstrosities land on them.

En.Wikipedia.org
En.Wikipedia.org

Omphalophobia

That little nubbin on your tummy? Ever think of how scary it can be? Probably not, because that’s bizarre, but omphalophobics are terrified of belly buttons, whether they be an innie or an outie. It’s unclear if it’s the belly button itself, or the fuzz and other oddities that can get in there, or just the idea of cutting the umbilical cord way back in the day.

PIxabay.com
PIxabay.com

Nomophobia

Potentially the most first-world phobia there is, nomophobia is the fear of losing mobile phone connectivity. Trauma could result from a dead battery, misplaced phone, or simply being out of reception of a transmission tower, and it wreaks havoc on the psyche of the afflicted. While we all get annoyed when our phones don’t work, I don’t know that I would have a nervous breakdown the next time my signal drops.