The Most Common, Rarest & Weirdest Phobias

Courtesy: www.adaa.org

 
Rare & Uncommon Phobias

Cherophobia is a phobia where a person has an irrational aversion to being happy. The term comes from the Greek word “chero,” which means “to rejoice.” When a person experiences cherophobia, they're often afraid to participate in activities that many would characterize as fun, or of being happy.

Chloephobia is an irrational fear of print newspapers. However, the source and etymology are still obscure.

Globophobia is a fear of balloons. The source of fear may be the sound of balloons popping.

Pogonophobia is a word that refers to an intense fear or dislike of beards. Like other phobias or irrational fears, pogonophobia may seem silly to people who do not experience it, yet for thousands of sufferers worldwide it is a very real fear that often affects their mental health and well-being.

Nomophobia (or No Mobile Phone Phobia) is used to describe a psychological condition when people have a fear of being detached from mobile phone connectivity. The term Nomophobia is constructed on definitions described in the DSM-IV, it has been labelled as a “phobia for a particular/specific things.”

Optophobia is the fear of opening one's eyes. It can be caused by bad sights such as seeing someone die. It is treatable, but hard to treat.   

Most Common Phobias

Bibliophobia is an excessive and overwhelming fear of books.

Entomophobia is an extreme and persistent fear of insects.

Acrophobia is an abnormal dread of being in a high place or fear of heights.

Pteromerhanophobia, or the fear of flying, is estimated to affect up to a quarter of the human population. It is also known as aviophobia and aerophobia.

Ophidiophobia is the fear of snakes and it is the most common fear.

Cynophobia ‌is the fear of dogs. Like all specific phobias, cynophobia is intense, persistent, and irrational.

Astraphobia, also known as brontophobia, is a kind of phobia characterized by an intense fear of extremely loud but natural noises in the environment, namely, storm, lightning and thunder.

Trypanophobia is defined as extreme fear of medical procedures involving injections or needles. Although sometimes also referred to as aichmophobia, belonephobia, or enetophobia, those terms generally denote a fear of pins, needles, or sharp objects while tryphanophobia also includes the medical aspect of the fear.

Weirdest Phobias

Ablutophobia is the overwhelming fear of bathing, cleaning, or washing.

Frigophobia is a condition in which patients report coldness of extremities leading to a morbid fear of death.

Ergophobia, (also referred to as ergasiophobia or ponophobia) is an abnormal and persistent fear of work (manual labor, non-manual labor, etc.) or fear of finding employment.

Somniphobia causes extreme anxiety and fear around the thought of going to bed. This phobia is also known as hypnophobia, clinophobia, sleep anxiety, or sleep dread. Sleep disorders can cause some anxiety around sleeping.

Chaetophobia is fear of hair, a type of specific phobia. Sufferers fear may be associated with human hair and/or animal hair. They fear people or animals with an excess amount of hair.

Oikophobia is an aversion to a home environment, or an abnormal fear (phobia) of one's home.

What is your fear?