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Does standing on the fifth-floor balcony give you weak knees? Is the mere mention of spiders enough to make you scream? Or maybe you can’t stay in a room without at least one lamp on? Don’t worry, you are not alone; we all have our fears. In fact, scientists state that fear is one of the most human emotions, one that comes from ancient times. Those who claim they fear nothing either don’t want to reveal their weak spots or just haven’t discovered the thing that terrifies them yet.
The word “phobia” comes from Greek and translates as “fear.” Scientists use this word to name fears of various things – for example, claustrophobia, which is the fear of closed spaces. Phobias can vary greatly between something pretty understandable, like a fear of snakes (ophidiophobia), to something rather weird, let’s say, a fear of long words. The first time you hear about it, you might think the person is making it up. Like why would anyone be afraid of words, and what’s so scary about long words specifically? Yet this phenomenon exists, and we should be respectful towards other people’s fears. Remember that somebody might not understand why you are afraid of flying. By the way, it might sound ironic, but the scientific name for the fear of long words consists of 35 (thirty-five!) letters.
Arachnophobia, or fear of spiders, is probably the most common phobia, alongside fear of snakes, fear of heights, and fear of flying. It is estimated that at least one in three women and one in four men are afraid of spiders. It is difficult to say what the rarest phobias are, but some weird examples include fear of clothing, fear of beards, and fear of work (I think every now and then we all have this phobia at least a bit).
There are various reasons why people develop phobias, and scientists are still studying the deeper roots and possible treatments. But if you want to learn all about phobias that sound rather weird, read about them in our article. If you are feeling particularly brave today, let us know in the comments what your greatest fear is.
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