Ichthyophobia
68I admit it! I have a phobia. Actually, I have more than one phobia, but today I would like to address the one that has plagued me for so long.
Recently RKHenry shared a hub of his about sharks. I enjoy many of RKHenry's hubs, and I thought -- "well, I'll have a look. It's been some time since I tested my fear and I suppose I must be better now." So off I tottered to his hub. And I nearly threw up.
Yes indeed. I am intensely fearful of fish. It's a real phobia (called ichthyophobia) and it's more common than many people would believe.
To illustrate, I tried as hard as I could to find a picture of a fish to put on this page. I tried sharks and had to look away immediately. I tried other fish and nearly fainted. I finally settled for a nice, safe picture of a sea-turtle.
What about you?
Do you have a phobia?
See results without votingWhat is a Phobia?
A phobia is an irrational fear of a thing. The fear is usually excessive, such as my fear of fish. I begin to feel insecure and unsafe even looking at a picture of a fish, and I can't fathom watching the movie Jaws (which my husband jokes about). A "normal" person can't even begin to understand my problem.
- When we go into a pet store, I have to avoid the fish section. If we don't, I break out in a sweat and my breathing gets quick.
- When watching TV, I am always on the lookout for commercials with large, live fish in them. I feel faint when this happens.
- Going fishing is out of the question.
- I don't like to swim in the lake or ocean for fear of being touched by a fish.
- Images of Coral Reefs are only beautiful if there are no fish in the picture.
In my case, I am overwhelmed by the presence and appearance of fish. My symptoms include shortness of breath, faintness/dizziness and extreme anxiety.
I cannot describe the emotions I associate with fish except that I experience extreme fear. I don't think that a picture is going to "eat" me and I know that the lake isn't full of Great White Sharks. Nonetheless, I struggle with the things listed above.
If you have a phobia (especially a strange one!), you are not alone!
PrintShare it! — Rate it: up down flag this hub
Comments
Wow... Yeah, I tend to try to avoid those kinds of commercials.
I'm afraid of spiders, but not phobic by any means. I couldn't be, attending exotic animal shows and whatnot lol
I had a friend once who was bananaphobic!
you write so fast yet lose none of the quality another good hub
LOL, Maggie, I only managed two today :) Neither were written fast, either... Both required research. Yesterday was a fast writing day :)
I am this way with snakes. It's not as bad as when I was younger, but I still have a very hard time looking at pictures/videos and avoid them at all costs. I have no problems with spiders, insects, sharks, alligators, crocodiles, but snakes really bother me. When I was younger, the image of a snake, whether in print or on tv would cause a massive panic attack and cause me to cry. Today, it causes a huge adrenaline rush and I can't stand it.
When I was in the 5th grade, I was in class flipping through my textbook. There was a picture of a snake with its mouth open and I screamed and in my attempt to change the page quickly, I ripped the whole thing out of the book, by accident. My mom had to go through all my science books and cover the pictures up with post it notes.
Girly Girl, there is a site about unusual phobias that tells a similar story about someone who is afraid of sharks!
I love snakes. I'm with snakes the way most people are with fish. I want to have a huge enclosure somewhere in the house for a burmese python again one day. But an aquarium? NEVER!
We have a 50 gal I don't know what to do with. Too big for some snakes, too small for others, and I can't have fish lol
No chance inviting you over for a fish supper!!lol
seriously, I feel for you with your sever phobias! You do need a miracle to cure this!.. I'm with uninvited writer, and fear spiders and living in London on the top floor of a house, i rarely see them, thank goodness!!
Could you watch films like Finding Nemo!?
compu-smart, animated fish I can handle. I can also do most small fish, but the lighting in aquariums at pet stores kills me. It makes the fish shimmer in a way I can't handle lol
It's good to see that some quality hubbers do take the hubchallenge.
I think the tag, though, is written as one word, like hubchallenge. Some 1000 hubs have been produced with this tag so far and only some 180 with the words written separately. I don't know if it matters, though.
Nice topic you've got here, anyway.
It does, Haunty. I know that I saw several with the space. I will fix them. Thanks!
Hang in there!! :)
I fell same way with snakes. Though i dont feel terrified when i watch sname in the TV/video but the sight of a physical snake is "killing". When i was a little boy, i had a bad encounter with snake, since then we have been enemies.
My only phobia is the feeling I get when I float in water. I'm okay to get in the pool but if I leave the bottom too long and feel the flying feeling where the water does hold me up (I bobble like a cork) then I begin to freak!
I have had Fish phobia my whole life. I always get made fun of for it. People say stuff like “it can’t hurt you”, or “they are more afraid of you then they are of them,” I really don't think that’s true since I panic when I see a picture of a fish. I also have a fear of; whales, eels, and other sea creatures. I found out I was not alone last year and actually found out my fear had a name. I secretly thought my fear was to stupid to have a name.
Absolutely, Ash! It's always good to know we aren't alone!
Hi,
My name is Mandy
I have a fish phobia as well. So It is so nice to hear that I am not alone. No one in my family or my friends understand. They make fun of me all the time. Just this last week I wrote a letter telling them all it was enough with a link to a phobia sight and still they don't understand what im going through. I guess they never will.
My fear is all fish large or small. alive or dead, on Tv or pics of them. But not sharks or any other animal in the sea or lake. Just Fish. It was so funny reading your site because you sound just like me.
Hello, I am Sophia from Greece.I am afraid of the fish too. Mostly I'm afraid of them when I swim. I used to swim just in pools, but this year I managed to swim in the sea too. I was on an air sea slayer and floated actually, cause the fish don't swim on the surface. And I cannot look at the bottom of the sea cause I'll just start screaming and then I'll freeze and even forget how to swim.
My fear used to be just that, but lately I cannot stand seeing fish in general. I make my mom cover it when she's eating it, and I cannot stand the smell. Of course I won't eat any...Fish shouldn't be aloud to exist. I've even seen fish in my nightmares. Fish around my neck all wet and sticky (yaaaaaaak). I woke up and turned out it was just my hair around my neck. I almost pissed myself in my dream, seriously.
Nobody really gets my phobia cause they just don't get it and they think I'm being stupid. I cannot understand how an arachnophobia or a phobia of cockcrows or mouses be acceptable, while icthyophobia can't.
Great hub. Keep up the great work.
so intresting to read your stories.i have Ichthyophobia
for 20 years, since i was about 7 years old..anybody knows if it can be solve?
my biggest nightmare is that if there is hell then i'll stuck forever in a tight aquarium.and if there is a god that capable to do everything i suggest even the unphobic of you to be good people or you might find your self in these bizarre phobia in a small fishbole with a gold fish
for eternity..kidding.....help.
I'm ichthyophobic as well. Although I don't feel much of a sense of fear of pictures or fish on TV.
I'm also usually ok with fish at a distance.
But presenting a fish to me close up (dead or alive) will cause me to freak out.
The odd thing is that I'm not afraid of dolphins which look like fish.
I have no idea why I'm afraid, I just am.
Uninvited Writer says:
7 months ago
I'm afraid of spiders...deathly afraid :) I have to say fish is a weird one :) There is currently a commercial running here for the aquarium and it has thousand of fish...I hope you don't see it where you are :)