Boo! Nearly everyone is scared of something. And sometimes this fear can rise to the point of being considered a phobia. We’ve all heard of the common fears of heights, spiders, or the dark, but there are some phobias that are so out there, you probably never even knew they existed.
You can’t blame a person for having a phobia, even if it seems ridiculous to an outsider looking in. You never know what caused another to become anxious to the extreme about whatever it is they are fearful of. But whatever the catalyst may be, to them, the sheer dread is real and not to be taken lightly. Irrational? Perhaps. Terrifying to the one with the phobia? The nightmare is no joke.
These 4 “weird” phobias will have your fear of the boogeyman seem like a day at the park. Unless, of course, you are also afraid of the park.
1. Turophobia- Fear of Cheese
OK, if you are lactose-intolerant, perhaps one-too-many sprints to the bathroom have weighed heavily on you. But for those who are otherwise scared of cheese, Turophobia is the real deal no matter how you slice it.
According to The Telegraph, “Sufferers of Turophobia usually associate cheese with a traumatic memory. Turophobes often have to run away if they so much as see a slice of cheese. Some may fear one type of cheese while others may fear cheese altogether.”
So much for family pizza nights, dates for fondue, or a trip to Wisconsin, for that matter. In the end, the cheese does, in fact, stand alone. Too cheesy?
2. Genuphobia – Fear of Knees
According to BuzzFeed, Genuphobia is the “fear of knees.” Going “weak in the knees” is one thing, but fearing a set is the kneel deal. Knobby knees may be unsightly and scabbed up knees from a rough fall may be an ugly eyesore, but actually fearing what nearly all of us have must make a genuphobe’s life hard to manage.
As per VeryWell, “Some people are afraid only of seeing uncovered knees in person, while others are afraid of bare knees even on film. People with this phobia may be afraid of all knees or only their own. Some people are actually scared of kneeling.”
No Daisy Dukes for these sufferers and they probably don’t look down while at the beach either. And there won’t be a down-on-one-knee marriage proposal in a genuphobe’s future. It’s a shame knee socks aren’t more fashion-forward.
3. Bananaphobia – Fear of… You Guessed It… Bananas
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Yes, the prospect of slipping on a banana peel can be daunting, but for the most part, bananas seem like a relatively peaceful fruit. They are creamy, sweet, and portable, but for those in fear of the yellow monkey-favorite, bananas are something to dread.
According to Fear Of, “Most cases begin in childhood, when one has been forced to eat bananas by parents or caregivers to an extent that leads to stomach distress or vomiting. Bananas often have a slimy texture and not all people are fond of its flavor or odor.”
Maybe the bananaphobe once choked on a banana chunk in his breakfast cereal or got a case of food poisoning after eating a moldy slice of Grandma’s famous banana bread. Or perhaps the idea of peeling their fruit is just too much to handle.
Pineapples with their prickly skins and the prospect of a coconut falling out of a tree and bonking you on the head seem far more dreadful if you ask me.
4. Omphalophobia – Fear of Bellybuttons
Aside from lint or some other type of crud one may encounter inside their navel, bellybuttons seem pretty harmless, if not kinda cute in some cases. But the fear of the bellybutton, while unusual, does exist for those who have this mid-torso-centric phobia.
As per Fear Of, “People suffering from Omphalophobia are terrified of bellybuttons- their own or, in some cases, those of the others. They do not like touching their navel (or even other people touching it). Sometimes the mere sight of the bellybutton is enough to make them feel disgusted or terrified.”
The crop top fad must be a fashion nightmare for these folks and belly dancing will not be on the entertainment agenda for such sufferers. It makes you wonder if the situation is exacerbated by seeing (or worse, having) an “outie?”
