Irrational Fears & Phobias of Water That You May Have
When you think of the vast, open sea, do you get a sinking feeling? Does the thought of a monstrous behemoth underneath you like a dark silhouette terrify beyond belief? Here are 8 Irrational Fears & Phobias of Water that You May Have!
1. Aquaphobia— A Fear of Water
A majority of people hold some degree of legitimate fear when it comes to water— after all, oftentimes you can’t see what lies beneath the water’s edge. Not too mention currents and tides are so powerful they’ll sweep you under in a moment’s notice.
2. Hydrophobia- A Fear of Water After Rabies
Aquaphobia and hydrophobia are often confused despite their wild difference. While the former is something usually formed early on in life or due to a traumatic experience in childhood, this next phobia is an extreme aversion to and fear of water that develops in a human during the later stages of rabies.
3. Kabourophobia—A Fear of Crabs
Crabs are like spiders of the sea, so it makes sense there would be a phobia classifying the fear of these creepy clawed crawlers that dwell on the bottom of the seafloor or in the crevices of rocks.
4. Ostraconophobia— A Fear of Shellfish
Kabourophobia is very specific, relating to crabs, yet it can also be a part of a wider phobia called ostraconophobia, which is the fear of crustaceans! Add shrimp, oysters, clams, crabs, lobsters, etc. into the mix, and you’ve got a legitimate fear of anything with beady eyes, hard-shelled bodies, tiny claws, and like to dwell (pretty harmlessly) at the bottom of the sea.
5. Ichthyophobia— A Fear of Fish
Most everyone has a fear of sharks, so the phobia called Galeophobia makes perfect sense, but to be afraid of fish? Oftentimes, individuals are afraid of small and seemingly harmless fish in rivers, lakes or the sea! Even a koi fish in a pond may trigger a terrible reaction at the sight of the scaly swimmer. They imagine being surrounded by dozens of tiny, slimy and fast-moving creatures to the point it causes uncontrollable anxiety.
6. Naviphobia— A Fear of Boats
Did you know that according to the National Institute of Mental Health, specific phobias affect 19.2 million adults in the United States? People are afraid of a numerous amount of things— even harmless boats! Latin for “ship”, “vessel”, or “boat”, naviphobia is the fear of boats or large cruise ships.
7. Thalassophobia- A Fear of Deep Water
A phobia is characterized as an irrational fear, which means that usually what you’re afraid of us is highly unlikely to harm you. Yet the ocean is one of the most terrifying places on the planet, and not even the most experienced team of scientists know everything about it. When you swim in the ocean, do you avoid going too far out in the water?
8. Submechanophobia— A Fear of Objects in Water
Are you scared of murky water with strange silhouettes of objects in it? Are you creeped out by barnacles and algae stuck to metal? If partly submerged substances in water give you the heebie-jeebies, then you may suffer from some form of submechanophobia. In other words, you can’t stand man-made objects stuck in water such as buoys, shipwrecks, the underwater part of a ship’s hull or even just a piece of old metal sitting at the bottom of the sea.
