What constitutes a weird phobia? The most common phobias all have some kind of underlying logic. It would indeed inhibit our survival to be bitten by a poisonous snake, develop cancer, or fall from a cliff.
However, there are some very weird phobias out there, for instance, the fear of celery or baked beans. It is safe to say that celery never posed a threat in our evolutionary past.
The common specific phobias are thought to arise from several means. One theory is that they are ingrained in our genes through years of evolution. For instance, our ancestors may have lived among poisonous snakes – and the body’s physiological response to that was to run like hell. It’s a survival thing.
Alternatively, social trends in our culture may condition us to react to things in certain ways. For instance, on sighting a mouse, women should immediately hop up on the kitchen table and scream until a male is present to save them. It’s textbook Tom & Jerry.
Instead of an evolutionary or culture-led phobia, there may be a separate explanation for weird or strange phobias, such as the fear of cheese.
This group of phobias may be linked to deep-seated psychological trauma. For whatever reason, that inanimate object or non-threatening situation has become the focus of the fear, and acts as a trigger for stored feelings of anxiety.
The common specific phobias – such as the fear of spiders, or snakes, or being struck by lightening – are all understandable on some level. We may not understand the extreme fear response some people give them. But somewhere in there is a threat to survival.
Here is a list of uncommon phobias, which really do prove utterly terrifying and disgusting to a small part of the population.
And finally, spare a thought for sufferers of Panophobia, who are continuously engaged in the fear of everything...
The Causes and Cures of Phobias by Rebecca Turner
The 10 Most Common Phobias by Rebecca Turner
Phobia Fear Release - Proven Advice to Cure ANY Phobia, from a Professional, Certified Phobia Treatment Expert