h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Another thread has quite comprehensibly covered many aspects of why people rightfully fear spiders (I'm showing my bias aren't I?).

But what I want to know is: Just what do you all fear most in this world? Be it wasps, the dark, or (my personal dread) waking up to find out that you are Keith Chegwin, and there is nothing you can do about it.

No matter how trivial or daft, I want to hear them all.

Human nature

Very deep!

Wasps scare the hell out of me, my heart rate hits the roof whenever one comes near me, I have trained myself to cope with them being near me long enough to get the car off the road safetly but after that it really hits me.

Mel

Being in a room when the light goes out. But I don't mind the dark.

And foster sisters that wake me up in the night complaining that their neck hurts when I have been reading Saloms Lot all evening.

And some of my nightmares are terrifying.

And the fear of losing my son.

I think that's it...

Mina-- are you afraid when the light is turned off, or just when the power goes out unexpectedly?

I'm afriad of butterflies. Nasty, insidious creatures. I've learned not to run from them, because other people just don't get it, and running doesn't suit my inherent dignity but I move away and keep a close eye on them in case they try to come and touch me. *shudder*

I can understand your fear of butterflies, it's something you can't control, and in someways I imagine you don't understand it either.

Mel

Spiders, wasps, things which creep or crawl AT me, unsuported heights, having my bones scraped and death.

A fairly broad sellection of things there, but not so broad as to make me afraid to leave the house.

...Oh and a fear of open spaces... damn.

--David, who can also be expressed numerically

I understand it, know where it came from. When I was about 10 I read three stories that had truly vile butterflies in them. Gave me the willies forever. Since I recognize that my lil phobia is a mite unreasonable, but I'm pretty fearless about everything else, I've chosen to accept it rather than try to overcome it. Keeps me human, you know

Being up high ladders

Good for you!

Mel

Actually another one, rather curiously is now flying.
Its not a phobia, I just really don't like it anymore.
Anymore is the correct word as I used to love it but every time I fly now it gets scarier.
Don't know why really but I particularly hate landing.

Heights.

Water - even a very full bath makes me uneasy

Spiders (already mentioned elsewhere)

Worms and slugs

My backgarden has recently become a slug and snail graveyard

Rainbow did you have a problem with water when you are younger that it scares you now?

Mel

Yes, when I was eight and on holiday in Menorca, I was swimming from an island to our boat that was anchored some way off-shore. About two-thirds of the way out I became exhausted, looked down at all the sea-weed on the sea-bed below me, which was magnified by the water and I just froze with fear and started drowning. Someone spotted me from the boat and dived in to save me, but not before I was well under the water.

I seldom swim (and would never go in a swimming pool without several other people in it), when I'm on holiday I just lie on my Lilo rather than actually going in the water.

I can only cope with a deep bath providing someone else in it with me....

MoD, I'm afraid of being in a room when someone turns the light off, even me, and I'm petrified if the power goes off unexpectedly.

Now there's a good excuse for persuading someone to have a bath with you
Mind you, deep water in a bath is not necessarily a good thing in such circumstances

Doubling up in the bath conserves water, too Nice to have an ecologically friendly phobia (looking on the bright side)

Mina--does it help if you close your eyes before turning off the lights?

Once I realised I was scared of the dark because without my lenses in or glasses on everything looked blurred, I felt a bit happier about it. But then I realised I was scared of the dark with either or!

What really scares me are Daddy-long-legs, especially as I no longer have a cat that would clear the room of any. What are they for? Daddy-long-legs, that it!

What are daddy-longlegs for?

Clearly they exist only to scare me in the absence of spiders or craneflies.