How do I get people to respect my phobia? How do I make them stop antagonizing me by showing me the thing I'm afraid of? [more inside]
posted on Jun 28, 2008 - 53 answers

Nails on a chalkboard. Tearing paper. Fork tines on ceramic. Touching lycra, silk, wool.. Certain things will cause that teeth-gritting, hair-on-the-back-of-your-neck rising, Dear-God-Make-It-Stop response. What is the name for that? [more inside]
posted on Jun 19, 2008 - 17 answers

Can I train myself to tolerate throat cultures? [more inside]
posted on May 14, 2008 - 14 answers

It's Tax Day already?! [more inside]
posted on Apr 15, 2008 - 14 answers

Anyone have any tips on overcoming a lightning phobia? [more inside]
posted on Apr 2, 2008 - 8 answers

I want to shake my irrational fear of going back to school. It's for my own good! [more inside]
posted on Oct 26, 2007 - 5 answers

How can I learn not to fear needles? [more inside]
posted on Oct 10, 2007 - 40 answers

I am afraid to make music. [more inside]
posted on Oct 8, 2007 - 51 answers

My wife has a strong phobia of all things medical (with a few strange exceptions), and I'm wondering two things: 1) if anyone here has had a similar fear, and successfully overcame it, and 2) how should we go about helping her cope with her phobia? [more inside]
posted on Oct 2, 2007 - 10 answers

Could birth control cause a phobia to rear its ugly head? [more inside]
posted on Jun 30, 2007 - 13 answers

I'm afraid of the Interstate. What can I do about this fear? [more inside]
posted on Jun 17, 2007 - 22 answers

How do I get rid of my phone-o-phobia? [more inside]
posted on May 29, 2007 - 27 answers

I hate dogs. Help me deal so I don't lose my jobs. [more inside]
posted on May 3, 2007 - 105 answers

For several months now, I have had a bizarre phobia of opening my mailbox. I only open it once every few weeks, grab what's inside, and throw it in a pile in my apartment. Then after I pay the bills, I don't really look at anything else. It's like I am afraid of what's inside, some collection bill (I've never had a credit problem) or something. I can't put my finger on it... [more inside]
posted on Apr 30, 2007 - 33 answers

I have bipolar disorder and although I have been stable for more than a year I have had several manic episodes in the past (when I was very ill and she was unable to contact me) and my girlfriend worries I may have another when she’s not with me at night. We would like for me to be able to stay at home for a few days every now and then but this is currently not possible, as she gets too anxious and distressed. How can we make this happen? [more inside]
posted on Jan 25, 2007 - 5 answers

How do I rid myself of this recent pill-swallowing phobia? [more inside]
posted on Jan 3, 2007 - 29 answers

Can I get through life without having to swallow pills? This is not hypothetical. [more inside]
posted on Oct 17, 2006 - 25 answers

Why are some people obsessed about drying up water ? [more inside]
posted on Sep 21, 2006 - 24 answers

Comfort my wife's fears. She has recently developed a phobia of flying and we are leaving on a flight on thursday. [more inside]
posted on Sep 5, 2006 - 36 answers

My previously relatively benign aversion to dogs has become cripplingly intense in the last few months, to the point that I can't make it to my house's front door without being accompanied. I'm living in Indonesia, and don't know enough of the language to express my absolute, mortal terror or where to find English-language psychological help. I really need some help here: how can I go home at night? [more inside]
posted on Sep 1, 2006 - 27 answers

Am I the only one with a phobia of satellites, and low-flying objects that are not planes (possibly spacecraft, not UFOs)? [more inside]
posted on Aug 18, 2006 - 9 answers

My wife is afraid of spiders. We just moved to Portland, Oregon, where the spider population seems to be higher than that even of slackers. I would like to not have to go on spider patrol every night, and I'd like my toddler daughter to not grow up with an irrational fear as well. Is there a way to cure her fear of spiders?
posted on Aug 7, 2006 - 29 answers

Embarrassing phobia. I need to drive myself 10 or so hours in a couple of weeks, and I am very afraid that I will find myself in a traditionally panicky situation. [more inside]
posted on Jul 20, 2006 - 15 answers

Two part question. I'm afraid of the dark. When I go to sleep I either leave the TV going, or the door open and a nearby light on. If I don't do this then I lie in the dark and watch shadows move, I'm on edge, and I lay awake for hours. This would be fine if I was 8, but I'm nearly 30. Am I the only adult in the world with this phobia? I'm planning to travel soon and will be staying in places that don't have a regular electricity supply, so I'll need to be comfortable in the dark.
posted on Jul 14, 2006 - 34 answers

The pickle phobia video hit my office yesterday and now everyone is offering opinions on why someone would be afraid of pickles. Look, there's [more inside]
posted on Jun 27, 2006 - 32 answers

On Tuesday, my boyfriend is having an anterior cervical fusion of C5 and C6 as a result of being on the weak end of a car-bicycle collision. He's in Los Angeles. I'm in Boston. I'm worried, and I have lots of questions. How can I help? [more inside]
posted on Oct 8, 2005 - 14 answers

I'm going to have a cavity drilled on Tuesday. I've never had this done before and I'm terribly phobic of "procedures" (dental and otherwise), especially when I don't know what is involved. What exactly do they do when they drill out a cavity--step by step, what's involved? [more inside]
posted on Jun 24, 2005 - 34 answers

How did you successfully conquer a severe phobia?
posted on Oct 22, 2004 - 17 answers

Does anybody know of alternative ways to get over an extremely irrational fear of public speaking/presenting?
[more inside].
posted on Jan 3, 2004 - 22 answers

I'll be flying 8+ hours to London two weeks from today. I have a paralyzing fear of flying, any advice?

Also, what should I do once I make it there?
posted on Dec 12, 2003 - 31 answers