Weird phobias anyone?

[Mewithane]

I wanted to see if I am alone in this, as my friends and family think I'm mental, but I have an awful fear of......

BUTTONS!!

Even typing it like that makes me cringe. I can't wear them, touch them, be in the room with them! DD and DS cannot have clothes with them on. If there is one on the loose I will leave the house and not return until it is dealt with.

(note: only clothes buttons that need threading are terrifying. Remote control buttons, push buttons etc are all fine.)

Is this a real thing? Has anyone else got any weird phobias they want to get off their chest?

Thumbs. Really weird I know I don't even really like typing the word.

Underwater machinery.

Things like pumps and filters in swimming pools. Don't even get me started on wave machines 🤮 Anything that 'lurks' underwater, such as a sewer outlet.

Machines that thinks for themselves. I hate the fact that my washing machine, for example, has a 'brain'. I can set the delay timer and it sits there thinking about when the cycle is going to start.

Empty wrapping papers ,makes me feel sick touching them.

Mookinsx I can sympathise with the ear bending as I cannot kneel down without panicking that my kneecaps will pop out - illogical but the fear is real.

WineCheeseSleep How do you type with your irrational phobia of thumbs? Or is it other people's thumbs?

I don't like lumpy things grouped together, eg:
Cluster of insect eggs
A load of cherry tomato seeds trapped in my dishwasher's mesh filter - it looked infected somehow
Coconut oil that I'd previously used to fry eggs in a frying pan - after cooling it solidifies in lumpy, alien looking platelets..I madly have to 'scratch it all off' when I see it.
Badly flaking paint that's all raised and thick with it, again I really have the urge to scrath it back smooth if I clap eyes on it.

I wouldn't say it's trypophobia but it's the closet thing so far to describe what makes me irritated and jumpy.

@AventaRizon (Name changed for this as shit loads of my friends in RL know about this...)

Your fear of car washes is totally justified and I share it. About two years ago, my DH took my car through one for a quick wash. The system had some kind of massive malfunction and the whole washer mechanism came smashing through the rear windscreen of the car, mid-wash and at full pelt. It stopped straight away, but the inside of my car was soaked and covered in shattered glass from the rear windscreen, which was obliterated by the machine. Makes my blood run cold to this day thinking about what could have happened if the DC had been in the back. We've obviously never used one since - just don't! Not worth it. Hand wash is so much safer

Clandestine how about smartphones or laptops where you can access threads such as this? Are those machines that think for themselves?

Loving hearing about all these weird phobias and making my button (shudder) fear slightly more normal. Am glad no one has posted a picture as I may have to delete Mumsnet and burn my phone and laptop.

Milk! I can't cope with it at all including formula or coconut or soya or anything! Can't explain it but I can't touch it!

Dr Geoff Cole and Professor Arnold Wilkins from the University of Essex suggests that trypophobia may occur as a result of a specific visual feature also found among various poisonous animals.

@Mewithane ha, it's other people's! I don't love my own either but don't refuse to use them.

clandestinenetwork have you ever seen the submechanophobia reddit? I’ve spent many a happy hour shuddering over wave machines and underwater animatronics on there!

Empty (as in drained) swimming pools. Also exposed machinery. Like fountains that have been drained and you can see all the pipe work, or the underside of a car. The other day at IKEA when I had to walk past both an escalator which was being repaired and had the top few panels removed, and the huge air conditioning outlets in the underground car park. I averted my eyes and ran!

Birds. Any shape, size, colour. I hate them, and will walk around any bird I see in the street. The irony is, my surname is the name of a bird...

Birds and salad cream

Those draining holes in reservoirs, I'm terrified of them

@Mewithane No I'm fine with those, ha! Probably because they are designed to think for themselves, if you see what I mean? It's more big, clunky machinery that can suddenly start up and make noises and do stuff without warning

I'm off to look at that subreddit...from behind a cushion.

@3boysandabump Together?!

A former colleague of mine has a phobia of Mick Hucknall, just the mention of Simply Red sets her off, we thought she was having us on at first until someone started talking about him she had to leave the room. I once mentioned that gem stone he had stuck to one of his teeth and she nearly started crying.

STATIC SHOCKS!!!

You should witness me getting out of cars, touching anything that could possibly give me a static shock. Cars are one of the worst, the bolt you get from the metal on the car door is unbearable!

I can't touch a lift button without pulling my sleeve down over my hand and stand there for ages darting my hand at it really quickly, squirming.

Anyone going to hug me, touch me in anyway I fear they will give me a static shock.

Many times I have dropped change given to me by a cashier because I'm scared their hand will touch mine and give me a shock.

Can't wear certain clothes that are static when you take them off. Omg. The noise!!!!!!!! The static noise freeeeaks me out!

Moths and butterflies. Cannot be anywhere near the horrible flappy bastards.

Also buttons. I'm not afraid of them, but they make me feel so uncomfortable and queasy 🤢 Can't look at them. I struggle when DH comes in for a hug if he's wearing a shirt from work still! Most annoyingly, I'll be with someone and they'll suddenly go "OH! Sorry Eyedrops, my coat has huge buttons on, sorry I didn't think!" - often I won't even have noticed until they point it out! Thanks!! 🤢

Outing, but my father has a phobia of a particular song. It's a Christmas carol so is frequently heard in shops etc around then. He has to leave if it comes on (cafes/restaurants included), it really freaks him out!

Brushed nylon I can't even think about it it puts my teeth on edge

Penguins.

Otters (recent)

Monkeys. They're just wrong. Cannot stand them. The hair stands up on the back of my neck when I see them on TV. I might die if I ever saw a real one. Chimpanzees are the worst.