Phobia

This doesn't pertain to phobias.

Let’s be clear: everything I write here—just like everything else I put out there—is probably pretty useless and lacks any real expertise in subjects like psychology or sociology. I guess I just don't have that kind of background. Anyway, I couldn't sleep again last night.

I was looking at a Wikipedia definition (forgive my translation skills):

Fear is such an uncomfortable sensation, isn't it? It’s that feeling you get when you sense some kind of risk or danger—whether that threat is actually real or just something your mind made up. I suppose fear can also be described as an intense aversion to things like the dark or ghosts, and that kind of thing.

I don't think I can keep up with the translations anymore; I'm just not feeling it.

It seems that developing a phobia toward specific objects or environments is something that can actually be learned. In the animal kingdom, researchers are currently studying this through fear conditioning, a process that relies heavily on the emotional circuitry within the brain.

😢 So, that's how it goes. I guess that's basically what they do to little kids—all that stuff about Baba Yaga, Satan, and those evil men offering a candy.

There’s a long-standing debate among certain philosophers regarding whether fear is just a completely pointless emotion that only ever leads to negative outcomes. On the flip side, I suppose some thinkers would argue that fear actually serves a purpose, acting as a vital warning sign when we find ourselves in a dangerous situation.

👎 First! 👍 The second one.

If we actually lived in a society built on reason and honesty, I suppose I wouldn't be dealing with these kinds of frustrations. 🙂
I really can't stand people playing games, and honestly, when I'm feeling this miserable from lack of sleep, I get this intense urge to just head out the door with an axe or something similar.
Out of the handful of horror movies I’ve actually managed to sit through, I think I’ll go ahead and pick... ta-da! — Circle! :2up:
So, we all know exactly what happened: some little girl climbs out of a well in a total rage and starts harassing people over the phone.
I say: I want to burn it all down—the mother, the director, and everyone who actually enjoys this movie! What is so terrifying about this little girl? Is it because she calls people on the phone? Or because she kills and mutilates them? Honestly, seeing her crawling around the floor in a white nightgown just feels more like a cheap adult movie than anything else. 🤮 Why on earth is that considered so terrible? I mean, seriously, could someone please explain to me why that’s such a big deal? I just don't get it!

According to some Wikipedia definitions, there are all sorts of things people used to be terrified of back in the day. It covers everything from demons and ghosts to Satanism, and even those primal fears like drowning, being burned, or being buried alive—you name it, they were scared of it.
If you strip away concepts like "demons," "ghosts," or that paralyzing fear of death found in Wrapping Paper, you realize people are really just terrified of pain—which is basically just general embarrassment—death, and the Unknown. And if you peel back the layers of the Unknown, you’re still left with nothing but death and embarrassment.
Since I find myself in agreement with what was stated above...👍 I tend to view fear as a built-in mechanism designed specifically to help us avoid embarrassment. It serves nothing more than the purpose of self-preservation—[[there I go again with the self-preservation talk]]—and I honestly see it as being synonymous with a high degree of caution. In my opinion, it’s actually quite useful.

It’s honestly both hilarious and infuriating how much everything just boils down to fear. If I had my way, I’d take Stephen King, Cradle of Filth, their entire fanbase, and the whole damn horror industry, and just flush them all down a public restroom toilet. That’s exactly what I’d do. :2up:

Since I've reached a point where embarrassment and death don't really phase me anymore—honestly, I just don't care—I can proudly say that my fears are steadily fading 😳 and it feels like I'm drifting closer to true peace of mind (which is really just depersonalization 😢 ).

kind of like Clapton - Layla
anyway, I'm starving...

In that circle, you’re supposed to feel this overwhelming dread of the unknown. They didn't quite nail it, though...

The thing about the circle is that it’s based on a Japanese film, but their way of "thinking" is just different. You only have to watch a few of their movies to see what I mean.

If you actually want to experience true horror—something that makes you feel real fear—try watching "They" when you're home alone late at night in the dark.

And as for the fear of death... honestly, most people aren't even afraid of dying itself. It's more about how it happens.

Jonathan Johnson67 said:In a circle, you’re supposed to be terrified of the unknown. They didn't really pull that off.

The thing about the circle is that it’s a Japanese film, and they just "think" differently—you only have to watch a few of their movies to see what I mean.

If you actually want to watch a horror movie and feel genuine fear, try watching "They" when you're home alone late at night in the dark.

And as for the fear of death, people are usually more afraid of how they'll die than death itself.

First of all, the idea of watching "They" specifically to scare myself doesn't really appeal to me. I'm fairly certain I understand the concept of fear well enough. 👎

Second of all, regarding the manner of death, what truly terrifies people is pain. Why is that? 😕 If both painful burning and painless poisoning result in death, what's the actual difference? Most people would probably choose poison without a second thought if they were looking for an exit, whereas they absolutely dread being burned. Why is embarrassment such a significant factor if the end result is identical? 😕

Just ignore the previous post; it was late at night. 😢

Here is what I actually meant to say:

Nancy Fowler61 said:Fear acts as a mechanism to dodge embarrassment; its sole purpose is self-preservation [[there I go again with the self-preservation topic]], so I view it as being synonymous with a high degree of caution and find it quite useful.

That’s why I can't stand those cheap tricks that exploit fear just to manufacture some kind of *artificial* horror or dread in people.

That's all.

I get the whole point of fear, really... but I wonder how many people are actually in any kind of real danger these days. Back in the day, when you were constantly looking over your shoulder for predators in the wild, fear actually served a purpose.
Nowadays, we aren't facing those kinds of threats, so people just go out and manufacture their own... skydiving, hitting steep slopes on a snowboard...

And then there's the adrenaline hit you get from being scared. Some people find a certain "pleasure" in that rush, which explains why they sit around watching horror movies.

Jonathan Johnson67 said:Fear triggers an adrenaline rush, which actually provides a sense of "pleasure" for some people—that's exactly why they enjoy watching horror movies.

God damn George, burn them all. 😢>

Nancy Fowler61 said:Basically, this is my whole point:

That’s why I can’t stand those cheap tricks where they just exploit fear to manufacture some kind of *fake* horror or dread.

End of story.

There’s also this thing called fear of fear. Honestly, sometimes you just gotta let yourself get totally spooked to realize it isn't actually that big of a deal. 🙂

mistyfox812 said:There’s also this thing called fear of fear itself. So, sometimes it actually helps to just get genuinely terrified once, just to realize it isn't actually that bad. 🙂

😢 I suppose I could try to respond to that, but I don't think there's much point in me doing so.

Nancy Fowler61, what are you actually trying to get at here?
I mean, most people watch horror movies just for the hell of it, you know, to get that quick adrenaline rush or maybe to work through their own personal fears...
I don't quite follow you, though; are you seriously claiming you don't have a single fear because you've somehow depersonalized yourself?
Saying it's "just a little thing" feels pretty hard to swallow when I'm reading through your posts and seeing how you react to everything
So, what is it that actually scares you?

hollowtrucker77 said:Nancy Fowler61, what are you actually trying to say here?

Well, this, I suppose.

hollowtrucker77 said:I think people watch horror movies for fun, for an adrenaline rush, to overcome their own fears...

Yes, and? Where am I losing you? [[Overcoming their own fears? How exactly?]]

hollowtrucker77 said:I don't get it, are you claiming you don't have a single fear because you've become depersonalized?
"A little" seems hard to believe when reading your posts and reactions.
What are you actually afraid of?

Oh no! 😲 hollowtrucker77 has figured me out! This is going to ruin my reputation, oh what will I do, what will I do now?! 🙂 [[Actually, I am afraid of Truly Everything, but I already mentioned earlier that we don't discuss phobias here. 👋]]

how precious
let me know when you finally grow out of this cynical phase, maybe then we can actually have a decent conversation
🙄

I don't really get the point of this thread. Are we supposed to comment on how you're becoming less afraid? Honestly, most people would lose their minds over something like that.

As far as I'm concerned, 🙂

Arthur Barnes said:I don't really get the point of this thread. Are we supposed to be commenting on how you aren't as afraid anymore? Honestly, I think most people would lose their minds over something like that.

As far as I'm concerned, 🙂

Neeeee. 😢
This is what the topic is actually about. 😳 hollowtrucker77, 😢 sorry. 😢 🙂

Nancy Fowler61 said:Neeeee. 😢
That's the whole point here. 😳 hollowtrucker77, 😢 sorry. 😢 🙂

Happyman already covered all that for you.

From what I get, horror movies featuring witches or those invisible, dark monsters... they target your inner child (not an actual kid, just that part of your psyche) and that’s why it creeps you out. It doesn't matter how much you stay indoors or try to shield yourself, that kind of stuff always leaves you feeling scared, looking over your shoulder in the dark, and all that.*

Some people live for that adrenaline rush. Personally? Horror movies just bore me. I don't watch them. You're just sitting there waiting for some crap to happen so you can supposedly feel scared 🤣. Anyway, Happyman gave you the answer.

* in most cases

Arthur Barnes said:From what I understand, horror movies featuring witches or those invisible, shadowy monsters are designed to target your inner child (meaning a part of your psyche, not an actual child), which is why they trigger fear. No matter how much you try to stay sheltered from nature or protected from the world, an attack like that will always leave you feeling spooked, constantly looking over your shoulder in the dark, and all that.*
* in most instances

(Theoretically speaking,) would this apply to someone who was raised to adulthood in a completely different way than people are today—someone who was never told a single word about witches, shadow monsters, or any such nonsense, but instead grew up understanding concrete things like logic and science? Or would a person like that fall into a tiny minority of cases?

Nancy Fowler61 said:(Theoretically) What about someone raised totally differently than people today? Someone who was never told stories about witches, dark monsters, or any of that nonsense, but actually understands concrete things... like logic and science? Would they still feel it? Or would they be part of that tiny minority that doesn't?

I don't know, guess you'd have to run an experiment to find out. 😛

Personally, I think that fear of the unknown—like those dark monsters coming to kill you—is just hardwired into everyone. Those people would still be scared regardless.

Arthur Barnes said:I suppose we really should verify that through an experiment. 😛

Well, why don't you go ahead and do that then? 🤣

Arthur Barnes said:I personally think everyone is just born with this inherent fear of the unknown—you know, like dark monsters coming to kill you—so those people would probably be scared regardless.

😢 If something is unknown and you feel afraid, I guess that just means you haven't encountered it yet and you're simply being cautious (fear vs. caution). It’s a different thing entirely to be terrified of dark monsters that kill; if you actually come face-to-face with a killer monster, you might just freeze up in pure terror, and that panic would likely stop you from even trying to escape. I suspect that's what they call "fear conditioning," if I understood that correctly.

Fear isn't some monolithic, all-encompassing thing; it’s more like a spectrum with plenty of different shades
how a person actually reacts when they get spooked depends on just about every variable under the sun
on an instinctual level, people sense there’s something out there much larger than themselves, and then the imagination just takes over and does all the heavy lifting—and I don't care if you think stories about ghosts or urban legends are total nonsense, the brain doesn't seem to care
that’s why most people deal with that creeping dread at night, mostly because your vision is limited and you start seeing things in the shadows of trees, fearing those silhouettes simply because they represent something bigger than you can control
then again, fear can actually be a hell of a motivator—I mean, look at the unofficial world record for the long jump, which supposedly hit 14.5 meters when some guy was being chased by a lion in the Serengeti
you could put two people in the exact same environment and they’ll react to different stimuli in completely different ways
say you're walking through Central Park late at night and someone lunges at you from the front, you're probably going to go into full defensive, aggressive mode, whereas if someone charges from behind, you're much more likely to bolt or just freeze up in hopes of becoming invisible
at the end of the day, there are just too many moving parts to pin down, and how someone behaves in a specific moment usually boils down to the individual

This whole thread is a mess, which pretty much makes it a joke.

If you actually intended this to be a deep dive into fear as a psychological phenomenon, maybe pull yourself together and you might actually get some useful feedback.

Just rambling and throwing random thoughts at the wall isn't going to get you anywhere besides padding your post count.

Once you decide to get serious and put together a coherent post, I’ll do my best to give you a real answer. The subject matter has potential, but so far, your posts just make it look like your brain is in a total knot. Go grab some water, get some sleep, and start a new thread. We’re closing this one.

The book I’m currently working through defines psychology as the study of how we react to a stimulus, provided there's an actual object involved.

P --> O --> R

Take a soldier operating an artillery piece, for instance. He doesn't even have to blink when a massive explosion goes off right next to him. But then, you take a tiny, subtle stimulus—like someone whispering in his ear that his kid was just in a car wreck—and that can trigger a massive behavioral reaction.

Fear is incredibly irrational. It’s a myth that people only fear things larger than themselves. People will be terrified of just about anything, whether it's a mouse, a cockroach, or a T-Rex.