Irrational Fears

This doesn't fit into any of my days (except maybe Friday), but I really wanted to write about my irrational fears because I think some are really weird. And I couldn't wait until Friday.

I'm not really afraid of normal things and don't really jump in movies anymore, but here is my list:

Number one. It may be a fear for other people, but the first thing on my list is getting fat. I am terrified that one day I won't be able to see my feet. I try to keep myself in shape and I do a good job, but I know that over time I'll have to start eating better and working out more often to keep my metabolism up and stay skinny. Right now I know I don't eat the best, but I don't eat too much. I'm not even sure where this fear came from, but it's there.

The next on my list of irrational fears is hospitals. Every hospital. Always. I know the workers are there to help people, but it's just too clean for me. Hospitals have to be kept clean and in tip-top shape, but I don't really like that. Every hospital I've been in has the same feel: too clean and too much white and green everywhere. I don't like it. It's just so strange to me, how hospitals can all look and feel the same on the inside. Is there a reason for this? I don't have the answer, but maybe someone does.

Following the hospital trend. Another fear is medicine, more specifically shots. I am lucky enough to have one of the best immune systems out of anyone I know and I don't take medicine. Ever. That's where this fear comes from. A lot of people I know get the flu shot every year and many of them end up getting the actual flu. Not just the slight sickness you get from getting the shot, but the seasonal flu. And I don't want to take that chance. I also don't take regular cold medicine or anything of that kind because if I get a cold it usually only lasts for a couple days and then I'm all better. The only thing that I do take is vitamin C. And since I've never had the flu, why would I change what I do about shots and medicine?

Falling out of bed. It only happened to me once and it was just off my futon. But still it freaks me out. What if I fall on something and break it? What if I fall on a pen and impale myself somehow? I also fear sleep walking. I've never fully sleepwalked, but I did fall asleep in my bed and woke up on my futon one night. It is so disorienting to wake up somewhere other than where you fell asleep. I don't like it.

For as much as I love thunderstorms and lightning I always fear that I'll get struck by lightning. The reason for this is that I always have my headphones on when I'm walking outside. Including in thunderstorms. If I were to get struck by lightning while wearing headphones, the shock actually would go straight into my ears and I'd probably die. That is a horrifying thought to me. And is completely irrational because unless I'm over 100 feet off the ground the chances of getting struck by lightning are very very slim. Not to mention that having headphones on could actually help divert the lightning away from your heart.

Probably my biggest and most irrational of all is my fear of leaf piles. Maybe I played in them too much as a kid or maybe I've seen one too many movies or TV shows (probably a combination). If I don't make the leaf pile myself in a field or open space I will not jump in it. For some reason I think there's going to be a homeless person sleeping in it, a dead body, a person with a knife or even just a knife in the pile. But the weirdest thing I always fear is in there is a fire hydrant. Something similar happens in the upcoming movie The Five-Year Engagement. It's a pile of snow, but around 1 minute into the trailer (Here) Jason Segel jumps onto a pile of snow and immediately rolls off because he landed on a fire hydrant.

I don't know how many people have similar fears, but I know these are weird and some are quite irrational, but I think they're pretty weird. Who knows maybe a lot of people are afraid of leaf piles.