What Is Your Phobia?

[Cyrus]

[ QUOTE ]
What Is Your Phobia?

[/ QUOTE ]What's with the singular ?

The shop list

[MicroBob]

Sometimes heights, but especially bridges (I'm okay with flying though).

Driving or riding across bridges I've finally gotten better at but it's taken me awhile. I had to close my eyes when I was a kid and we would cross a bridge on a family vacation or something.

The bridges across the Ohio River in Cincinnati just freaked me out and I would sit there trying to will the driver (either my mom or my dad) to move over to the left-lane (away from the edge of the bridge).

I have had dozens of dreams (probably 100 or more) where the bridge just ends, or gets narrower and narrower and you are just trying to make it across on two narrow tracks, or is a ridiculously steep and curvy incline and then incredibly dangerous descent, etc etc etc.

Now that I live in Memphis I still have similar dreams. Except that some of them will involve crossing the Mississippi River into Arkansas, instead of crossing the Ohio River into Kentucky.


I've also had dreams of a super long (but low and not scary) bridge from Alaska to Hawaii (and a different one from Seattle to Hawaii).
And another about a long bridge from NY to England.


On a different topic: my subconcious kind of rocks (when the dreams aren't scary).
I frequently remember my dreams and I think they are usually pretty interesting. Sometimes really telling. Other times just downright odd. Better than TV at least (most of the time).

[StepBangin]

[ QUOTE ]
Sometimes heights, but especially bridges (I'm okay with flying though).

Driving or riding across bridges I've finally gotten better at but it's taken me awhile. I had to close my eyes when I was a kid and we would cross a bridge on a family vacation or something.

The bridges across the Ohio River in Cincinnati just freaked me out and I would sit there trying to will the driver (either my mom or my dad) to move over to the left-lane (away from the edge of the bridge).

I have had dozens of dreams (probably 100 or more) where the bridge just ends, or gets narrower and narrower and you are just trying to make it across on two narrow tracks, or is a ridiculously steep and curvy incline and then incredibly dangerous descent, etc etc etc.

Now that I live in Memphis I still have similar dreams. Except that some of them will involve crossing the Mississippi River into Arkansas, instead of crossing the Ohio River into Kentucky.


I've also had dreams of a super long (but low and not scary) bridge from Alaska to Hawaii (and a different one from Seattle to Hawaii).
And another about a long bridge from NY to England.


On a different topic: my subconcious kind of rocks (when the dreams aren't scary).
I frequently remember my dreams and I think they are usually pretty interesting. Sometimes really telling. Other times just downright odd. Better than TV at least (most of the time).

[/ QUOTE ]

I googled "Dream Interpreter" and found this

"BRIDGE A link between opposing or different emotions, desires, directions. A way to deal with difficulties. The bridge Often signifies changing from one phase of life to another. So it can mean leaving something behind, like youth. Another meaning is that of a link between people, such as someone you love, or work. A link between yourself and opportunity."

[niss]

Potentially interesting twist on fear of heights ...

I am not afraid of heights, per se, I am afraid of an urge that I am going to toss myself from whatever the height is, be it a bridge, tall building, etc. I don't have a suicidal thought in my meager brain; but just thinking about walking across the George Washington Bridge (which I did when I was younger) makes me very nervous, as I picture myself grabbing the railing and throwing myself over. Weird.

[John Cole]

[ QUOTE ]
I am not afraid of heights, per se, I am afraid of an urge that I am going to toss myself from whatever the height is, be it a bridge, tall building, etc. I don't have a suicidal thought in my meager brain; but just thinking about walking across the George Washington Bridge (which I did when I was younger) makes me very nervous, as I picture myself grabbing the railing and throwing myself over. Weird.




[/ QUOTE ]

Not that weird. See Poe on "The Imp of the Perverse."

[Triumph36]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
I am not afraid of heights, per se, I am afraid of an urge that I am going to toss myself from whatever the height is, be it a bridge, tall building, etc. I don't have a suicidal thought in my meager brain; but just thinking about walking across the George Washington Bridge (which I did when I was younger) makes me very nervous, as I picture myself grabbing the railing and throwing myself over. Weird.




[/ QUOTE ]

Not that weird. See Poe on "The Imp of the Perverse."

[/ QUOTE ]

I just read that story and recognized the thought in niss's post but couldn't remember where I read it. I thought it was something from Kundera - thanks for clearing that up.

[niss]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
I am not afraid of heights, per se, I am afraid of an urge that I am going to toss myself from whatever the height is, be it a bridge, tall building, etc. I don't have a suicidal thought in my meager brain; but just thinking about walking across the George Washington Bridge (which I did when I was younger) makes me very nervous, as I picture myself grabbing the railing and throwing myself over. Weird.




[/ QUOTE ]

Not that weird. See Poe on "The Imp of the Perverse."

[/ QUOTE ]

Found it on the net. His description of the sensations and thought process underlying the fear is uncannily accurate.

[New001]

[ QUOTE ]
Potentially interesting twist on fear of heights ...

I am not afraid of heights, per se, I am afraid of an urge that I am going to toss myself from whatever the height is, be it a bridge, tall building, etc. I don't have a suicidal thought in my meager brain; but just thinking about walking across the George Washington Bridge (which I did when I was younger) makes me very nervous, as I picture myself grabbing the railing and throwing myself over. Weird.

[/ QUOTE ]
I know what you're referring to. I don't really have a fear or desire or urge or whatever to fall like that, but I do always wonder what it'd be like to fall when I'm up high.

[MicroBob]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Potentially interesting twist on fear of heights ...

I am not afraid of heights, per se, I am afraid of an urge that I am going to toss myself from whatever the height is, be it a bridge, tall building, etc. I don't have a suicidal thought in my meager brain; but just thinking about walking across the George Washington Bridge (which I did when I was younger) makes me very nervous, as I picture myself grabbing the railing and throwing myself over. Weird.

[/ QUOTE ]
I know what you're referring to. I don't really have a fear or desire or urge or whatever to fall like that, but I do always wonder what it'd be like to fall when I'm up high.

[/ QUOTE ]


I think that 'wondering what it would be like' to fall from that high is not the same as being afraid of just randomly throwing yourself over which is something I also have.

Walking across a bridge and even having my hands on the rail I am constantly trying to rid myself of thoughts of 'accidentally' flinging myself overboard.

I also don't consider myself to be the least bit suicidal.


stepbangin - interesting dream interpretation. But I think the dreams are also related to my concious fear of bridges (especially from my childhood).

It probably applies to me in some ways, especially regarding leaving my youth behind, as I've been pretty slow to 'man-up' and actually grow-up in some ways, even though I'm now 35.

But I don't think they are all related to that because I think my general childhood fear and anxiety of bridges.

I also have lots of other driving dreams that don't involve bridges (including yet another one last night actually).

[Exitonly]

[ QUOTE ]
Walking across a bridge and even having my hands on the rail I am constantly trying to rid myself of thoughts of 'accidentally' flinging myself overboard.

I also don't consider myself to be the least bit suicidal.

[/ QUOTE ]

same here. it's just the power of being able to do it makes me think about it. kinda freaks me out and i try and stay a couple feet away from the railing when i look out at [censored].