jerseymarie Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 I have struggled with physical and mental health issues for most of my life. I don't usually let these problems get to me, but they do make me feel very alone sometimes. Between my arthritis, degenerative disc disease, meniere's disease, depression, and severe anxiety I have a lot of problems feeling out of place, but the worst things for me are actually my phobias. I have phobias of water (not baths or showers, but pools, rivers, lakes, and oceans), feet, and doorknobs (this is the most troublesome). I have heard of other people having phobias of water and feet, so even though I would still like to overcome them it makes me feel a bit better knowing I'm not the only one facing it. However, I have never met someone else with a phobia of doorknobs. I can't touch them at all and being near them makes me extremely anxious. Needless to say it keeps me from doing a lot of things, especially by myself. Does anyone else have this fear? Or know someone who has it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerseymarie Posted January 20, 2011 Author Share Posted January 20, 2011 I am not gemaphobic. It really is just the doorknobs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToF Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 Jersey, have you seen a therapist about any of your problems? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweetpea03 Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 Have you gone for professional help? Also, in order to overcome a phobia, take baby steps to get there. Slowly get yourself more used to water, by going to a lake, then standing closer to the lake, then standing ankle deep in the water, etc. Just take it step by step. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerseymarie Posted January 20, 2011 Author Share Posted January 20, 2011 I went to therapy until I was 17. I'm was put on medication for my depression and anxiety, but I never really got help for any of my phobias. Honestly, the idea of going back to therapy just makes me cringe. I always hated it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidehop Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 It could be related to a trauma of some form you had with doorknobs directly or indirectly. It's not the texture I'm assuming? Just any shape & form of a doorknob? It may be beneficial to see a counselor who may be able to pinpoint the cause and steps in overcoming fear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerseymarie Posted January 20, 2011 Author Share Posted January 20, 2011 It's any doorknob, not just specific ones or the texture. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerseymarie Posted January 20, 2011 Author Share Posted January 20, 2011 It's a difficult task, and I pretty much can't go anywhere or do anything without someone with me to open doors. It's extremely frustrating. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerseymarie Posted January 20, 2011 Author Share Posted January 20, 2011 Haha, yes, that would be very tragic, but I doubt that I would accidentaly walk into an aisle of doorknobs. I would definitely notice. lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FathomFear Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 Well, I appreciate not enjoying going to therapist. But it sounds like you don't enjoy having these phobias either. It will be up to you determine which is the lesser of two evils--getting help or avoiding therapy but living with the phobias. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
generaldiscord Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 I can tell you with 100% certainty that a doorknob can't hurt you when you're wearing gloves. Gloves take away almost all the power from the door and reduce them to a simple tool which helps you open doors. Also, if you wear gloves enough, you eventually get the power of gloves without having to wear them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerseymarie Posted January 20, 2011 Author Share Posted January 20, 2011 I do realize that the only way to rid myself of my phobias is to get help, and once I gather up the nerve I will eventually go back into therapy. Also, I have tried wearing gloves, but it didn't exactly work out. I know though that I'll overcome my phobia one day. I'm mostly just wondering if anyone else has this problem or something similar, or whether they have ever heard of someone else having it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfan Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 Feet and doorknobs are both nubby things that stick out and are wider at the tip and have similarities to penises. I have definitely heard of foot fetishists subconciously viewing a foot going into a shoe similar to a penis going into a vagina. (That is only one possible way that a foot fetish can develop but of course there are others.) Jerseymarie, the good news about your phobia of doorknobs is that a doorknob is a specific, concrete object and there is no question as to whether something is a doorknob or not. It's not some vague fear concerning something you don't quite understand. Specific phobias are more easily treated than vague phobias. The water phobia seems unrelated. Best of luck and strength to you working on these issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grendel Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 Have you ever googled "doorknob phobia"? It appears you are not alone. Here is kind of a neat little comic about the topic by a guy who claims to have the same phobia. link removed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyNinja Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 What is it that you think about when you see a doorknob? You must be associating it with something that makes you cringe. Do doors with handle bars create the same fear as regular knobs? Until we meet again... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.