From eyelash curlers to eternal life, I heard it all when asking people, “What is your irrational fear?” With the results being such varying answers, I had to ask where they think that fear comes from. Just about everyone had a similar answer; one incident changed their perspective on a certain thing for good.
Tracy Anderson correlates a childhood friend’s habit of pulling out eyelashes to her fear of eyelash curlers that have stuck with her. Aiko Shirato talks about her experience with raccoons, something that still haunts her into her teen years. Both experiences stem from an incident from younger years that still creates a sense of uneasiness for both of them.
Mehgan Pillote carries the fear of ants with her from her childhood experience watching “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.”
“I remember one time I was biking with my sister,” Pillote said.“she biked over an ant hill, and I literally stopped my bike, sat on the sidewalk and started crying because I thought she was going to die”
This fear has been with Pillote since the 4th grade, but she would say that she’s gotten more comfortable with her fear.
“Honestly, I got over the fear a little bit,” Pillote said. “I still really hate ants; if they get near me, I will scream.”
Pillote’s concluding point sparks wonder of what really makes a fear irrational. I consulted Professor Emily Bilek of the University of Michigan. Bliek is a certified clinical psychologist in the Department of Psychiatry, primarily working with youth with anxiety or compulsive disorders.
When asked about the science behind fear as a whole, Bilek said to think of fear as a survival instinct: “Fear was developed over time to be adaptive for us.” Bilek defines fear as “this discomfort in our body, a strong urge to avoid the situation, and a change in our body that makes us prepared to run away.” Bilek later goes on to say that this natural instinct has been applicable dating as far back as the Paleolithic era of hunter-gatherer societies.
When asked what makes a fear irrational, completely in her opinion, Bilek gave a simple initial answer: “Irrational fear is when there’s no real danger to us.”
“Social anxiety, public speaking – those things for a lot of people generate a lot of anxiety. You’d have to get pretty creative to think of a way that you would be in actual danger.” Bilek said. “I sometimes joke that if I’m giving a talk in a lecture room and I’m really nervous, I would have to imagine that the audience would rush the stage and attack me if there were going to be real dangers to me in that situation.”
Going back to Pillote’s anecdote about her life-long fear, I asked Professor Bilek where childhood fear stems from. “It’s adaptive from a very young age, as children are learning how to navigate their environment and start to crawl. It is then we’ll find them start to be afraid of falling, and that just makes sense.”
Bilek also said that as we grow up, our fears become more and more complex, and we tend to avoid things we associate with negative connotations. Bilek further explains that as we start to use our imaginations, our fears start to be more creative. Bilek gives the example of being a afraid of the vacuum, or loud noises. Bilek says this is a bad thing, unless it beings to impact everyday life, but overall is a sign of a healthy imagination.
More specific to Pillotes experience, I asked about fears that stem from trauma. “
Fear and anxiety are not always a trauma response,” said Bilek. “But they one hundred percent can be. I want to be very clear that fear is not always a trauma response.”
Taking Pillotes’ case, Bilek says that Pillotes is a trauma response stemming from watching the movie. Bilek mentions that fear can be a genetic thing that is passed down from parents; Usually it stems from disorders like OCD or anxiety. Bilek makes her point that we need to push the stereotypes behind fear and take into account that fear stems from things other than trauma.
Bilek says that she would consider herself to have somewhat of an irrational fear. Saying that she is somewhat afraid of making phone calls, Bilek said if its completely necessary she will do it. Yrt shoe tries to avoid it if possible and Bilek has no idea where this fear comes from. Bilek wouldn’t suspect that her fear of talking over the phone is trauma induced, but she never knows. Bilek plans to continue working with children and continue teaching with the University of Michigan.
“We are always finding out new concepts that have to do with fear. New concepts mean more research is required.”
Irrational fears and fears in general are something most people encounter in everyday life. As mental health becomes a more talked on topic, fear seems to stay stuck in the past.
“The only way to get people to listen is to talk whether they like it or not.” Bilek said,
