Central is currently in a weekend series entitled Un Certainty.  Uncertainty leads to fear. Fear leads us to make decisions and choices we wouldn’t normally make. In the midst of economic crisis, loss of jobs, banks in crisis, and the continued war, how are you handling all of this uncertainty?  Here is the question…”What is your greatest fear?”  Whenever I thought about the question, I decided to make up a new phobia or fear (it is probably already a listed phobia but I wanted it to sound like it was my idea).  My new phobia is connectophobia:  the fear of not being connected.  I don’t want to miss anything and I will continually check my email, twitter, facebook account, MySpace, online campus, and my voicemail.  Maybe that will lead to a disorder of OCD. 

Well, anyway, I feel like I am getting better at dealing with it, but there are times when I have this fear overwhelm me that I might miss something.  Anyway, enough about my fears and phobias, if you can’t think of a phobia, I thought I would list several of the top phobias listed in the world and maybe you can find one to fit you!

Some fears may be listed more than once

A
Ablutophobia- Fear of washing or bathing
Aerophobia- Fear of swallowing air
Ambulophobia- Fear of walking
Anablephobia- Fear of looking up
Anemophobia- Fear of wind
Anthrophobia- Fear of flowers
Arachibutyrophobia- Fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof ofthe mouth.
Arithmophobia- Fear of numbers
Aulophobia- Fear of flutes
Auroraphobia- Fear of Northern Lights

B
Barophobia- Fear of gravity
Basophobia- Fear of walking
Batophobia- Fear of being close to high buildings
Bibliophobia- Fear of books
Blennophobia- Fear of slime
Bogyphobia- Fear of the bogeyman

C
Cathisophobia- Fear of sitting
Catoptrophobia- Fear of mirrors
Chaetophobia- Fear of hair
Chionophobia- Fear of snow
Chromatophobia- Fear of colors
Chronophobia- Fear of time
Chronomentrophobia- Fear of clocks
Cibophobia- Fear of food
Clinophobia- Fear of going to bed
Cnidophobia- Fear of string

D
Deciophobia- Fear of making decisions
Dendrophobia- Fear of trees
Dextrophobia- Fear of objects at the right side of the body
Didaskaleinophobia- Fear of school

E
Eisoptrophobia- Fear of mirrors
Eleutherophobia- Fear of freedom
Eosophobia- Fear of daylight
Epistemophobia- Fear of knowledge
Ergophobia- Fear of work
Ereuthophobia- Fear of the color red

G
Geliophobia- Fear of laughter
Geniophobia- Fear of chins
Genuphobia- Fear of knees
Geumaphobia- Fear of taste
Gnosiophobia- Fear of knowledge
Graphophobia- Fear of writing

H
Heliophobia- Fear of the sun
Helmintophobia- Fear of being infested with worms
Hemophobia- Fear of blood
Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia- Fear of long words
Homichlophobia- Fear of fog
Hypnophobia- Fear of sleep

I
Ichthyophobia- Fear of fish
Ideophobia- Fear of ideas

K
Kainophobia- Fear of anything new
Kathisophobia- Fear of sitting down

L
Lachanophobia- Fear of vegetables
Leukophobia- Fear of the color white
Levophobia- Fear of objects to the left side of the body
Linonophobia- Fear of string
Logophobia- Fear of words

M
Melanophobia- Fear of the color black
Melophobia- Fear of music
Metrophobia- Fear of poetry
Mnemophobia- Fear of memories
Mottephobia- Fear of moths

N
Nebulaphobia- Fear of fog
Neophobia- Fear of anything new
Nephophobia- Fear of clouds
Nomatophobia- Fear of names

O
Octophobia- Fear of the number 8
Ommetaphobia- Fear of eyes
Oneirophobia- Fear of dreams
Ophthalmophobia- Fear of opening one’s eyes
Ostraconophobia- Fear of shellfish

P
Panophobia- Fear of everything
Papyrophobia- Fear of paper
Paraskavedekatriaphobia- Fear of Friday the 13th
Peladophobia- Fear of bald people
Phengophobia- Fear of daylight
Phobophobia- Fear of fear
Photophobia- Fear of light
Phronemophobia- Fear of thinking
Pogonophobia- Fear of beards

S
Sciophobia- Fear of shadows
Scolionophobia- Fear of school
Selenophobia- Fear of the moon
Siderophobia- Fear of stars
Sitophobia- Fear of food
Sophophobia- Fear of learning
Stasibasiphobia- Fear of walking

T
Thaasophobia- Fear of sitting
Trichopathophobia- Fear of hair
Triskadekaphobia- Fear of the number 13

V
Verbophobia- Fear of words

X
Xanthophobia- Fear of the color yellow

So see which kind of weird & funny phobia you suffer.  What is YOUR GREATEST FEAR?

 Join us this weekend for the second part of our two-week series as we look at how face our uncertainty and learn to fear the right thing with “The Greater Fear.”  If you can’t join us on campus, please check us out online.