Humans seem to be built to find certain objects and patterns repulsive. But would you believe that people can be absolutely terrified of clusters of holes?
According to a recent article from The Economic Times, trypophobia, the fear of clusters of tiny holes, can be alarmingly disruptive to someone’s life. Trypophobia is theorized by some to be a remnant of a biological aversion to patterns one would find on predatory animals such as poisonous snakes. It may also have some relation to the appearance of disease.
The article mentions that images with small clusters of holes were shown in a study to cause a number of people to feel discomfort. Apparently, people who have trypophobia can see the pattern they fear most in many places. This leads them to feel nervous, shaky or even itchy.
Unusual phobias are especially difficult to cope with because of a lack of understanding from other people. Most people have never heard of or even considered a fear of small clusters of holes. However, some level of aversion to such a pattern is quite common, just as some level of aversion to illness is common in people who do not have emetophobia.
Talking with family and close friends about one’s phobia can be helpful and even therapeutic. It can help one to feel less burdened and provide an opportunity for open, honest discussion.
If you are interested in reading more about trypophobia and how it affects people, you can read the article about it at the link below.
http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2013-09-02/news/41689096_1_images-phobia-researchers
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