(Watch: "World's Deadliest: Shark Superpowers"). Needless to say, I said Holy S***! I really think if I do go scuba diving and if a shark is nearby, it will know. Overcoming a fear of sharks starts with looking at the facts and figures for attacks as they are extremely uncommon. In some cases, the fear is so bad that the individual faints at the mere image or word about sharks. it brought tears to my eyes. (Great whites can reach speeds 10 times faster than typical humans, so logically, if one of these sharks were to come toward you, you wouldn't have time to escape it. I even start scratching myself, my skin turns red after that. Sharks have a scary face with cold dark eyes, they act unpredictable and they have the upper hand in a vast deep ocean. Thus, your Galeophobia, as its definition says, is unjustified. Photograph by Brian Skerry, Nat Geo Image Collection. They’d all laugh as I ran off screaming and heaving. Spring Break is almost upon us. Sharks have attacked humans, and some attacks are fatal, but so have other animals like mosquitoes, cows, and horses. When I wash my face I have to wash one side at a time or else I’m afraid if I close my eyes and open them again I’ll see a huge shark or that I’m in the ocean near sharks washing my face being vulnerable and such!! As you relax and listen regularly to your download, you will quickly find that. When I first moved to Maui I surfed a break near where I lived without a care in the world. Recently my local swimming pool was being demolished, and after they closed it for the last day I decided to go and take one last look through the window that night. It helped me reach a comfortable medium when it comes to my anxiety. I cannot believe what I am reading here. In 2019 there were only 64 shark attacks world-wide, with just two fatalities. Bull sharks have been caught in the local river here. I just recently read about 2 attacks happening at the same beach and on the same day. I hate going to the beach for this reason and when i was forced to scuba dive by my family, i had a panic attack. It meant some big blue creature and blood to me so I used to just scream out of the bath at that. The word Galeophobia is coined from the Greek word “Galeos” which stands for small sharks or dogfish (in particular, sharks having markings like those of a weasel) and “Phobos” which means deep dread or fear. When I was young my dad took me to the aquarium for the first time and put me up on the ledge right in front of the glass. OHKK. I am in my 30’s and it’s still here and shows no signs of ever leaving my psyche. Kat. i was 5 then. That and other shark-related inquiries below. I don’t want this phobia to stay with me forever. The art on the box was though, so I’d be in the semi dark at night thinking about that shark in my closet! It is almost always a case of mistaken identity. I tried to look at some shark pics but I couldn’t. 2020 National Geographic Partners, LLC. Biological things like animals are something that we're very prone to fear.". I thought it was just a clever name and I had nothing to fear. To do this, you can read up on what kinds of sharks live in the water you're about to swim in, or learn about which species of shark have been known to go after humans. Well lit bathroom and my eyes open helps. I will go swimming in pools, yet the thought that a shark will miraculously appear is in the back of my mind and whilst on holiday I will go in shallow parts of the sea, but not for very long as I grow extremely nervous and even urge my family out. However, on the odd occasions I missed the ads during the week, my mother would plot with my siblings to keep quiet about the showing, and on the day of, they would call me into the living room for something (I began to avoid TV most Saturday nights) and I would walk in during an attack scene. August 17, 2017 - A team of divers freed four whale sharks trapped in fishing nets off the coast of Indonesia. I think being bit or killed by a shark is a very real possibility but others think I'm … However, I just came across, of all things, an animated gif of two great white sharks circling above an abstract beach scene and believe I may have just taken the first step towards getting over my own galeophobia as a result. As a result I also swim poorly as well. These Sharks Once Ruled the Seas. Ive had a fear of sharks for a long time. I will never want to go on cruise ships or small boats that go in the ocean because of this fear. I have this phobia but only experience the symptoms when I’m in the ocean or mild paranoid symptoms when I’m in a swimming pool, otherwise I’m fine. I feel like I’ve always had it, I just didn’t realize it until a certain point in time. My parents tried to “cure” me of it one year by making me ride the JAWS ride at Universal Orlando….needless to say that went about as well as a train wreck lol. The minute I saw the sharks in their tank I began to panic and since I am unable to even look at pictures or hear the word without feeling in some way anxious. I feel your pain Rach. Now They're Nearly Gone. You may have come up with an idea that would help everyone on this page! I even think ice cubes are sharks, if im drinking water and ice without a straw by any chance, i wont let the ice cube touch my lip. A few days ago, my parents took us to the most shark-infested beach in Florida, New Smyrna beach. But this is just me trying to understand the ‘monster’ that has haunted me all my life. Athazagoraphobia – The fear of being forgotten or not remembering things. When I go off diving boards my head create an image of a shark so I have panic attacks right before I hit the water. In fact, the creatures usually have more to fear from humans. It's a fear shared by millions — instilled into the public consciousness with the 1975 release of the movie Jaws, and perpetuated by films like Open Water and The Shallows ever since.. I just show respect and keep a close eye on them. The film is the story of a massive great white that terrorizes a seaside community, and the image of the cover aloneâthe exposed jaws of a massive shark rising upward in murky waterâis enough to inject fear into the hearts of would-be swimmers. My phobia is weird, it’s not the usual fear of spiders, I love spiders! A huge shark swam by and I proceed to freak out and cry so hysterically we had to leave. It’s very frustrating as I live on the coast and love the beach but I can’t shake this phobia. When I was six years old I saw ‘Jaws’ and I can remember it like it was yesterday. My fear is not as severe as the ones here. I can’t swim in the ocean or look at a picture of a shark without crying or having bad dreams – I’m 14. Nuh uh, No way, no how. And then came the final fear, completely realized, it was a shark. I found out which teacher took it and told her what had happened to me and how much hell that I went through and she was so sorry. I was very little when I had an animal book and though they had one animal per page, in the middle of the book they had a whale spanning through the width of the page. I want everyone on this site to be able to overcome this fear and group “therapy” is so powerful. The fear of sharks is known as galeophobia. I have been galeophobic for as long as I can remember. Whale sharks are an endangered species and one of the largest fish on Earth. They creep me out. I have more than 100 dives, 20-plus with sharks and never any problems. I was too young, and couldn’t understand how anyone could sit and watch this ‘horror’ movie. When a person fears sharks, they will shun waters where sharks swim, and they will be terrified by media reports of shark attacks. Shark Week is absolute hell for me. I do not have a fear of Sharks for the most part, I love movies like Jaws and Deep blue sea, however i do feel mild anxiety when i go to the beach. I don’t think there’s any chance of the ocean for me, even though I find it amazingly beautiful. The physical appearance of sharks is often deemed as scary. I’m 12 and my fear only started a year ago. It really makes me feel like a buzz kill when I don’t swim out deep with my friends. LOL That movie was actually fun to watch! WATCH: A great white shark turns underwater videographer when it grabs a research camera rig in the Southwest Pacific. I am fascinated by sharks, however. It’s the worst feeling when you think your life is going to end. Being eaten alive by a 15-foot-long tiger shark seems like a painful way to suffer through death, and we dread the possibility that a shark attack could be the thing that kills us. He’s voiced by Barry Humphries. "Fear is something that we've inherited from our early ancestors," Chapman says. when i went to the beach for the first time I faced my fear of the ocean. I can’t even look at a picture of a shark without throwing my phone and screaming. But figured if I can face my fear of sharks, he can face his fear of marrying me (again)!! My fear of sharks started when I was about 6 or 7 years old. For the most part I like to live my life by statistics and facts so normally something like this wouldn’t be hard for me to fix, but no matter how hard I try I can’t logic my way out of sharks so that is why I think I have Selachophobia. December 5, 2019 leesilber fear, lee silber, Sharks. 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