Is my phobia normal?
I have Nyctophobia which is the fear of the dark I am 17 and I live with my mother who is 49 and i wake her up in the night if I need anything I wake up ALOT screaming and my mom has to calm me like a child and all my life I have slept with the light on
Is this normal????
Please help
x
Comments
What is normal? Everyone has some kind of fear or weird phobia if they tell you otherwise they're lying (which is probably their phobia no telling the truth)
I check everything 3 or 4 times a night before I go to bed: windows, doors, stove. Security thing I guess, but that's all I do. Something may have happened to you when you were young and it was dark and you never got over it.
If it bothers you too much go see a counselor or psychiatrist.
Definitely not normal. Normal people can sleep through a night, do not wake up terrified, and are not afraid of the dark. It is normal to be a little uneasy and on guard in the dark, but not afraid of it.
Having a phobia is normal, the phobia itself is not normal. The problem with your phobia is that it will in fact impede your ability to function normally and have normal relationship, especially as you move towards marriage. Being afraid of the dark is one thing, but waking up screaming and not being able to function because it's dark is a total other thing and you should seek help for it.
My suggestion would be to work through your fears with someone, at least until you get to the point where you are regularly sleeping throughout the night, not waking up screaming, and until you at least have the ability to walk to a light in the dark and turn it on so you can function.
Nyctophobia is actually rational if you look at evolution. Although there are no real threats that could harm you in your house, fear of the dark is probably something we inherit. When we used to live in caves with a few flames as our only source of light, it was in the darkness where we would have seen things like shadows of predators or other animals. So fear of the dark may have stemmed from our ancestors' fear of predators that could be hidden in shadows. Because darkness makes it hard to see, your brain tries to make sense of shadowy areas. Your imagination also intervenes, making it easy to perceive something that is not there. In a lot of ways, fear of the dark is fear of the unknown since we don't know what we're seeing, so we automatically form an interpretation.
"Fear of the dark is not fear of the absence of light, but fear of possible or imagined dangers concealed by the darkness."
See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nyctophobia
I have same problem! I have a giant fear of the dark, and it's been that way since I was a kid. So yeah, I think it's normal, just like some people are afraid of Santa or clowns.
I know how you feel. I'm afraid of the dark too and I'm eighteen!
I used to sleep with my light on, then I managed to turn it off and sleep with like a small night light which gives off a small bit of light but so it's not dark but not too light. It's helped me a lot.
Talk to a psychologist if it's still worrying you, and good luck.
Phobias are quite common in society. Seek professional help with this problem and there is a good chance that you can get over your fear.
yes its normal, everyone has a phobia!!!! i still have to sleep with a light on and i'm 15! i JUST stopped getting my mom up during the night for something i needed. so don't worry. your okay.
everyone has their own phobias and have varying levels of how much it affects their everday life. my major phobia is bees, wasps, hornets (really anything with a stinger), i usually have to walk around areas where these satanic things are.
anyway, if you really want to solve the problem, go find a specialist who helps people deal with their phobias.
no its not normal. sounds like maybe something happened to you in the dark--maybe when you were little. i would tell your mom that you should try a psychiatrist ---something is scaring you. good luck!
Yeah, i'm kind of afraid of the dark!