Things I Am Legitimately Scared Of

Big ocean creatures.

Someone being in or under my car when I get into it.

Uncovered windows at night, gaping darkness housing possibly big ocean creatures.

Barky dogs of all sizes.

Large birds like swans, turkeys, etc.

Falling off something tall that I'm standing on, like the edge of a rock cliff or the edge of a building.

Falling off a dock into the water.

Food and drinks being too hot and burning me.

Going off the side of the road into the ditch while driving (there's not much berm in most of WV)

Bees and wasps and such.


These are all things that I'm afraid of more than I rationally should be, and I don't know why. There's, of course, the more complicated fears like fear of disappointing my parents or fear of not being able to support myself financially or fear of losing people that I love, but the fears listed above should not be that scary to me. I shouldn't be scared of a tiny dog barking or of one wasp at a picnic or of going into the ditch when I know I'm driving right where I should be. But I am. I wonder why, sometimes. Genetics? Some code in my brain that I don't know about? Traumatic experiences as a kid that sank into my survival instincts and then I forgot about them? Maybe it's a universal mystery, why we fear things we don't need to.