Wikipedia has more on Trypophobia.
Trypophobia (from Greek trypa, "hole") is the fear of holes, most commonly multiple of them clustered in a common space. People would fear either looking at holes or falling through one.
People may have fell through a hole, leading them to develop trypophobia, but the fear of just looking at holes is not a learned phobia. Sufferers would avoid looking at holes in things like a honeycomb as well as watching for holes in the ground as they walk, while some may fear that the ground could collapse to make a hole. Sufferers may think holes in objects and ground are often unpleasant to look as well as believing that little organisms lurk in these holes and could emerge from these.
Trypophobes may dread or flee in panic upon seeing holes, along with symptoms like heart palpations, breathlessness, parched mouth, trembling, and sensing impending disaster. Trypophobia is often treated through exposure therapy as well as psychotherapy, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and relaxation stragedies.
A cause of Trypophobia might be that clustere hole-like patterns appear on certain sometimes dangerous animals, like snakes and spiders (Ophidiophobia or Arachnophobia). These two could be triggers of Trypophobia, or perhaps most commonly, lotus seed heads.
The term is believed to have been coined by a participant in an online forum in 2005.
Examples of Trypophobia[]
Real Life[]
Celebrities[]
- American model Kendall Jenner
- American actress Sarah Paulson
Fictional Characters[]
- The Announcer (Shovelware’s Brain Game)