Trypophobia - A Fear of Holes

Anonymous 15 months ago

Thanks for clarifying this for me FranyaBlue, I think im a Trypophobic.

Anonymous 14 months ago

I also have this kind of phobia, and it's killing me.

ezgi 13 months ago

Thank you for not showing any picture. While I was searching this phobia on the net, I suffered from nausea and goose skin and it's like a vicious circle, to look at my own skin triggers the phobia again! I'm really curious about the causes but I don't think any trypophobic would be volunteer for any research, it would be the most disturbing experiment ever. And you know what, I can't eat or even look at strawberry because of this phobia. My family thought I was a bit strange but now I'm gonna tell them I'm not the only one. I wish there is a cure for it. It is worse than many other phobia. Thank you for sharing!

Bleakeh 11 months ago

Shuddering as I simply googled 'fear of holes' when a few tiny images of holey things appeared, I was RELIEVED when your image-free article came up. To add some intrigue into your observations, I suffer from this same fear - and so do, to various degrees, my two younger sisters and my best friend. We've all had it since mid to early childhood. Neither of my parents have it and nobody else I know does. It seems highly unlikely to be random though, given the number of people around me who have it. And big red arrows appear to be pointing to me as the only connecting factor (this is probably very unlikely - I hope). I agree though with it possibly relating to a fear of disease or infection or worse: infestation. Fears of tiny eggs (e.g. insect eggs) are thrown under the same category for me. Just writing that made me cringe. Thanks again!

SomethingNormal 11 months ago

I didn't realize that I was a sufferer until about a year ago. I didn't know anyone else that suffered from it either until one day, I heard a boy talking about how he disliked holes and clusters greatly. He suffers the same phobia as me! We totally started dating and now we suffer together! :D

thegreenstrawberry 8 months ago

thanks for posting this it was rely helpful also since i believe im trypophobic id like to add that when see offending images like those on google i tend to get itchy all over and that continues for quite a while i hope that helps others aswell

Amy Fowler 8 months ago

Thank you so much for your picture free post, although I still got hot flushes reading the list of aggressors :P

I have been physically sickened (hot flushes, sweating, shaking and nausea) by holes (I hate the word, even!) since I was about 7.

(CAUTION - TRYPOPHOBICS READ AT OWN RISK)

I was outside on the deck playing with a water gun. A fat black spider scuttled past, and I, going totally James Bond on it's butt, shot it with the water. Good. Lord. The back slitted open into heaps of tiny holes and babies came out and went Everywhere!!

(END)

So yes. I always thought I was the only one that couldnt look at a slice of Swiss cheese at the deli. At least I'm not alone :)

Amy 8 months ago

I read somewhere that it could be triggered by such things as suffering from a lot of cuts or skin problems in childhood. Although I haven't suffered with this phobia all my life (only since my teens) I have suffered from quite bad eczema since I was young so have always had a lot of cuts all over my skin. Does anyone else have any sort of skin condition? Maybe there could be a link?

alli mally sallie 8 months ago

I agree with it being related toa fear of disease. I am constantly going to the dr because I feel like I have some rare disease I heard about. I do have a fewe medical conditions though so I'm not completely crazy! :) I've never had any skin conditions though, but I guess it is different for everyone. I thought I was the strangest person for feeling this way about clusters of holes/bumps, but I decided to tell my mom about it and she said she has been the same way since she was little. So that made me feel better :) my sister told me she thinks I'm crazy lol

Annie 7 months ago

I knew there had to be a name for what I was feeling. I try my best not to look at my skin or think about it too long because I think I would completely loose my mind. Don't get me started on what is on the inside of the body. I have to tell myself over and over again that I am the only human who does not have, whatever it may be, inside my body. I remember when my mom told me she had Osteoporosis and felt the need to look it up because she said it could be hereditary, DO NOT GOOGLE IT BECAUSE YOU WILL BE VERY SORRY YOU DID, I KNOW I WAS. I also remember my son knew I had a problem with holes and he tried to put several legos together and tried to put it on me and I screamed so loud and so long that I thought for sure my neighbors were going to call the police thinking I was being killed. I don't know why sometimes I can eat things like bread and strawberries and other times I feel like I am going to loose my mind just by looking at them. I wish I could get over this once and for all because it is really making me angry that I feel so mental from this type of fear. If someone was trying to kill me I think this fear of holes would keep me from escaping if my only way away from them was to run or climb over a cluster of holes. I hope someone come up with a cure asap. I see my daughter starting to have the same problem and it is worse for me to see her suffer from it than for me to suffer from it. I will keep checking back here for any updates for a sure cure. Thanks Franyablue for the information you posted it was helpful. Now I know there is a name for my problem and that other people suffer from it too.

Sahndra Yager 7 months ago

I am a Psychology Major and I also suffer from trypophobia. I am covering a chapter right now about how our brains processes images it is called Perceptual grouping. I think I may of hit on something in relation to why people react the way they do with Tyrpophobia. I am copying and pasting an excerpt from my paper so it is addressed to my fellow students and my teacher, but I wanted to share it with you to see if my theory makes as much sense to you as it does me.

Perceptual grouping is your brains way of trying to make sense of what you are seeing, by organizing images and putting together the simplest and most stable shape and form in order to identify and grasp its surroundings accurately. This is also known as “The law of simplicity” or “The law of Pragnanz.”

I will first cover perceptual grouping. I chose to discuss this principal because while reading it, it allowed me to make more sense of a personal phobia that I have and have never understood. I may be grasping at straws but it makes sense to me. Let me know what your thoughts are on this. I have what is called Trypophobia which is the fear of clusters of holes. Trypophobia is not just limited to clusters of holes it can also be clusters of many other things as well. A good example would be a honeycomb (especially when bees are inside with their little buts hanging out), a dried out lotus pod or a bunch of maggots. These images strike anxiety and repulsion in me. (For more information about trypophobia search Google it is all over the place) While reading about Perceptual grouping I began to wonder if it is possible that when I see these images, my brain cannot make sense of them. Kind of similar to the way a person would react if they saw someone shot in the head. The first reaction is going to be racing heart, anxiety and avoidance of looking. I have a theory that the reason we react this way is because it doesn’t make sense to us or possibly that is not natural. A normal human response to unnatural things is usually a flight response because it is not something that is understood, more or less a defense mechanism. It could very well be that people who suffer from Trypophobia are simply reacting in the same fashion to certain images because it is over stimulation of the brain, resulting in it not being able to make sense of what it is viewing. It could be possible that people with Tyrpophobia may be wired a bit different.

Sahndra Yager 7 months ago

Yeah I find that most typophobics have a compulsion to look even though they know what the outcome will be. I do the same thing myself. I think it is almost (at least for me) A way of testing myself to see what I can handle and what I can't. Even though most of the time I get repulsed I still look almost every time.

An Le 7 months ago

Hi,

Im also a psychology student, and my dissertation is about this phobia. The reason I do it is because I simply have it myself, and have had it for ages. I remember being repulsed by burned rice/sauce/etc in a pan for instance, or the famous lotus seed plant. However there has not been much studies going on about this, in which I start with pretty much nothing to refer to.

It is easy to explain phobias for snakes/spides/height etc as it is associated with evolution and survival, however trypophobia does have any obvious explanation. I would love for you guys out there to send me your thoughts around it, as I will appreciate anything that is relevant. My research will definately need some original thinking.

MY paper will be based on the brains activity when trypophobic pictures are encountered. I want to see what differs between trypophobics and non-trypophobics, to see if there are any brain parts that may have an explanation why we get this uneasy feeling and anxiety when looking at certain patterns. I will also compare the brains activity between trypophobia and other phobias studied earlier, to see if there is any correlation between the brain activity. Will holes trigger the same responses for the trypophobic as snakes does for Ophidiophobics?

Please do contact if this sounds interesting and you have any thoughts you want to discuss. My email adress is le.an@live.no and I try to follow up any serious emails this academic year (2011-2012)

Mike 7 months ago

I was wondering if a phobia of holes even existed! Sometimes I feel discomfort, not around anything bud holes. Sometimes I feel it's almost an eye socket, and that putting my hand through it would be almost sticking my hand into someone else's eye(...)This information was helpful to know!

Mike 6 months ago

I now have a question, how did trypophobia start, and why isn't it yet considered an official phobia?

Lindsay 6 months ago

I also suffer from this. It was quite a problem when I was a young person, but I find I'm able to avoid any gruesome sights in my adult life. When out of curiosity I looked up the phobia online yesterday, I almost lost my lunch because of the images that people put on their sites. Disgusting! THANK YOU for not putting images. I agree with the others, I feel compelled to look and then I'm sorry because I get extremely nauseous. I would love it if they would make this an official phobia - it may be rare but it is indeed a phobia.

Kim 5 months ago

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR POSTING THIS! I just realized I have a phobia of this recently. I get goosebumps all over my body and I really itch when i see photos like lotus pos and the like. I would trigger the same symptoms even by just thinking about it!

Kim 5 months ago

Also, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS PICTURE FREE ARTICLE! I suffer this fear too. I am glad that I am not alone. :)

Cyndi 5 months ago

Thank you so much for not having any pictures. I know this is the common feeling here but we all know how it is to see this stuff. Reading this article alone made my hairs stand on edge and my stomach twist. I have this fear and people think Im only freaking out over holes and cracks is to get attention. One time I ripped off the top of the crust of pizza, but inside where its baked there are the holes I hate! I started crying and had to eat the pizza but it was the most disgusting thing Ive ever done. I want to know as much as I can about this, and I really think more doctors/therapists need to research this fear.

Thanks for letting me know Im not alone, and that my symptoms are not uncommon!

Demz 5 months ago

This article was very helpful. The comment about perceptual grouping was especially insightful. I've had trypophobia since childhood. I remember always being grossed out by the magnified images of cells or specimens during science class, which still bothers me. And I also have friends and family who think I'm crazy.

An Le 5 months ago

My studies so far have shown that trypophobic images share some common characteristics (spatial frequency) with other images people find uncomfortable (abstract art, dangerous species as snakes). It seems to be something common with things people generally find uncomfortable, which may indicate that humans have one big visual system that is sensitive to certain aspects of properties. Our trypophobia may just be a part of say snake phobia.

I have also found that people generally do agree on what images are more trypophobic than others, despite the fact that many of my subjects so far dont report that they are afraid of holes. My data shows a correlation of .45 between spatial frequency and participant ratings, which is quite good as many of the participants did not understand why we had the phobia.

The responses from you guys have been good so far. I do repeat myself, I will follow up any emails about this phobia this academic year (11-12). My email is le.an@live.no so please contact if there is anything you have to say.

Thanks

Bob 5 months ago

I'm 48 and always felt this way. Weird thing though, was talking about flavors of Chobani yogurt, how pomegranate was my co-worker's favorite but how I don't like it due to the seeds. I casually mentioned that I can't stand seeing a cut pomegranate, that I find it disturbing and want to smash it. The guy thought this funny but I went on to explain how I hated the image, that it gave me the willies and that I experience the same thing with a lotus pod. He thought I was kidding and it went on to doing Google searches and seeing images that had me crawling in my skin. There was one of a coffee mug with holes and I explained that if it were in front of me, I'd smash it. He thought this was hysterical but it's making me itchy just thinking about it.

So, I had the discussion with my family. Everyone thought I was nuts but my 23 year old son told me he's heard of such, that it's a phobia. So, more Google searches and we find trypophobia.

I had no idea that this was something that others experience. I have to admit that the past 3 days have been very bad as I've seen more holey imagery than I would otherwise care to have seen. I even tried to desensitize myself by looking at it but became nauseous.

Seems odd that it's not all holey objects...beehives are no issue but the asymmetrical ones, such as the lotus pod or similar evoke such a strong physiological response.

I'm hoping that this all subsides again. I've lived so long without any real issue but it's been quite consuming of late.

I wish that someone would say that it just takes time to desensitize yourself but I haven't read of any success. Has anyone been successful doing that, continuing to look at such images and have these feelings subside?

Thanks

Pauline Clarke 4 months ago

I feel very ill and tired when I look at all sorts of things. I rip cereal packets to shreds and burn things with matches to get get rid of offending holes. It ruins my life. I look at daily papers and shred anything 'poky'. My mum pointed out holey things to me as a child and ever since I tear, burn, curse or scrape holey things.

Susan 4 months ago

I didnt even know there was a name for this phobia, Im 18 and I thought I was the only person who felt this way. I cant believe how many people feel the same way as I do when I see H****s.... I cant even say the word because it makes me itch all over. Everytime I do see them I either have to make the h**e go away or I just end up grinding my teeth and clenching my fists. I also had eczema when I was young, I had it twice. Maybe theres a link.

Olli 4 months ago

I was just about to look at trypophobia images when I read that I will be disturbed for life if I google it. My life is weird enough, so I'll just keep it this way...

bb1t 4 months ago

Like everyone else before me, I thought I was alone with this weird "obsession". For me, it started at about 17, when i was replacing the round phone jack on my wall, with one of those new modular ones ,back in the early 80's. When i removed the round plate exposing the hole in the wall, i was immediately grossed out. It wad an opening to a dark, empty place. I felt scated, & immediately covered it, and someone else had to finish the job. The image of the ants crawling out of the palm of a hand in the old movie "Them", (i believe), was the grossest image. But tonite, for the 1st time, i got curious to see what was on the internet about my fear. But then i just found the grossest one, a fake alteted image of a womans breast with larvae in holes.. im sure it will stay with me for years... I want this to go away...But thanx Franya for allowing me to vent & know that others understand...

Netra 3 months ago

I have a phobia of holes in socks or clothing or cover Etc it really makes me befits and cringe and if I see them or find them on me I feel sick and have to get it off me immediately

Jenny 3 months ago

Omg I am so happy I am not the only one. I am 39 years old and I had this since I was little. It is certain things that trigger it. I saw the image someone post with holes in the breast! It's been over a hour and I'm itching and very nauseated. I'm trying not to think about it and I can't! My husband thinks I am crazy. What is this and why?? I have been good for years avoiding this and I am now studying anatomy and there it was!! Skin with well you know!! Ohh it's a very weird feeling and I hate it!!

Sally 3 months ago

I've had this phobia since sometime in childhood, I think when I saw some bugs on a tree. I was so grossed out. I have to look at patterns on clothing to make sure I don't buy something that will bother me. Otherwise, I'd want to rip up the clothing. I hate seeing clusters of things in science magazines (and I work in the science field) - I want to break the holes apart. I get sick just thinking of this - I get nauseous, get a headache and the chills.

I sure thought I was the only one - it's SO weird!

Jen 3 months ago

I just really want to know why I am so bothered by this....and why do I look at it?? I know after it makes me so sick to my stomach, itchy, goosebumps and headache?? The hair stands up on my head and it goes on for most of the day! I was in anatomy class and the teacher put up slides and it was pictures of it..cant even say it and I am very happy theres no pics here!

mika 3 months ago

very interesting article..i thought i was the only one..for me though the more i look at the holes the more i feel trapped in it, almost claustrophobic..it started when i was young..there was an insect with a honeycomb pattern and it scared me greatly..ever since then i cant look at hole clusters..

PharmD2012 2 months ago

Just got trypophobia after looking at google images. Lotus pod on skin is the worst for me. Attribute it to evolutionary survival 2/2 decaying flesh, bot fly laying larva egg in skin, forms of deadly infestations/infections, cancer/fungus growth. It's the most graphic and closest thing to death/aging/disappearance.

Mags 2 months ago

I'd like the thank you as I'm so exceedingly grateful that there are no horrifying images sporadically popping up as I scrolled down the page! After seeing a post on facebook, I searched the word 'trypophobia' into google three days ago having no idea what it was and was immediately greeted by horrifying images & i straightaway closed the browser! I was only looking for the meaning of the word and was left shivering and nauseous for two days straight.

However as I too am a sufferer of this dreaded condition, I was quite upset and disturbed reading some discriptions of the offending holed thing & find it particularly disturbing even reading about what the grossest thing someone has seen:-(

I'm so interested in hearing opinions & trying to find a way of overcoming this horrible condition as I've had it for so many years since childhood, (I'm 27). With me seeing clusters of asymetrical holes or bumps and even shattered glass or distorted shapes/images sends shivers down my spine, my ears tingle as if something is in there, my skin prickles & I often have to check my skin regularly as the prickly sensation makes me feel as though holes are appearing on my skin and I too must immediately distroy or ofen touch (only if I feel safe to do so) something with holes to be sure that it isn't harmful, why I think it would harm me, I don't kno?

I am also a Trichotillomania sufferer and have been since age 11, I don't know if this may stem from my urge or need to remove something that is emerging from a hole (hair from its pore, mainly from my head) but maybe it's linked? I'm actually goin to suggest this to my dr who thinks I'm just stressed, I disagree.

I hope this helps with research

Alvin 2 months ago

i never knew this was a real phobia. i have never like holes in cheese or sponges.. also on a decayed tooth.. i just cringe..

Nancy C 2 months ago

I know why I personally suffer from this, though I'm not sure if this can be applied to other people. I read another article that said that phobias are usually triggered by traumatic experiences. Well, about 5 or 6 years ago I went to thailand and got the worst sunburn i've ever had all over my shoulders and upper back. The area was COMPLETELY coated in tiny little bright orange sun blisters. And even worse, the next morning i woke up to find that some of the ones on my back had formed together to make 3 or 4 gigantic, eye yolk sized blisters. I don't remember being bothered by clusters of holes/cracks (and skin abnormalities) before this point. I've tried explaining to my friends and family, but none of them get it. Someone asked me if they drew a cluster of dots on a piece of paper would it bother me. They couldn't get that different people have different things that effect them. Before I knew it was actually a phobia I just thought I was weird. That's what people told me, so that's what I believed. However, now I've found out more about it and that it's very common I've been able to deal with it better. I find that it comes with a strange curiosity. Although I'm completely disgusted by it, I just can't stop looking at it.

Connie 2 months ago

Thank goodness i am not alone in this. Since i was young, people thought i was crazy when i described how i felt

Linda 2 months ago

I have this condition on my skin that causes spots to form and just a few hours ago I looked at my leg and flipped out because a few of them formed a circle and the first thing that ran through my head was the image of that as holes. I've recently discovered this phobia. There has always been something about clusters of small holes that just makes my skin crawl. My friend thought that it would be funny to creep me out and show me pictures of it on google search...I was about ready to slap her, it was so unnerving and now I can't get the images out of my mind. It's horrible. Can anyone offer help? Please, I'm desperate. Just thinking about it now sends a shiver down my spine, my hands shake, I can't sit still and it just makes my skin crawl.

Crazed 2 months ago

Thank you for posting this, it has helped me in some way. Well, at least I'm not the only one who suffer this. By the way, your description of Trypophobia was exactly how I felt. I still can remember an extremely disgusting image I saw in Facebook whereby on someone's eyes, there are extremely lots of hole-like things on it. Oh my god, I freaking disgusting, makes me want to destroy that image. And yes, I will also tend to look at the image again for some reason which I don't know why. But now when I read this, ot made me felt better. So thanks for posting this to help reduce that kind of fear in me and hopefully one day all Trypophobia victims will be free from such disgusting images in our mind.

garrett 2 months ago

none of this really seems to pretain to me. except the disgusting amount of fear i feel when i see images of holes with something in the middle stick out. i'm a built dude, united states marine, and im afraid of little holes in a plant. ahahhaha god i hate google for enabling me, i cant stop looking at it at least once a week.

yan 2 months ago

i didn't know it's a phobia but i have also thought that cluster of holes (especially the first picture to show when you search Trypophobia on google images) are extremely disgusting. My brother, one day, explained that he suffers from the same phobia, trying not to look at it, he shows me a pic that makes him almost faint. But I had a worse reaction, my trypophobia worsen when I knew that there was such. If my brother didnt tell me that or didnt have to show me that pic, I wouldnt have felt what I felt and I feel like going crazy evrytime I think of it. One of my friends feel the disgust while I was telling her the story and gives her goosebumps too.. but it kind of helps me to tell her the story as often as I want (may be to vent out emotional stress) but I believe that thinking that this fear can be overcome somehow helped. What I did was looked at it again after a few days of thinking of it (I dont recommend though :D) and the disgust was lessen though I still hate looking at it. ugh! Its like a button being flattened when you keep pressing on it.. but I guess its all in the mind

Christie 2 months ago

Thank you so much for this article! It feels good to know I'm not alone. I've had this phobia since childhood as well. It's gotten worse with age. Just talking about it makes me feel very uncomfortable. Sometimes it keeps me up at night, and I start scratching myself all over. I even have nightmares about it, I guess it's from thinking about it too much in the day. This phobia is on the verge of ruining my life! I wish there was a cure!

Anyway, i'll stop thinking about it now and it might go away for a while haha!

tonya 2 months ago

I'm so glad I'm not the only one that had this problem. I believe my first experience was over 20+ years ago, I was a burn victim I had 3rd degree burns all over my body. I remember having my arms wrapped in gulze, and my skin poking through the holes!!! I remember crying and pleading to my mother and nurses to remove it. I also have a problem with cracked or broken windows or glass. Just thinking about those images makes me itch all over. My 5 year old has the same issues and she does have skin problems.

Mona Liza Jayme 2 months ago

i suffer this phobia since i was young.. i really hate it! i feel somethings crawling in my skin, feeling uneasy whenever i see ant pictures related to that.. i could still remember when we were in the beach with my family and my younger brother showed me a starfish and opened it and you can see its tentacles that has many holes.. oh it was terrifying it was a struggle.. until now i can remember the exact picture of it in my mind.. my brother teases me a lot about it but he doesn't know that it greatly affects me .. well,it good to know i'm not alone in this fear.. i almost thought i was the weirdest person on earth..

Linda 2 months ago

How about staples all bunched together,grains of rice entangled in the fringe on the end of a placemat, anything that goes into any part of your body and comes out the other side, and the way fur grows on some animals , twigs or grass that gets stuck under a layer of ice, big thick knots of anything entangled with something else, the word "mesh",the words "pulled pork". I can go on and on!!! Please tell me someone knows about this. Is it the same thing? I also have the thing with the holes. I'm grossed out just writing all this.

ZoeGB 2 months ago

Wow! This is so mad. I thought I was alone in this. I have had this fear as long as I can remember and I could never explain it or understand it. It's so strange how it links in with disease and skin conditions as I have eczema since I was a baby. Although I am still learning about this phobia and how it affects me I get the same thing with holes but it tends to be to do with touch as well. When I was younger about 8 or 9 I remember stabbing a pen through a piece of paper several times close together and then feeling the back of the holes. It made me feel so sick, but also I wanted to keep doing it. It also seem to be associated with my feet for some reason and I can't go to the edge of swimming pools (maybe because of the cracks) I feel so sick writing this so I'm going to stop now!!!

Lily 2 months ago

I just found out about this term from a friend and thank goodness this is the first article I clicked on hoping to learn more about my phobia without having to look at it. Also, SO glad I'm not alone. I've always gotten sick looking at certain pattern formations but holes/close clusters of circles in particular. I have to eat strawberries with my eyes closed and would have spasms whenever I'm aware of it...like throwing a stuffed octopus animal across the store like it's a grenade. It's been getting worse and on my birthday my friends had unknowingly ordered me a cake but it had close polka dots on it and i had to close my eyes and pretend to enjoy it. I really wish a formal study could be conducted upon this or help us understand it better. I don't have the urge to look at the images like some others I've read nor want to destroy it, my scream just get all choked up and I can't hear anything for several seconds...I esp hate looking at ant holes with its raised mound and ants crawling out of it...gives me the worst chills as I'm writing this.

Jiffy 2 months ago

Would being scared of the pictures of people's eyes and how gross it is when they have trypophobia be trypophobia for me?

Destinee 7 weeks ago

Im 17 and I've always been aware of my 'issue', but only recently did I try to see if there was a name for it and if there was anyone else like me. I must admit I nearly gave up on the research, as I was affronted with so many horrible images (why would someone do that!?)

I have always had a very violent reaction to these types of things. I have to destroy them- because after I've seen it I cant be okay knowing that its still around. I have become a bit desensitized to certain things though, a babysitter from my childhood had a pomegranate tree and sent the kids home with some- now I can actually de-seed one for a while before getting dizzy (I always have to destroy the leftovers though)

I always thought that the violent reaction was what really made it a fear. Thats the most natural way for people to behave when theyre scared.

The actual fear of it, I attributed to my mild OCD. These things arent smooth, or neat, or 'natural' in any aspect so of course it'd make me go into nutso mode.

I've always had this fear, as long as I can remember. I recall getting out of a river at 6-7 years old, seeing little buds of sticky moss stuck to my palm and then smashing my hand against a rock to make them go away.

I do have eczema, and as a toddler I had to go to the hospital after getting an outbreak of huge (my mother says the size of quarters) boils on my back.

I see how these things could contribute to the problem. I feel better knowing it has a name, and a lot of other people feel the way I do.

Didobhav 6 weeks ago

I always wondered why is it that I feel sick and creepy when I see a cluster of holes ... now I got my answer !!!

Thank you so much for making it picture free there were some sites which literally freaked me out.

Tiara 5 weeks ago

Hi you mentioned something about a phobia of clusters and it being related to the fear of holes.....i wonder if i have a prob with both...hmmmm there was this time i saw a cluster of ants. It was irregular and just soooooo disgusting! grrr

But funny though im mixed and i have very pronounced pores....im wondering if looking at it all my life has triggered this response. I suspect this for myself, don't know for anyone else!

Its god to know im not the only one who is freaked out by this issue!!!

shana 5 weeks ago

I am trypophobic person, my friends posted some photos in facebook that triggered my phobia it is a disease on skin. very nasty and i cant stop thinking about it even im watching tv i can see the image on the screen, when im playing games i can still see the image of it. i want to know how to prevent it! my pores on my arms are bumping upto my cheeks and down to my legs. and my tummy hurls. i feel sick and i want to throw up.

i wish i would know how to stop it like even i see images of holes i wont be affected anymore.

Nic 5 weeks ago

I have this too and i have tried researching it but all i found was pictures. loads of diffrent things can triger it. loads of circle windows on a building that made me feel sick but the most recent thing that i discovered was the shower nozzle. shower nozzles have sooooooo many holes on it that lead to other holes this made me feel sick and i havent been able to shower the same since that day. my fear of holes is taking over my life is there anything i can do ???

cjang 4 weeks ago

I didn't even know what this was until today. I just knew certain clusters of holes were so disturbing to me that i thought i was crazy. I tried to tell my husband that my brain just couldn't take clusters of bubbly things. I think my son may have it too and that is why I decided to do some research. I'm glad to know I'm not alone, and neither is he.

Gretchen 4 weeks ago

I'm so glad I found this information. I thought I was the only one. It's been an ongoing joke with my friends and family over my "weirdness" with holes, and as comical as it may sound to outsiders, it's no laughing matter to me.

I am repulsed (usually resulting in an uncomfortable tingling in my scalp and extremities that lasts for sometime hours) by the typical honeycomb, seed pod, loofah, etc. I also get really skeeved out by not only holes themselves but by small areas of negative space created by groups of things being really close together, ie: schools of fish and bricks that are depressed away from the mortar, making the mortar more prominent. Has anyone else experienced this? Same thing do you think?

jbu92 3 weeks ago

I am definitely a sufferer, but I don't feel the urge to destroy. Sometimes I've got the urge to feel it or lick it or for some things even bite it, but even talking about that urge has me gagging right now. It's very strange indeed. I know that I am have a mild case, when compared to many others, but it is debilitating at times- I've quit jobs because of wall paint that had at one point had small bubbles which later cracked and peeled off.

tallie 3 weeks ago

My skin was crawling just reading this and it really is one of the worst Phobias because you can't run away from it. I just get a queezy feeling and... just... urggghhh

Sophie 2 weeks ago

Just reading about this makes me feel sick, discusted and sends shivers through my body. Both my mum and I have this problem but we just thought it was only us, in the world, who suffered. until tonight when the terrible subject came up and decided to google it.

Thankyou for all your info, and now hoping to get the thought of holes out of my head, as I automatically picture images eeww

Marie 9 days ago

Thank you so much for posting this...I have always had strange feelings when looking at certain textures and groupings but it got a lot worse a few nights ago. I had a dream about clusters (I won't go into details) and decided to search to see if anyone else had this fear. After an internet search I found out I was not alone, but unfortunately it is all I can think about now. I have an urge to google "fear of clusters" and find cluster formations everywhere I look. It's starting to affect my sleep, when I close my eyes all I can see is clustered objects, making my skin crawl. I really don't know what to do, if anyone has a suggestion, please let me know.

TJ 7 days ago

Thanks for posting this! I thought my aversion to clusters of tiny holes, seeds, eggs (and polka dots!) was just a part of my quirkiness. Unfortunately mine is not an actual fear - my physical reaction is itching. When I see small cluster holes or polka dots, I physically itch. I know - pretty bizarre. Anyway, thanks for adding a new word to my hypochondriac vocabulary. By the way, I'm itching right now, as I type. It seems the mere thought of those things makes me itch. It also seems that each of us has suffered some remembered or forgotten childhood event that triggered the fear/reaction. The mind is an awesome thing! Thank God for psychologists!

Gabby 3 days ago

YES!! I feel as if I have had a break through because I have been dealing with this my entire life but didn't know it was a real thing and all my friends thought I was crazy. I feel so much better...