Plinky Prompt: Which Natural Disaster Freaks You Out the Most?

Tsunamis. ::shiver::

I can't stand the thought of being killed by water. If I had to give my least favorable way to die--it would be drowning.

I think it ties back to when I was a kid. There this birthday party I attended at the swimming pool once and this boy that I knew was being a little rougher than he ought to have been. I don't know exactly what happened but I was under the water and he put his foot on me.

At first it was just funny, but then he didn't let it up. He had me completely pinned under the water and I was starting to lose air. I thrashed around a bit trying to get out from under him. I tried to hit his leg, but I was under water.

My lungs began to scream, I could feel this pressure building up inside me--like when you've been holding your breath too long. I began panicking. So in my final moments of capacity I grabbed his ankle and dug my fingernails in as deep as I could. It might have been a moment, but it seemed like an eternity, I dug deeper as adrenaline seeped through my veins. Finally the pain hit his sensory system and he released. I came up.

As I broke the surface my lungs gave out and I involuntarily inhaled. Great gasping gulps of air wracked my body for a moment before I turned around to give the boy a severe chastisement.

He wasn't even looking at me. He was off playing with some other kids, oblivious to the fact he'd nearly killed me.

It was a VERY traumatic experience. I've been stuck in snow storms, I've been in car accidents, I've fallen from heights, I've been stuck hanging from the edge of a cliff when my repelling rope got caught on an outcrop, I've been in some hairy situations...but I'm telling you none of those hurt the way being stuck under water does.

I'm so hydrophobic that I can't watch scenes in movies where they are trying to swim to safety. I'll find myself holding my own breath if I do. And if you add tight places to water I'm likely to leave the room until the scene is over.

During the summer I get invited to go swimming a lot. I'm not likely to say yes. Not because I'm afraid of water in a conscience sense, but I'd rather do other things. And I don't put my head under water very often. ::shiver:: Nope.

So add that to the list of phobias Cannwin has.

Ant-aphobia
arachnaphobia
clausterphobia
hydrophobia
missing-child-aphobia

Last year the doctor put me on some anti-depressants that are also used to treat people with anxiety. She didn't put me on them for anxiety, merely because they were the type of anti-depressants that worked best for me. However... I've never been so un-nervous in my life. It's like this whole new world has opened up! I can let my children walk to the bus stop alone without having more than a mild sense of fear at having them leave my side. I can go to bed at night and not have a million worst case scenarios play in my head. I can see a pile of ants and only gag. ::wink:: It got me thinking... I wonder if I have some anxiety issues that have never been addressed.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Volcano is mine. Only if I was touched by the lava. The idea of being horribly burned till dead is awful. Now the idea of, I forget what they call it, where there is a massive volcano that kills everyone in the mid to western half of the United States. I'm ok with that because death would come quickly and my family would go with me.
Cannwin said…
lol you're okay with dying as long as your family goes along with you?

That's like the Egyptians who had their entire family buried with them. Nice Ivy. ;)

You should read the nienie dialogues. She's a burn survivor, incredible woman. Great blog.
Wes and Lindsay said…
Mine would be burning to death too. You not only feel the burning but you also suffocate from the smoke. I can't imagine having both pains at the same time let alone one. Well maybe shock would hit early.
Travelin'Oma said…
I have all your phobias and fears. I didn't want to handicap my kids with my paranoia, so I let them walk to the bus stop by themselves (it was about a block away.) But then I followed them in the car and parked where I could make sure they weren't kidnapped.

I used to make up reasons to call the school to make sure they were OK after I'd conjured up horrible things that could have happened to them.

I've never admitted all this before, but you seem to be a kindred spirit. Except you're probably way better adjusted than I was. (Don't tell anyone about me.)
Amy said…
Ugh, I am so on the same page with you! I'm terrified of drowning and had a very similar experience with a stupid boy when I was 10 or so. I can not watch any movie or show where people are going to be possibly drowning especially in anything small and confined. Shudder.
Cannwin said…
@Oma,

I used to sit outside the school and watch my kids playing. Then I'd start imagining the school teachers noticing me and calling the police so I stopped doing that.

I'll admit that I had a counselor once that rather sternly told me "You need to stop entertaining those thoughts. You are doing this to yourself."

She was right and I work at it (she's also the one who put me on the anti-depressants).

I'm glad to know I have a kindred spirit out there. phew!

@Amy

I am irrational about my kids and water, which is another reason I don't go swimming--they would have zero fun if I was there.

I've seen my in-laws give me some rather odd looks when I've reacted badly.

Funny story for all.
Several years ago my nephew was getting baptized... since we baptize by immersion he was in a rather large font full of water. They invited all the little kids to come up front and watch. My little Albowin who was probably 2 or 3 at the time went bolting across the room at a full run towards the font. My husband wasn't doing anything (in my opinion) and I could imagine him careening into the font and dying (because, you know, no one would possibly save him). So in a moment of pure terror (and dare I say irrationality) I stood up and hollared, "STOP!"

Albowin sat down without batting an eye in my direction but everyone else turned and looked at me. And there I was standing with my arm outstretched in front of an entire group of family and friends... It was rather mortifying. I'll admit that was a turning point for me.
Anonymous said…
I am absolutely ok with dying as long as my family can go with me. I don't want to leave them behind to try to figure things out without me. It wouldn't be so bad if they were adults but it would hurt them too much now. I've never had a problem with dying. Now that I have a family though I would not want to go without them.

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