Okay, so get ready for a post that sounds 100% made up, but in fact is very real. I was not terrified of sharks, but I did have that fear of knowing that they could kill me if I encountered one, ya know, common sense. I’m not quite sure when this phobia manifested, but I know it has been an issue since I was a small child. As a child, I loved movies and would often frequent the movie rental store. Every time I entered, towards the left was the Jaws DVD. I could not look at it. It terrified me. It would get to the point that I wouldn’t just feel uncomfortable, but I would break down crying and hide. I just knew it was wise to avoid it. Eventually, the movie store closed down because Netflix became a thing. I left the fear behind and didn’t deal with it for a while. Since then, I had watched all the movies and enjoyed the first two. But the fear still lingered in my mind.
I was in 5th grade. We took a field trip to the aquarium. I went to go see the sharks because sharks are pretty awesome. I didn’t suspect a thing. While we were walking through the exhibit, to the right I caught a glimpse of the cover of Jaws on display. I immediately dove towards the ground, covered my face, and began weeping. All of my classmates were confused and once they found out why I was afraid, they began to taunt me. It was horrible. The shock and the embarrassment left me mentally weak for the day.
My troubles weren’t left behind at the aquarium. For the rest of my time in elementary, kids would go into the library, find pictures of the cover in books and show it to me. It was horrible and I couldn’t deal that well with it. But as everyone knows, time goes by and people mature and leave behind silly things. I moved to a new school and no one knew about my fear. But I still do. I don’t confront it too often, but keep in mind that it is the most iconic movie cover and it’s still fairly easy to see. I still freeze up and I still cry when I see it. It’s difficult. Sometimes I wonder why I have to have a fear that sounds weird. But it’s just something I have to deal with and I’m working on dealing with it better.
I’ve never posted here before. But I know I can’t be the only once afflicted in this world filled with 7 billion people. If anyone else deals with this, please comment. It’s so strange and lonely to feel like I’m the only once dealing with this.
The Fear of the Cover of Jaws
What Now?
Read comments from others who are dealing with this phobia or share your own experiences below. Remember, you're not alone!
Caryn says
I don’t have this specific fear, but I don’t think that becoming afraid of a certain visual is all that strange compared to the other things the human brain can do. It is, however, distressing if your brain does happen to create a lot of fear around a visual.
To me, it’s stranger that people can see genuine fear in another person, then seek to make that other person’s suffering worse – and apparently not realize that doing so is torturously cruel.