A phobia is an extreme or irrational fear of a certain object or idea. I have had experiences with phobias, and the one that has affected me the most is thanatophobia, or the fear of death. Thanatophobia is a fairly common fear, as it affects around 8% of Americans. I am a part of that 8%, and it is pretty hard living with it. It can be overcome, though, and my goal is to help other people get over the fear of thanatophobia through sharing my experiences and some possible solutions for it.

Living with thanatophobia is far from being simple. It’s hard to do anything risky without feeling like you could die from it. Some people would just call it cowardice, but only we truly know what it is like. For a long time, I would not get on any rides at county fairs. I would get on more tame rides like carousels, but I refused to get on any of the more thrilling rides because I was scared that the restraints would break or just not work. I won’t go outside in the dark because I am afraid of the animals that are lurking around. Sometimes I even get scared in my own home because I fear that the ceiling may collapse or an overhead fan may fall down and crush me. It may seem irrational, but that’s just what it is.

Now, not everyone’s experiences with thanatophobia is the same. There are more extreme cases of thanatophobia, and there are less extreme cases. The less extreme cases are more or less natural fears, while the more extreme cases are far more impactful. People with extreme thanatophobia will suffer from things like panic attacks, dizziness, severe headaches, irregularly fast or slow heart rate, and depression. The difference between thanatophobia and other fears is that people that have it usually won’t commit suicide as much as people with other fears because it goes against their fear of dying.

There are ways to conquer thanatophobia. For the people on the less extreme side, it’s best to try and rationalize the situation you’re in. For example, if you’re scared of getting on a roller coaster because you fear the restraints may break, just think to yourself that it is an irrational fear. The restraints have to be safe or the people that rode it before you would have died. If you’re still not sure, let someone else ride it before you. Then when they get off unharmed, it will be easier to believe that it is safe. For the people on the extreme side of things, it’s a lot more involved than this. For starters, tell other people about your fear. Tell your friends, tell your family, tell your doctor. They may be able to help you. If you tell your doctor, they could possibly get you into therapy or give you some medications to help you cope. It’s not an immediate fix, or even a permanent one, but it is a big help. 

In the long run, thanatophobia doesn’t really have a permanent cure. The best cure for it is time, as it starts to go away when you get older. That doesn’t mean you should wait until then though, because it’s better to try and get it over sooner. I’m still in the middle of getting over it myself, but I am also still young and still have time. The sooner you seek help, the sooner you will conquer your fear of thanatophobia.