People who fear bugs will be especially put upon during “Swarmageddon,” and you might never have figured this out if the cicada scribes at the Washington Post, a periodical chronicling the latest developments in entomology, hadn’t taken the time to explain that people who already hate bugs hate the idea of a lot of… » 5/19/13 2:00pm 5/19/13 2:00pm

Some women know they really like a guy when they're willing to sleep with him. I know I really like a guy when I'm willing to sleep in his bed. » 5/01/12 3:40pm 5/01/12 3:40pm

This Yorkie has developed an pronounced flushing toilet phobia and I think it's best if we don't ask why...but since we're here anyway, watching this poor, deranged creature bark into the echoing chasm that modern plumbing has opened in its otherwise serene home, what do you think upsets poor puppy so much about the… » 2/26/12 4:00pm 2/26/12 4:00pm

Because they feed on it! Just kidding — actually, fear just makes spiders look bigger, as scientists determined when they had a bunch of volunteers hang out with tarantulas and then guess their size. People who were afraid of spiders estimated them as bigger than did those who were just fine with the eight-legged… » 2/23/12 4:15pm 2/23/12 4:15pm

The makers of Fear of Spiders Phobia Treatment claim the new app will eradicate your spider phobia, using "NLP (neuro-linguistic programming), visualization, and mind mapping methods." Essentially, the app lets you choose scary photos of spiders, then stare at them until you aren't afraid anymore. At $2.99, the app is… » 12/01/11 7:15pm 12/01/11 7:15pm

Animal Planet's My Extreme Animal Phobia is still churning out episodes of regular people with animal-related fears and just like they did with man terrified of puppies, this week they forced a woman scared of kittens into the local ASPCA. While I feel for Sandra, I also appreciated her friend's assessment of the… » 11/28/11 2:20pm 11/28/11 2:20pm

Marvin Cruz, a dude who looks like the type you wouldn't want to piss off, has...a crippling fear of puppies? This clip comes to us courtesy of Animal Planet's new series My Extreme Animal Phobia (premiering tonight!) and will feature adults trying to work through their extreme fear of animals. Marvin had a terrible… » 10/21/11 6:15pm 10/21/11 6:15pm

A new study shows that the hormone cortisol, when taken in combination with exposure therapy, could greatly reduce fear of heights. It's not yet clear whether the treatment will work on other phobias, so I'm going to have to cope with my fears of the number 43 and looking directly at the microwave a while longer. » 3/28/11 7:15pm 3/28/11 7:15pm

25-year-old Briton Sarah Lister developed a fear of knees after seeing her father dislocate his knee as a child. She's trying to overcome her Genuphobia before her 2010 beach honeymoon, as seeing or touching knees makes her panic. [Daily Mail] » 9/18/09 11:20am 9/18/09 11:20am

Once again, The Onion hits a bit too close to home with this hilarious article about a theater audience that completely freaks out when performers leave the stage and take their act into the aisles. » 3/22/09 5:30pm 3/22/09 5:30pm

• In search of relaxation, U.S. soldiers in Iraq are frequenting local salons for manicures. Of his new beauty regime, private Billy Scott says: "It makes you go into a different world." • » 2/09/09 5:30pm 2/09/09 5:30pm

• Megan got some airtime with feminist grand dame Gloria Steinem and we were all a little awestruck.
• We suspect that Ms. Steinem would not approve of John Edwards' wandering willie.
• You know what else she's probs over? The annoyingly quirky and underwritten Manic Pixie Dream Girls littering movies today.
• However,…
» 8/08/08 6:30pm 8/08/08 6:30pm

You know how a lot of women's magazines have "new trend" alerts? Well here's a new phobia alert! There's a slew of scientists, shrinks and sociologists over at the International Society for Humor Studies contemplating gelotophobia, the fear of being laughed at. (Yeah, it's a slow news day for all of us.) According to … » 7/10/08 3:30pm 7/10/08 3:30pm

As part of her therapy for severe coulrophobia (fear of clowns), a woman is forced to sit in a room and watch a clown make balloon animals. She immediately upstages him by having a completely hilarious, physical and emotional freakout.
Lady Is Scared To Death Of Clowns - Coulrophobia [YouTube via DListed] » 8/14/07 7:00pm 8/14/07 7:00pm