Until I was in my late 20's I used to be terrified someone would sneak into my house and hide in my closet until I was in bed. And then sneak out and kill me. I don't know why I was so scared, but whenever I accidentally left my door unlocked, I would search all my closets. I remember having this fear as young as 10. For some reason I stopped worrying about it when I lived in NC (maybe I had too many closets by then?).
So I turn on Criminal Minds tonight and guess how it starts. Yep, the exact scenario from sneaking into the house to hiding in the closet until after they were asleep. Remember how I outgrew this fear a mere two years ago? Excuse me while I go check all my closets.
(And I recognize the irony that I have morbid fears and still enjoy watching macabre shows.)
Maybe there could be a group for these irrational fears. My 10 year old would be in this group. Ever since she was 4 and we went to Carthage, she has had this fear of "bad guys". To this day she won't sit at the chair at the table where she can see the stairs because bad people come up and go down the stairs. And, many mornings we have woken to find her on the floor in her brothers room.
ReplyDeleteI live with the fear of some kind of attack, whether it be in my home or in any random place I happen to be, constantly. I always feel like it's going to happen, I just don't know when. I am absolutely terrified that this attack I'm expecting will be in my home, the place where I'm supposed to feel safest. Anyway, you aren't alone on this one, and it will be a miracle if I outgrow it before I'm thirty.
ReplyDeleteI still have that fear! I check my closet and bathroom every night and sometimes have to sleep with the closet light on when I'm really scared.
ReplyDeleteYou got that fear at age four when you saw on the news about a man that would sneak into the house while the homeowners were in the back yard. You wouldn't even go to the bathroom alone. One scare is all it took for a lifetime of fear.
ReplyDeleteThat is really funny that mom knows the source of the fear. I always worry about that in the car, that someone is hiding in the back of the car and they'll get me...
ReplyDeleteI remember we used to hide in the downstairs bathroom in our house in Independence, in order to jump out at the other person as they came downstairs. I also remember it was hard sometimes to just wait becasue it was really freaky in that basement!
ReplyDeleteEver since I saw Zodiac, I've been afraid of someone just walking up and shooting me and Jessica. Everytime I stop at a light, I check to make sure no one is coming up to the car.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was in high school I started sleeping with a baseball bat by my bed because I had this crazy stalker guy who we found trying to look through my windows from behind my back yard.
ReplyDeleteI had a roommate in college who would check closets before she went to bed. She would also wash her face with her eyes open because she was afraid somebody would sneak up behind her if she closed them. I always wondered how she managed to do that without getting water in her eyes?
ReplyDeleteI totally have irrational fears. I think I could write really scary books. Especially when Ryan is gone, my mind goes crazy. I can't watch the shows or it's so much worse. To bravery!
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