by Weird Wilkins The gas has done its job. You lie there barely awake, the pain in your teeth has numbed, from agony to a dull ache. You lie there on the chair, dreading what comes next, your drooling mouth held agape by metal and perspex. It’s then that you spot it, hardly a spec […]
by Tracy Davidson For someone who spends so much time wielding scalpels, a sudden attack of haemophobia is somewhat inconvenient. My therapist shares my fear. She talks me through her coping mechanisms. She’s good. I feel the panic and anxiety leaving my body. Hands stop trembling at the merest thought of scarlet oozing over my […]
by Tim Law I watched on, helpless, as you faded away. All of those crosswords, logic puzzles, the way you challenged and stretched your mind. Nothing seemed to help, nothing stopped or even stalled your decline. You were the smartest and most caring person I know. In the end, you became nothing more than a […]
by Anastasia Jill Hydro— Foam, like venom bile. Jaws, square and concrete, hit the floor. Throat open, wide open and dry as a desert. Shaking, shaking, shaking—Please! I’m so scared. My mouth is so large, but my throat is so small. Water, water? WATER! NO! Get away from me— —phobia Brain? It is so heavy; […]
by P.S. Traum Pasty white corpse makeup, a cackling laugh… A clown at a party is funny, but when you encounter that same clown in a dark alley at night, waiting for you with an unholy grin? Jesters, clowns, all actually very disturbing. You don’t know who is really hiding under that garish wig, lurking […]
by Liam Kerry Relax. Close your eyes. Breathe slowly. In. And out. In. And out. That’s it. Focus on the arm that I am holding up. When I release it, you will fall into a deep sleep. That’s it. So, let’s tackle this phobia. When you wake up, darkness will no longer frighten you. You […]
by Bridget Holland Once, I loved the beach. Sand, sea, open sky. But the birds were watching me. I moved to the shops along the esplanade, hid in crowds and covered spaces. One among many. Hidden, safe. But sharp eyes found me. In my apartment, door locked, blinds drawn. I order groceries and takeout. I […]
by Jonathan L. Tolstedt This ignorant schweinhund says I have eisoptrophobia. A fear of my own reflection. I’m not a handsome man, but he’ll not understand until he sees it. He’s suggested exposure therapy to desensitise me and smugly holds the cloth covering the mirror. He stands behind me and tugs, revealing our reflections, and […]
by Andrew Kurtz “Come on, chicken, get on the rollercoaster!” Sam shouted to Frank. “I’ll wait down here,” Frank responded, his knees feeling like jelly and heart pounding like a drum in his chest at just the sight of the ride. “You better deal with that phobia,” Sam advised as the Rollercoaster began to move. […]
by T.B. Johnson Three phobias dominated him. Entomophobia drove him to frigid climates. His linonophobia led him to make bizarre fashion choices, eschewing traditional cotton for leather and plastic. Most debilitating was the ideophobia, which nearly isolated him. But the mind is fickle. Its ideas come as they please. He had been playing solitaire for […]