A fear of sexual inexperience or perceived innocence can affect everyday situations involving approaching someone romantically, sexual inexperience, dating anxiety and intimacy anxiety. It may lead to avoiding intimacy or difficult conversations, pulling back from relationships, seeking reassurance, or making choices primarily to prevent the feared emotional or physical situation.

Possible triggers

A conversation about sexual inexperience or an intimate situation in which perceived innocence becomes a focus.

Name origin

From Greek parthenos (maiden) and -phobia.

A fear of sin or wrongdoing can affect everyday decisions, relationships, religious practice and situations involving moral uncertainty. It may lead to repeated checking, reassurance-seeking, confession, avoidance or difficulty moving on from ordinary mistakes because they feel unusually significant.

Possible triggers

Making a moral decision, recalling something you regard as wrong or hearing a discussion of sin.

Name origin

From Greek hamartia (error or sin) and -phobia.

Also known as

Enosiophobia, Peccatiphobia

A fear of skin disease can affect everyday situations involving visible skin change, skin condition, skin disorder and rash. It may lead to monitoring symptoms, checking the body, searching for reassurance, repeatedly seeking medical certainty, or avoiding reminders of illness.

Possible triggers

Reading about skin disease, noticing a skin change or anticipating an appointment about a skin concern.

Name origin

From pellagra (a skin disease) and -phobia.

A fear of spirits or ghosts can affect everyday situations involving supernatural presence, haunting, apparition and ghosts. It may lead to avoiding certain places, images, stories or times of day, checking surroundings, seeking reassurance, or staying away from reminders of the feared idea.

Possible triggers

Hearing a ghost story, visiting a place described as haunted or seeing spirit imagery in a film.

Name origin

From Greek pneuma (spirit or breath) and -phobia.

Also known as

Phasmophobia, Pneumatiphobia

A fear of swallowing can affect everyday situations involving food stuck, throat tight, choking and eating anxiety. It may lead to restricting foods, eating very cautiously, checking sensations while swallowing, avoiding meals or relying on a narrow set of familiar choices.

Possible triggers

Preparing to swallow a mouthful, eating a texture you find difficult or anticipating a meal away from home.

Name origin

From Greek phagein (to eat) and -phobia.

A fear of the passage of time can affect everyday situations involving time running out, ageing over time, time passing and clock ticking. It may lead to repeated rumination, reassurance-seeking, avoiding reminders or conversations, or finding it difficult to stay present because attention is pulled towards the feared idea.

Possible triggers

Noticing another year has passed, counting down to an event or reflecting on how quickly time is moving.

Name origin

From Greek chronos (time) and -phobia.

Thinking itself is the focus of this fear.

Possible triggers

Being asked to reflect deeply, noticing a difficult train of thought or anticipating time alone with your thoughts.

Name origin

Combines Greek-derived phronemo- (thought or thinking) with -phobia (fear).

The concern centres on developing tuberculosis.

Possible triggers

Hearing about tuberculosis, discussing a possible exposure or anticipating a relevant screening appointment.

Name origin

Combines tuberculosis with -phobia (fear). The illness name comes from Latin tuberculum (small swelling).

Also known as

Phthisiophobia

A fear of veins can affect looking at your arms, seeing visible veins on other people, blood tests and other medical situations. It may lead to looking away, covering parts of the body, avoiding appointments or becoming highly alert to veins beneath the skin.

Possible triggers

Noticing visible veins, seeing a close-up anatomical image or anticipating a vein-related examination.

Name origin

From Greek phleps (vein) and -phobia.

A fear of wealth can affect earning, saving, receiving money, career choices and situations associated with financial success. It may lead to turning down opportunities, discomfort around money or avoiding decisions that could increase financial security.

Possible triggers

Discussing substantial wealth, encountering displays of affluence or anticipating receiving a large sum.

Name origin

From Greek ploutos (wealth) and -phobia.