MICHAEL BRESLIN

Last week, the subject of phobias cropped up in the office and, straightway, the conversation buzzed as people articulated what made them panic. One or two said that they weren't affected and that was reflected in a High Street trawl but, at the end of the day, there are more people phobic than there aren't.

So, first things first: thanks to Fredd (sic), we downloaded a substantial phobia list off the Internet , which certainly was proof that phobias are widespread.

Like all medical terms, they have Latin or Greek prefixes to their names, such as 'cynophobia' or fear of dogs, which Nuala admitted to. Other staff's fears include (other people's) feet, water, spiders, tickles, bats, rats and cotton wool.

The Internet list, as the author admits, is not an exhaustive one but it does include 'coulrophobia' or fear of clowns and, automatonophobia (e.g. The Diceman), which Colm's wife has a thing about.

So, out into the High Street we go and, while some said that they had no phobias, not one single person ducked us. A few asked us not to identify them.

Well, to start with, fear of heights was the most common phobia, acrophobia as it's called.

'Angela' (not her real name) cannot go up a ladder, although climbing stairs is fine: "I first realised it when the family took us to Slieve League. We drove up and I thought we would never get down. But, flying is not a problem."

Tara Cassidy, of the Crowe's Nest pub restaurant, suffers from climacophobia, or falling down stairs: "Going up is no problem but coming down is. It was probably due to a bad fall I had. I was 11 or 12 at the time. I was carrying something out the door and I turned around to close the door with my foot and I went down backwards. It was a corrugated iron staircase. Ever since, if I'm walking down a flight of stairs, I am worried about it."

RESTRICTED

Hairdresser, Garry Harvey is not so much afraid of heights as of high buildings, batophobia to give it its medical name: "It doesn't stop me flying but if I'm booking into an hotel, I ask for a room with a low balcony. If I'm abroad and I'm up too high, I just would not go out on to the balcony. It also means I'm restricted where I can walk. Anything high up I would try to look ahead."

Most readers are familiar with claustrophobia or fear of confined spaces (or clithrophobia, fear of being enclosed), which this writer thought would be the number one phobia. It wasn't but it is with Margaret Potter, from Tempo, a familiar face in Enniskillen Post Office.

"No, I hadn't a bad experience but I have this thing where I hate anything closing in on me. Lifts I don't mind but crowded lifts would be a problem. It mostly affects me when I'm watching something on the television, such as there was this fellow buried alive. That really freaked me out. Yes, you're right: when I die I want to be cremated."

'Edel' (not her real name) immediately admitted to two related phobias, selachophobia (fear of sharks) and the more familiar hydrophobia. Listening to her brought us right back to 'Jaws' and Quint, the captain of the 'Orca'.

"When I was in Australia on holiday, there were these huge tanks with sharks in them and it was just their eyes were so cold.

"Water? I just get this fear of the water in Lough Erne. It's so black. No, I had no trauma. In fact, our two children enjoy splashing about in it. But, if I was at the seaside I would only go in as far as my knees."

DENTIST

Now comes a big one, fear of dentists for, although it was a dental practice's receptionist who was speaking, 'Natalie' (not her real name) estimated that at least ten patients a week coming into her surgery suffer from dentophobia or odontophobia.

"It affects men more than women. For some, it's the fear of the needle or the sound of the drill. How do we know? They're very nervous and they tell us, so we as receptionists try to make them feel a bit better and, sometimes, we make the dentist aware before they go into the surgery and they treat them differently. Is it easier the next time? Sometimes you win them over. Children are harder to win over. Most adults you can win over but there's an exception to every rule."

For our two youngest interviewees, Rebecca Hodgins and Jenny Kavanagh, it was little furry things that annoyed them - in Rebecca's case mice and rats (musophobia) and in Jenny's case tarantulas (herpetophobia).

"We saw a rat when we were in New York, in Wall Street, and tarantulas are disgusting," they said. "Anything small and squirmy we hate."

Interestingly, for an island town, more than one person is afraid of crossing bridges.

'Helen' (not real name) put it down to a fear of heights, but there is a specific name for it, gephyrophobia: "It wouldn't stop me flying on a plane, but crossing over a bridge is different. The footbridge into Erneside is OK because I can't see down into the water, but the one at the Forum across to Derrychara, I have to hold on to somebody."

RELIGION

Among those we met were a delightful middle-aged couple, Tom and Margaret Fleming, from Dundonald. They belong to the Pentecostal Church, they explained, so when asked what their phobia was, their response was succinct.

"The only thing we fear is the Good Book, which tells you to fear the Lord."

They married a year ago and, in his life, Tom worked in Harland & Wolff for 46 years and both testified to the power of faith when he suffered two medical traumas, the first a heart valve replacement, the second, a narrow escape from having to have a leg amputated.

"I prayed at home for healing," Margaret recalled. "Both of us believed in the power of healing. There are things you pray about and you're not too sure about it but, that time, I knew it was different."

Tom didn't have to lose a leg, so one can well understand why they aren't bothered with phobias. But, a lot are, from fear of women and/or men to ventriloquist's dummies, from chickens to crossing the street, from politicians to spheksophobia (fear of wasps) to pteronophobia (fear of being tickled).