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These Are The Most Common Phobias In North Carolina

Author Melanie Day

What are you afraid of? In all honesty, I have plenty of phobias. Ok maybe not true full-blown phobias. The Oxford Dictionary defines phobias as “an extreme or irrational fear of or aversion to something.”  The top one of mine is without a doubt birds, thanks to the Alfred Hitchcock movie I saw at way too young of an age. That one probably is a true phobia.  I’d say snakes were never my favorite but after a close encounter with a copperhead a few years ago, they are up there. And then there are needles as well. The latter two of those are pretty common among people. The birds thing, yeah I know it’s weird. Other common phobias include claustrophobia, spiders, and fear of heights. But what are the phobias that most people have?

Well, our friends at BetCarolina.com analyzed google search data to determine the most common phobias in North Carolina. Another interesting fact they let us know is that approximately 9.1% of Americans currently have some form of phobia. I thought everyone had at least one thing they were afraid of!

Here are the Most Common Phobias North Carolina according to Google search data complied by BetCarolina and shared with us:

Rank

Fears

Searches in the last 12 months

1

Trypophobia:  fear of clustered patterns of irregular holes

217200

2

Thalassophobia:  fear of the ocean

69480

3

Claustrophobia:  fear of closed spaces

43560

4

Emetophobia:  fear of vomiting

36480

5

Acrophobia:  fear of heights

26160

6

Arachnophobia:  fear of spiders

23040

7

Scopophobia:  fear of being stared at

16560

8

Megalophobia:  fear of large objects

16200

9

Coulrophobia:  fear of clowns

7800

10

Trypanophobia:  fear of needles

6960

The fear of clustered holes surprises me a little and makes me wonder if it is more people having questions about that phobia that ranked it so high. Fear of the ocean coming in second? I can see that. For instance, I personally don’t get in the water I can’t see my feet in but give me clear Caribbean water and you’ll have to drag me out of the ocean. I was interested to learn that Scopophobia is even a thing. The fear of being stared at? I mean no one likes to be stared at? Or maybe if they love the attention they do? But the fact that it is a legitimate phobia I had no idea!

What are you afraid of? Did it make the list? My birds fear didn’t, though I have met other people who share that fear. So while it can be classified as “weird” its not unheard of.

The Most Common Phobias By State

There are plenty of people who have phobias about certain things, whether it’s spiders, the outdoors, etc. But it turns out some phobias are more common in certain parts of the country than others, and a new report reveals the biggest fears of each state.

The new report is based on Google search metrics. The most common fear appears to be Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia, a fear of long words, which is the most common fear in 18 states, including Alaska, California, Colorado, and Florida. Just behind that is Philophobia, a fear of falling in love and getting into relationships, the most common fear in 11 states, including Georgia, Hawaii, Arkansas, and more. Nine states, including Illinois, Kansas, and Mississippi, suffer from Somniphobia, the fear surrounding the thought of going to bed. The most common fear in the world is Agoraphobia, the fear of public spaces, crowds, etc., with over 61% of all countries reporting it as their most searched phobia.

Other interesting state phobias include nomophobia which is the fear of being without your phone. This phobia is common in New York, Oregon, Virginia, and Tennessee. Another one is Megalophobia which is the fear of large things. That phobia is common in Wyoming, Kentucky, and Delaware. One phobia that I’m learning about for the first time is Ephebiphobia which is the fear of teenagers and that is common in states like Arizona and Indiana.

Back in 2020, a lot of people developed new fears and phobias and the Psych News Daily reported that the top phobia of 2020 was “anthropophobia,” the fear of other people.

Here are the most common unusual phobias in the USA by state:

  • Alabama

    Somniphobia – fear of sleep

  • Alaska

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • Arizona

    Ephebiphobia – fear of teenagers

  • Arkansas

    Philophobia – fear of love

  • California

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • Colorado

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • Connecticut

    Nomophobia – fear of being without your mobile phone

  • Delaware

    Megalophobia – fear of large things

  • Florida

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • Georgia

    Philophobia – fear of love

  • Hawaii

    Philophobia – fear of love

  • Idaho

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • Illinois

    Somniphobia – fear of sleep

  • Indiana

    Ephebiphobia – fear of teenagers

  • Iowa

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • Kansas

    Somniphobia – fear of sleep

  • Kentucky

    Megalophobia – fear of large things

  • Louisiana

    Philophobia – fear of love

  • Maine

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • Maryland

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • Massachusetts

    Nomophobia – fear of being without your mobile phone

  • Michigan

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • Minneosta

    Philophobia – fear of love

  • Mississippi

    Somniphobia – fear of sleep

  • Missouri

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • Montana

    Philophobia – fear of love

  • Nebraska

    Philophobia – fear of love

  • Nevada

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • New Hampshire

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • New Jersey

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • New Mexico

    Philophobia – fear of love

  • New York

    Nomophobia – fear of being without your mobile phone

  • North Carolina

    Somniphobia – fear of sleep

  • North Dakota

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • Ohio

    Somniphobia – fear of sleep

  • Oklahoma

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • Oregon

    Nomophobia – fear of being without your mobile phone

  • Pennsylvania

    Philophobia – fear of love

  • Rhode Island

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • South Carolina

    Somniphobia – fear of sleep

  • South Dakota

    Philophobia – fear of love

  • Tennessee

    Nomophobia – fear of being without your mobile phone

  • Texas

    Philophobia – fear of love

  • Utah

    Somniphobia – fear of sleep

  • Vermont

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • Virginia

    Nomophobia – fear of being without your mobile phone

  • Washington

    Philophobia – fear of love

  • West Virginia

    Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – fear of long words

  • Wisconsin

    Somniphobia – fear of sleep

  • Wyoming

    Megalophobia – fear of large things

Melanie Day is a graduate of North Carolina State University. She has worked for Beasley since 2012 in a variety of behind-the-scenes roles in both digital and promotions. Melanie writes about a diverse range of topics some of her favorites include travel, restaurants, Taylor Swift, and college athletics. When not at work you'll find her at a country concert or NC State sporting event.

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