r/FEARS

Hi, I’m in need of help/advice. I’m almost 21 years old and have been struggling with a fear of bugs my whole life. Not just the bad or annoying bugs but like literally every single bug, crawling, flying, you name it (though the flying ones are the worst). I was just trying to sit outside with my mom because it’s a beautiful day out, but the whole time I’m stressed out and a couple bees/wasps fly by and before I know it I’m breaking out in tears. My mom is understanding, but my dad always says “it’s just a (insert bug here), it won’t hurt you” like, I get that, but this fear is irrational and I don’t understand why I can’t be outside like a normal person without freaking out anytime a bug comes near me. All I want is to be able to be okay with them, I’ll never like them but I just want to be able to chill tf out.

My question is, how the hell am I supposed to overcome this? Can a therapist help? I don’t want options for repellants or things like that, I want a real solution to get over my fear. Exposure therapy terrifies me and I don’t know that it will ever really work. Any advice is appreciated.

Im afraid of death. It keeps me up at nights and it’s the main cause of my insomnia. I wasn’t always afraid of it, but I remember watching vampire diaries and seeing the characters die and that’s when the realization hits me hard. I stayed up for long hours researching about it and trying to find if there was a way to stop it because im afraid of what’s next. What will happen to my body? Where will I go? What will happen after it? Do I just not exist anymore? Why do we have to die? I can’t scroll on social media anymore, listen to music it’s what I love to do but I can’t do it anymore because I won’t exist? When searching this fear, a lot of people also have the same problem, they told me“just imagine when you weren’t born” to try and comfort me, but it doesn’t comfort me it makes the fear worse because I’m still afraid of not existing. I’ll be under the ground for the rest of eternity scared and alone all by myself. I don’t want that. I don’t want it. I don’t want to lose no more loved ones I can’t. I have panic attacks when thinking about it. It’s unfair so unfair. I don’t think this fear will ever go away. It can’t stop. It haunts me when I’m happy and enjoying myself. “Enjoy it because youre gonna die” Thats all it’s been saying to me. I’m tired. So tired of it. I tried to find peace in afterlife but is there such thing? Nothing helps.