Pittakionophobia: This is the real reason why you are afraid of this particular object

Updated on October 10, 2023 at 3:02 PM

Everyone has fears. Some are rational, some are unsuspected, some are common and some are even very rare, like pittakionophobia.

Another extremely long and learned name for a common thing? Not quite! While some people have logical fears, such as dying, being hounded by a shark in the open sea, or ending up alone for the rest of their lives, others get the shivers when they touch particular objects.

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Pittakionophobia, a rare fear

Afraid of crowds? Then you're agoraphobic. Do terrifying spiders cause you anxiety and screams? Then you have arachnophobia. Do the feathers of gentle birds bring tears to your eyes (yes, there is such a thing)? A pretty name is associated with this disorder: Pteronophobia.

There are many types of fear, often linked to childhood trauma, but sometimes they don't really have any origin at all, they just exist and make life even more difficult for their victims.

Such is the case with pittakionophobia. It's a learned word that characterizes the fear of... stickers. The kind you find in children's magazines or on the front of a supermarket apple. Worse still, the mere mention of these stickers terrifies you. Irrational fear, testimonials from victims of pittakionophobia are rare but not non-existent.

Being a victim of pittakionophobia

The New York Post has published the story of a forty-something woman in Great Britain who suffers from pittakionophobia. She testifies about the daily complication this fear causes her:

It's the sticky, unpleasant substance on my back that makes me sick.

This woman can't eat fruit or other foods with stickers on them and often finds herself shaking when she encounters them in public. For her, as for hundreds of people who have testified about this fear via social networks, the disorder is said to have started during her childhood when she moved house.

In her new bedroom, there was a cupboard full of stickers, which she tried to remove as best she could. Since then, the woman has banned herself from coming into contact with anything bearing the stickers. On TikTok, several videos have focused on these subjects, garnering millions of views.