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The Daily Insight

How many have Trypophobia

Author

Victoria Simmons

Published Feb 13, 2026

In the abovementioned study published in the Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, researchers estimated that 15 percent of adults (18 percent of females and 11 percent of males) experience trypophobia to some degree.

How common is trypophobia?

Trypophobia is not recognized in pyschiatry’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, but it is present in 16 percent of people, according to a new study in Psychological Science, which is the first to address the strange fear.

Do all humans have trypophobia?

We think that everyone has trypophobic tendencies even though they may not be aware of it,” says Cole. “We found that people who don’t have the phobia still rate trypophobic images as less comfortable to look at than other images.”

How many trypophobia are there?

How common is trypophobia? It is estimated that up to 15% of adults may experience trypophobia to some degree, with trypophobia generally more common in females compared to males. However, the exact prevalence of trypophobia is unknown.

Is it normal to have trypophobia?

Trypophobia is more common in women than in men. It also runs in families. In one study, about 25% of people who had trypophobia also had a close relative with the condition.

Who created trypophobia?

The term came into popular usage in 2009, when a University of Albany student named Masai Andrews founded the website Trypophobia.com and a trypophobe support group on Facebook, according to Popular Science.

Is trypophobia skin real?

Is Trypophobia Skin Real?: Trypophobia, a relatively new term, is the fear of clustered holes, bumps, or nodules. However, trypophobia skin is not a real skin disease, nor is trypophobia a diagnosable mental disorder.

Why does everyone have Trypophobia?

According to one of the most popular theories, trypophobia is an evolutionary response to things that are associated with disease or danger. 7 Diseased skin, parasites, and other infectious conditions, for example, may be characterized by such holes or bumps.

How do I know if I have Trypophobia?

Symptoms. Symptoms are reportedly triggered when a person sees an object with small clusters of holes or shapes that resemble holes. When seeing a cluster of holes, people with trypophobia react with disgust or fear.

Can you cure Trypophobia?

Is there a cure for trypophobia? To the extent that trypophobia is a kind of anxiety, drugs used to treat anxiety may offer help. But there is no cure, and little research has been done to look for one. Exposure therapy — in which patients are gradually exposed to unpleasant images or situations — may be helpful.

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Which phobia is most common?

  • Acrophobia: fear of heights. …
  • Pteromerhanophobia: fear of flying. …
  • Claustrophobia: fear of enclosed spaces. …
  • Entomophobia: fear of insects. …
  • Ophidiophobia: fear of snakes. …
  • Cynophobia: fear of dogs. …
  • Astraphobia: fear of storms. …
  • Trypanophobia: fear of needles.

What is trip to phobia?

Hodophobia is the medical term for an extreme fear of traveling. Some people call it “trip-a-phobia.” It’s often a heightened fear of a particular mode of transportation, such as airplanes.

What phobias exist?

  • acrophobia, fear of heights.
  • aerophobia, fear of flying.
  • arachnophobia, fear of spiders.
  • astraphobia, fear of thunder and lightning.
  • autophobia, fear of being alone.
  • claustrophobia, fear of confined or crowded spaces.
  • hemophobia, fear of blood.
  • hydrophobia, fear of water.

Why do I cringe when I see holes?

Trypophobia is a condition where a person experiences a fear or aversion to clusters of small holes. The condition is thought to be triggered when a person sees a pattern of small clustered holes, bringing about symptoms, such as fear, disgust, and anxiety.

How do u get holes in your skin?

Pockmarks, which are also called pick marks or acne scars, are blemishes with a concave shape that can look like holes or indentations in the skin. They occur when the deeper layers of the skin become damaged. As these deeper layers heal, extra collagen is produced.

Why do holes make me itch?

It is usually small holes in organic objects, such as lotus seed heads or bubbles in batter, that give trypophobics the extreme willies, triggering reactions like itchy skin, nausea and a general feeling of discomfort. (A picture of a candy bar with a pattern of small air bubbles did me in. Goodbye, dear chocolate.

What is Trypophobia test?

The trypophobia test: Displays a variety of images for one to eight seconds each. Some of the images have patterns or clusters of holes, while some do not. Asks you to estimate how long you saw each image.

What are the 12 phobias?

  • Arachnophobia (Fear of spiders)
  • Ophidiophobia (Fear of snakes)
  • Acrophobia (Fear of heights)
  • Aerophobia (Fear of flying)
  • Cynophobia (Fear of dogs)
  • Astraphobia (Fear of thunder and lightning)
  • Trypanophobia (Fear of injections)
  • Social Phobia (Social anxiety disorder)

What is the most rare phobia?

  • Xanthophobia – fear of the colour yellow. …
  • Turophobia- fear of cheese. …
  • Somniphobia- fear of falling asleep. …
  • Coulrophobia – fear of clowns. …
  • Hylophobia- fear of trees. …
  • Omphalophobia- fear of the navel. …
  • Nomophobia- fear of being without mobile phone coverage.

What is the rarest phobia ever?

  • Ablutophobia | Fear of bathing. …
  • Arachibutyrophobia | Fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of your mouth. …
  • Arithmophobia | Fear of math. …
  • Chirophobia | Fear of hands. …
  • Chloephobia | Fear of newspapers. …
  • Globophobia (Fear of balloons) …
  • Omphalophobia | Fear of Umbilicus (Bello Buttons)

Is Trypophobia genetic?

We propose that trypophobia may be caused by both evolutionary factors and operant conditioning, where the natural reaction acquired through evolution is disgust towards trypophobic images.