Fear of Dying or Passing out

[Bailey1]

Hi.  I have had a fear of dying and/or passing out (fainting) as long as I can remember.  I know that it is a control issue for me.  If I become unconcious, I don't have control.  I also fear being put to sleep for surgery or procedures.  Same basis I guess. 

The fear of death I have come from a fear of the unknown.  I am a Christian and have faith, but it still drives me crazy to think about dying.  This also comes from seperation anxiety from those I care about and love.  I can remember being very young and having major seperation anxiety from my family when going on trips, even overnight. 

I just wondered if I was  the only one out there with this type of fear.  Thanks!

[Deemet99]

you sound exactly like me.  i have the same fears. and when i was young i didn't want to leave my mom at all. in fact it took me till i was 27 to move out on my own. lol.
my problems seem to stem from my dad leaving us at a young age and then dying when i was 17, but all that aside, it is hard to work through.  i cannot comprehend dying at all and don't want to.  i am christian too, but that doesn't seem to help me either.  its just such a scary thought for me.

and yes, the fear of fainting in public for me is terrifying.  its so hard because my anxiety causes me to have those feelings a lot and hence i tend to spend a lot of my time indoors right now.  im working through that though.

i think these fears are pretty common.  but most people just go on and forget about it.  well have to do the same if we want any peace i guess.
just wanted you to know i understand how you feel. 
danielle

[smokeyblue7]

I feel so much better knowing I am not the only one with this phobia. Mine started back when I was in 8th grade, and we played the "passing out" game... I hated the feeling, and have been paranoid ever since. I believe that is where my anxiety started..and I am still struggling with it today!

[doni]

hi, this is my biggest fear, it started in august when i was run down and thought i was having a heart attack through the night , my dad died with one aged 41 ,i was six, anyway i was very anxious as a child and was afraid my mum wouldnt return when she went out etc, however till now i seemed to have been one of the lucky ones who drifts through without thinking of dying too often but it seems to have hit me with a thud and i cant shake away the constant fear of dying young , and also had a panic attack saturday in asda and had to ask for a chair to sit down as really thought i was gonna faint, ive always feared this and making a fool of myself in public and losing control, think we nearly all do id say,i am 27 and yet to move out of my mums house but it is on the horizon, anyway think so many must fear this but the ones who win are the ones who can forget it and be content with living the life they have been given, i hope to get to this way of thinking again soon and hope you can too, we deserve to be happy after all! ps ive considered lately goin to a clarvoyant to get a prediction about years to come but could backfire if i dont get many predictions? ! if you see what i mean ,take care, doni x

[maggstaa]

death is my absolute biggest fear. it haunts me constantly and, even though i am not particularly religious either, am praying in my head all day long that nobody dies. my OCD doesn't help because i think that if i don't touch this or look at that or count this then somebody will die...i know, THAT is irrational, but i can't help it. i think it all started maybe 7 years ago when we had 3 consecutive family deaths in a matter of months, i guess some PTSD there, but it scares me to death (irony). my mom and the rest of my aunts cousins etc n even my bf are all so religious (they i guess found God after everyone died that one year) so if i mention that i'm so scared of it they just preach telling me it's ok and everyone dies and you never know when. THAT DOESN'T HELP!!!!


ps...what is the passing out game?....

[Tantra]

i suffer from this fear daily , im sooo scared that something will happen to me and i will never see my loved ones again .
i been seeing a councilor about this and they say that its a part of life and we all have to just not think of it all the time but i just get past it at the moment and find myself awake at all hours with my mind wondering !!!!

[Chros]

I also have similar fears, I usually push them to the back of my head and don't let them out, but every now and then it'll break out and destroy me for a few days.  I'm now seeking counselling for it, because in all irony it's affecting the way I live and making me miserable.

[Greywolf]

Hi.  I have had a fear of dying and/or passing out (fainting) as long as I can remember.  I know that it is a control issue for me.  If I become unconcious, I don't have control.  I also fear being put to sleep for surgery or procedures.  Same basis I guess. 

The fear of death I have come from a fear of the unknown.  I am a Christian and have faith, but it still drives me crazy to think about dying.  This also comes from seperation anxiety from those I care about and love.  I can remember being very young and having major seperation anxiety from my family when going on trips, even overnight. 

I just wondered if I was  the only one out there with this type of fear.  Thanks!

OHH my god you sound like me!!  I probly have it to the extream, i cannot do alot of things because of my fear of fainting, and i cant be without one of my family members, i'm with them 24/7.

[jadlc]

Same boat as all of you, though with my fear of passing out I think tends to be more fear of being embrassed or freaking people it if  in happened public.

[nicnic]

OMG!!!!!! I had to get my mom to read this because it sounds sooooo much like me! Everytime I get in the car to drive somewhere or go into a public place I am terrified of fainting! I am so scared that I am going to faint and never wake up. I also am extremely scared of death and scared of leaving my 5 little boys. Do you get real light headed and dizzy a lot?

[kitty36]

I'm yet another one with this same fear. I thought I was the only one with these thoughts before I came to this forum. It has gotten so bad for me that I don't like to leave the house, or drive my car. I fear I'll pass out when driving, or I'll be somewhere and get real sick and no one will be around to help me and I will die. I know it sounds crazy but alot of people have this same fear. I'm on Med. now ,and hoping this will help.

[el-k]

You can add me to the list, too. All these posts ring so true for me and points out that we never know what others are going through. I force myself to go into busy shops or box store environments just to fight the feeling that I'm going to pass out or expire. If I could, I'd hire a personal shopper and never go to another store, but with the size of my bank account, that won't be happening any time soon. I guess I have to keep fighting this loss of control feeling and go on living. Thanks to all who have shared their experiences!

[OliveGrrrl]

This is all too similar to me! Although, I've never had a fear of dying (I think actually I am more afraid to live), but anyway, I have an intense fear of fainting in public even though I have fainted a few times in my life in public (getting blood drawn, tattoo, ears pierced, things like that). I guess I'm afraid of actually fainting because of my anxiety. I have yet to faint because of it, but it freaks me out. Fainting in general is terrifying. My vision starts to go blurry, my hearing fades in and out, and I get really sweaty. I guess I'm mostly freaked out about people around me calling an ambulance or something like that... and I'm sure it's also a control issue with me. It's so difficult sometimes to go to class when I'm so scared about fainting. I have to constantly remind myself that I'm okay...It's hard work. Ugh. I wish I knew more ways to deal with this.

[joiejoie]

This is everything I fear! Wow I never knew anyone else felt like this!!!! This is amazing! I mean I feel awful that we all fear these things but I am glad I'm not crazy.

I get soo worried I'm going to pass out all the time. Especially at work or while I'm driving or while I'm working out! It is such an awful feeling.  I also have a fear of getting food poisioning or going into anaphylactic shock from something I ate.  When I get really tired I get too afraid to fall asleep because it feels like I'm going to pass out but really it's because I'm just really tired and that usually it takes me a while to fall asleep.

[brea19]

Hi I also have a fear of passing out but it's not just passing out or fainting I'm afraid something medically wrong will happen to me at any time. I'm only 19 years old and I'm not sure how this started but it terrifies me and makes me angry. I can't do most things kids my age do. I'm afraid to go camping because I'm afraid I might pass out or have a heart attack or something and I'll be too far away from a hospital. I recently got back from a road trip to Illinois with my family and we were driving down this road that was 100 miles until anything, there were no cars in sight and I had no reception on my phone. I was FREAKING out. I started breathing heavily and sweating I was afraid I would pass out or something and no hospital for 100 miles. I can't be alone I have to have at least one other person in the house with me because if something happens to me nobody will be around to call an ambulance or take me to the hospital. If I'm ever alone by myself for long periods of time I get really bad panic attacks. I know there's nothing physically wrong with me I've been to the hospital so many times and doctors tell me I'm perfectly healthy but my anxiety continues. I don't know how to get rid of it and I'm worried nobody will ever want to be my friend or date me because I'm constantly thinking something is wrong with me. I'm constantly dizzy and lightheaded which makes me think something is wrong. I also have to look everything up on the computer I'm a bit of a hypochondriac as well when I think something physically hurts I look up the symptoms on the computer. I know I have a serious problem if anyone knows what I can do to cure this I would greatly appreciate it. :/

[joshuamh1981]

i was having a panic attack over the exact same thing about 3  hours ago! i too believe in god but i have kids i am terrified that i am going to leave behind. i hate being alone at the house too. thats when mine is the worst. just reading the posts of other people going through this helps me keep going. hang in there and god bless!

[tmicrowave]

"Seeing death as the end of life is like seeing the horizon as the end of the ocean." - David Searls

"What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the master calls a butterfly." - Richard Bach

"Every exit is an entry to somewhere else." - Tom Stoppard


  "Death ... is no more than passing from one room into another. But there's a difference for me, you know. Because in that other room I shall be able to see." - Helen Keller

"I've told my children that when I die, to release balloons in the sky to celebrate that I graduated. For me, death is a graduation." - Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

[Nina000]

This sounds like me. I had loads of separation anxiety when I was younger. My mother was a single mom and did her best to keep me happy. Although, I did have some really great babysitters, some were abusive to me and I would get scared to go. My mother used to tell me that when she was getting ready for work I would sprawl in front of the door and scream "NO". I just never wanted her to leave me. I also, had a few friends of mine pass away, along with my great grandmothers funeral (which was my first one) I was 9! That traumatized me. From then on, I have always had a fear of dying. I have health anxiety along with the PTSD with other reasons including that funeral.

[Nina000]

i was having a panic attack over the exact same thing about 3  hours ago! i too believe in god but i have kids i am terrified that i am going to leave behind. i hate being alone at the house too. thats when mine is the worst. just reading the posts of other people going through this helps me keep going. hang in there and god bless!

I also have this fear. I have three kids and I am petrified of leaving them behind. This is a normal reaction with almost every parent.

[mommy2mrh]

oh my gosh!  all of these things sound so much like me! i am sooooo glad that i joined this site!  i don't feel so alone now.

[esthergreenwood]

I am so glad I read this post! You sound just like me. I am constantly afraid of a stroke, heart attack, blood clot, etc killing me- and I am 27 and healthy. I am also terrified of passing out. The weird thing is, I am not scared I'll get into a car accident or have a disease, it's just this fear of a sudden death.

And I too never want to have surgery b/c I am afraid of being put udner- I fear I won't wake up. i am so glad others have this fear, especially some whoa re religious like me. I feel horrible guilt for being afraid to die when I believe that death is not the end.

[monkey]

bailey1, are you my long lost twin?????

[emma09]

im the same near enough im afraid of just dropping dead, !! when this is really rare, id rather have a heart attack of diese then just drop dead  its just weird im a constant pulse checker and it really is taking over my life, i have to have at least one person in house, i darent take anap up stairs incase something happens and my boyfriend doesnt come n check for ages!!! <<<< needs to get a sereious grip on life 

[Gem]

I certainly have this obsessive fear over death now! Mainly cause i don't think my mum could cope if i left her behind. And i hate the thought of my boyfriend moving on and being with someone else, forgetting me completely. ( does anyone else feel that about their spouse? )
 Im a teenage girl and instead of living my life im panicking  in case it suddenly ends. There is so much i haven't done it freaks me out, i have not began to live yet.
The last few days i have been reading a website with near death experiences, trying to bring myself some comfort that even if i die it won't be so bad, but i am worried it has turned into a real obsession.
To be honest i think i would rather go suddenly and unexpectantly, rather than a long drawn out disease

[Jorden_M]

nope, your definately not the only one with that phobia....i'm terrified of both of them...that and being put under for surgery of any kind. your not alone...