I'm scared of escalators. I will not get on one! When my husband and I go out somewhere that has one, I use the elevator or regular steps, but NO escalator! If there is no other alternative I stay on the first floor. I'm afraid I'll get a piece of clothing caught and the steps will smash me. Bigger malls are the worst places for me because of this and that sucks because I'm a woman and I LOVE to shop. Dumb or not, it's a real fear of mine.
I have a very strong phobia of escalators, especially the ones that go down. It's a mixture of the fear of falling, of the mechanisms in the escalator jamming or breaking down, of my clothing getting caught up in the machinery, and the other people behind me. Recently I went on a day trip to London and my friends had decided to use the Underground....having taken one look at the escalator down to the Underground platform, I started to hyperventilate and panic, and I started shaking and going white. Although I managed to eventually get to the platform by using an escalator that wasn't moving, looking down at the metal ridges in the steps made me feel dizzy and sick. I'd be interested to know if anyone else has a similar phobia.
