I have found that as I got older I became claustrophobic, I had worked many times in very tight quarters inside and under buildings, but two years ago when they slid me into a small MRI unit I broke out in a sweat and had to hit the panic button. Likewise with heights, after suffering severe hearing loss I found my sense of balance affected to the point that even being up a six foot ladder difficult. Are these irrational fears? Like you, not to me.
I have a simalar issue with heights. In my youth, I ignorantly walked I-beams without fall protection, wet rubber boots and arms full of tools and all. No fear. I almost fell a couple times too. I was young and stupid for sure. Today, heights makes my knees weak and certain parts tingle. I can do 8 foot ladders and the roof. But I can’t get near an edge. I don’t think that qualifies as a phobia though.
I wigged out under a beach house in Newport beach California running wire and such I had to serpentine around various footings man my heart is racing just thinking about it it sucked being the thin dude on the jobsite oh yeah you could feel the waves crashing down there the wedge was running 15 to 20 feet that day
No, you obviously do not have irrational fears. Your health has affected how you observe reality. All of these fears, actually, are based on the human impulse of self-preservation.
I had to have a brain MRI done and I freaked out. They had to postpone it, I got a drug and open unit the next week. Did fine. The dr said they did not find anything. Then he said, “you have a brain and it is fine.”. I had to laugh.
I have found that as I got older I became claustrophobic.
Good to know I’m not the only one. I used to go spelunking and don’t think I could any more. My mom had a bad case. We had to disable the automatic locks on her car because they made her feel trapped.
Last summer I just couldn’t come down a ladder from my roof until I got a kid to move it to where there was a handhold on the side. The fact that there was an active wasp nest at the first location didn’t help.
Also freaked out - basically a pretty good panic attack - driving up a steep one-lane mountain road with a cliff on the side although I would have “raced” up and down it on a motorcycle when I was younger.