When was the last time you rode a roller coaster? Did you have fun? Did you scream? Or did you vow to never go on a roller coaster ever again? If you have a fear of roller coasters, your experience probably wasn’t as fun as the thrill-seekers in your life.

Having a fear of roller coasters is common, but it can be frustrating when you chaperone trips to amusement parks or check out thrill rides with your friends. By understanding what happens in the body and mind when you read about or ride roller coasters, you can more logically think through your experiences and work toward overcoming your fears.

What Is The Fear of Roller Coasters Called?Is Fear of Roller Coasters Common?Can You Be Diagnosed with a Fear of Roller Coasters?What Causes Fear of Roller Coasters?Other Fears that Play Into Fear of Roller CoastersHow To Overcome Fear of Roller Coasters

What Is The Fear of Roller Coasters Called?

Is Fear of Roller Coasters Common?

Can You Be Diagnosed with a Fear of Roller Coasters?

What Causes Fear of Roller Coasters?

Other Fears that Play Into Fear of Roller Coasters

How To Overcome Fear of Roller Coasters

The fear of roller coasters has a rather unsurprising name - coasterphobia. This phobia, also known as veloxrotaphobia, is completely normal. After all, roller coasters were designed to be scary! It is possible, however, to overcome a fear of roller coasters and enjoy every ride at your favorite amusement park!

Hundreds of millions of people ride roller coasters each year, but it’s hard to determine how many peoplearen’triding roller coasters because they are terrified of them. Experts do believe it’s a common fear, and you are not alone if you don’t like roller coasters!

Data on specific phobias show that 19 million people experience intense phobias of things like sharks, heights, or frogs, but how many of those are afraid of roller coasters? We can’t be completely sure. Most people who have a crippling fear of roller coasters simply live their lives without going to theme parks or boardwalks.

Considering how scary roller coasters are designed to be, it’s not surprising that coasterphobia is common!

What Is A Specific Phobia?

TheDSM-5lays out specific criteria for “specific phobias”:

The important criterion here to note is “causes clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning.” Most people can go about their lives with a fear of roller coasters and function just fine. This means that it’s unlikely that anyone who goes to a therapist’s office with a fear of roller coasters will receive a formal diagnosis.

Why are people afraid of roller coasters? Well, because we’re supposed to be! Roller coasters were designed and marketed to give us a thrill and shake us up! It makes sense that our bodies and minds respond to watching or being on a roller coaster with fear or trepidation. Humans were not meant to go so fast, stop so short, or whip around the way we do on these rides!

Marketing and Messaging Surrounding Roller Coasters

Here’s how Six Flags writes about theKingda Ka roller coasterat Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey:

“You’ll leave the station going from 0 to 128 miles per hour in a jaw-dropping 3.5 seconds. Actually, there won’t even be time for your jaw to drop. You’ll be shooting up that impossible height so fast, you won’t even have time to think, so just hang on. It’s 90° straight up. And once you get to the top you’ll be plummeting right back down in a 270-degree spiral that is not recommended for wimps. There is very little that can prepare you for a drop of this intensity.”

Words like “death-defying,” “thrilling,” “exhilarating,” and “terrifying” all paint a picture of what it’s like to be on a roller coaster. Our rational brain has the opportunity to check in with ourselves and remember that all these roller coasters go through rigorous safety testing. But that isn’t on the poster outside the roller coaster!

It’s normal for people who don’t like thrilling experiences to get anxious at the idea of impossible heights or something that they cannot prepare for.

Mirror Neurons

If we are conscious of this process, however, we can actually use roller coaster footage and being around roller coasters to help overcome coasterphobia.

Past Experiences With Roller Coasters

We experience these symptoms when we are crossing a rickety bridge, running from a bear, or falling in love. (Psychologists call this state being “aroused.”) Some people love the feeling of their heart pounding and their palms sweating. Others attribute it to danger and threats. They want to avoid it at all costs!

These are all completely valid reasons to avoid roller coasters. Having the knowledge of these causes may help you overcome your fear if you want to enjoy the thrill of roller coasters again.

You may not be afraid of roller coasters themselves, but a jumble of fears put together makes the idea of riding a roller coaster a terrifying experience. These three fears often play into the discomfort people feel when thinking about roller coasters:

Fear of Heights

The fear of heights is called acrophobia. This is a very common fear -1 in 15 peoplereportedly get nervous thinking about high heights! Roller coasters play on that fear, building heights higher and higher. Kingda Ka remains the world’s tallest roller coaster, sending riders up and down 456 feet! That’s like dropping from a 45-story building.

Fear of Small Spaces

Fear of Vomiting

When the ear and brain cannot make sense of a roller coaster’s twists and turns, a rider may experience motion sickness. If the motion sickness is bad enough, the rider might feel nauseous or even vomit. That possibility alone keeps many people off roller coaster rides. The fear of vomiting is also known as emetophobia.

Whether you have never ridden a roller coaster or have recently developed a fear of roller coasters, you can take many steps to overcome your fear and enjoy all that an amusement park can offer. Try the following to overcome your fear:

You may not overcome your fear of roller coasters overnight, but with small steps, you can become more comfortable with the idea of thrill rides!

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Reference this article:Practical Psychology. (2022, May).Fear of Roller Coasters - Coasterphobia.Retrieved from https://practicalpie.com/fear-of-roller-coasters-coasterphobia/.Practical Psychology. (2022, May). Fear of Roller Coasters - Coasterphobia. Retrieved from https://practicalpie.com/fear-of-roller-coasters-coasterphobia/.Copy

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Practical Psychology. (2022, May).Fear of Roller Coasters - Coasterphobia.Retrieved from https://practicalpie.com/fear-of-roller-coasters-coasterphobia/.Practical Psychology. (2022, May). Fear of Roller Coasters - Coasterphobia. Retrieved from https://practicalpie.com/fear-of-roller-coasters-coasterphobia/.Copy

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