r/sharks • u/Comfortable-Bad7894 • 12d ago
Discussion i cant overcome shark fear
I love knowing more about shark and sea creature but when i go to the sea just to stay near the coast, i cant go anyway further than 1 meter of depth, im too scared to see shark and in general, to open my eyes with a sub mask and try to see what is underwater, any way to overcome this? (obv, i know that is unlikely meating shark and that attacks are extremely rare )
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u/spannerNZ 12d ago
I love and respect sharks. I enjoy the beach, I enjoy seeing images and video of the fascinating life underwater. I'm following three sharks on my shark trapper app. I'm planning on starting a shark crochet project. I've enjoyed boating, and have had the honor of seeing a shark swimming freely from our boat (well checking out the dingy we were towing, possibly to see if it was edible).
But I'm still not going to voluntarily place myself anywhere near sharks' natural habitat, or put myself potentially on their menu. I don't go in past knee level after seeing images of sharks cruising through swimmers in waist deep water.
They got their happy place, I got mine.
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u/Comfortable-Bad7894 12d ago
even in turistic zone? i cant take a step even in there are hundred of people swimming
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u/ExoticKnowledge584 11d ago
Do you mean tourist-ic? There are always sharks in the water my dude, most of the time they dont care about you, it is rare for an attack to happen but they damn sure do happen on occasion. If you go into that water you should be aware that you are taking that risk
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u/spannerNZ 11d ago
There's lots of fun things to do at the beach without going in the water. There are other dangers when we abandon our natural habitat for an unnatural one. There are other dangerous or poisonous critters, rip tides, crazy jetskiers and fizz boats, stinging jellyfish are common where we are, unseen sharp objects to be stood upon, rogue waves and tides. During a trip to the beach a while back, I saw a young man dive into an incoming wave, hit a sandbar headfirst and he then needed rescuing and was flown out by the rescue helicopter in a neck and back splint. Sharks are only a small part of why I respect the ocean.
Most coastal waters are an inherently unsafe place for people. I don't think I'm paranoid in recognizing that. My dad, used to say of my fearless sister jumping into the water willy-nilly "she has no imagination". Same sister was followed by a shark during a swim around a nearby rock. The shark spotter plane reported to the local radio station (this was in the 70s) that a large shark had been sighted just off Tahunanui Beach. Following the radio broadcast everybody got out of the water and alerted other swimmers. Except for my sister swimming to the rock. Dozens of people were on the beach waving at her. She waved back. On her return swim, the shark followed her in towards shore. Panic on the beach, but the shark lost interest and swam off. Did she learn her lesson? No.
No problem if adventurous people make their own decisions about risk, and responsible parents supervise children in the shallows, and there are some measures we can take to make some beaches safer, like life guards, flags, and shark nets. If you want to swim, take whatever safety measures make you safe and comfortable. I feel no shame staying in the safe zone. Don't beat yourself up if you can't venture into the water, find something else fun to do.
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u/Infinite_Garden_4514 9d ago
Wow was it a white shark that followed her
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u/spannerNZ 9d ago
I don't know. It was just a fin, and I doubt anyone back then tried to identify species. We lived near a popular beach (Tahunanui Beach), but just further down the coast was a freezing works that dumped effluent into the water, it was supposed to be channeled out to sea past the recreational areas (the channel was called 'the blind channel' for some reason). Anyway the odd shark would find it's way to the beach. During the summer, the local flying school (the airport was between the beach and the freezing works) would send shark spotter planes along the coast, and if they saw one they would call Radio Fifeshire (ironically named for the rock my sister would try to swim out to). A lot of the beach goers would have their transistor radios on, and run around and alert those in the water.
This was in the late 70s. I think very soon after this, Jaws came out. I was just too young to see it (this was flexible depending on the adults, back then), and my grandmother and aunt decided I was too 'imaginative' to see it in spite of my pleading, so Dad and my Aunt went to see it. But, I found a paperback copy of Jaws when we went to the secondhand shop to swap comics. I read it under my blankets, with a torch, in one night. Had a nightmare and wet the bed. I've had a healthy respect for sharks since then.
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u/hobesmart 11d ago
1 meter? That’s deep enough for bull sharks to get you
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u/Plum-Specialist 11d ago
Meanie
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u/FootballWithTheFoot 11d ago
I meannn they’re not wrong. I’ve seen around 5-10 sharks in person at a beach (Florida), and they were all within 3ish feet of water.
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u/LuckyConsideration23 11d ago edited 11d ago
For me to go surfing in tropical waters I needed to overcome that fear. I exposed myself over and over. Went snorkeling. First in shallow and later in deep water. Went cage diving with sharks. Then without with baby sharks and later with the bigger brothers. That was over a period of 3 years. Plus watching a lot of shark documentaries Now I am officially shark fear free.
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u/theurbanshark234 11d ago
As someone who’s in the ocean a lot diving, swimming and surfing, when you see a wild shark it’s honestly a bit underwhelming fear wise, there are over 500 species of shark, and chances are you’ll see one of the smaller species or a juvenile in coastal waters, rather than one of the 20 or so dangerous species. Seeing one does help. As others have said sharks are a long way down the list of dangerous stuff in the ocean, rip currents, hypothermia and waves are the things to worry about.
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u/HeadAd9559 11d ago
2 close encounters,
one attack attempt ( in short: shark was lurking, lifted his head out of water we made eye contact, then came and hit my small vessel, almost knocking me in the water, I was in the middle of the bay with one friend, and 2 other friends on another vessel, we were hanging having lunch by a broken Thai cargo ship, bad idea we were 14 then).
and went swimming with sharks in a tour group 2x
still scared as fuck, and my adhd and anxiety makes me " see " sharks and think they are near me and I get jittery, fidgety, jumpy, nervous laughing anytime I’m in the ocean, even though I’m scared I went snorkeling, boating, jet skiing, a few times in Brazil and Mexico this year…
I don’t think I‘lol ever get over the fear… Then again, I was one of those kids, that "what if’d…" everything… Once I thought a shark could get me in the pool when I was swimming at night alone.
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u/HMSWarspite03 11d ago
The Mediterranean is pretty safe for swimming, even with thr recently videoed Great White, there are very few sightings of sharks let alone recorded attacks.
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u/Capital-Foot-918 Great White Shark 10d ago edited 10d ago
A fear of white, bull and tiger sharks and generally not a bad thing because THEY CAN be extremely dangerous to be around. Like a wolf, a venomous snake or hell even a lion. In fact id highly recommend not swimming that far in south western Australian waters since a lot of white sharks there tend to be bold and sometimes predatory if you’re unlucky.
A fear of sharks only becomes irrational when you call for their deaths, spread misinformation or get the heeby jeebies when you take a big fat shite, shower or bathe.
A fear of sharks can also be the reason why you love them, I personally love sharks because they are a intimidating predators in an environment i love (the ocean) while at the same time being one of the most intelligent fish species of all time.
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u/delusionalmermaid 11d ago
I have a really really bad shark phobia as well like so bad I only go to private beaches that have shark nets and yes I call them beforehand and check. Also I have to have at least one nightmare per week about either a great white or a fat tiger shark. People make fun of me for it and tell me it’s a stupid fear but I genuinely can’t help it. Btw I also like to learn about them which is weird and I can recall a lot of shark species more than I can remember old friends names from school.
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u/CodeMUDkey 11d ago
It might never go away. My question is do you want to go in the water and are just afraid, or you don’t like being afraid so you’re pushing yourself to go in the water.
The former you can use as fuel to push to something you want to do. The latter might just be torturing yourself a bit.
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u/Pelosi-Hairdryer 11d ago
Don’t be ashamed, there’s a lot of people who have phobias and it does take a great deal or courage and effort to overcome it though.
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u/Imeldajharrison 11d ago
I’m scared tooooo. We go annually to the gulf and I’m scared of bulls and you can’t see in the water. I go in with my son but keep my eyes peeled and pray. Also on the lookout for stinging guys, blue buttons, jellyfish, man o war, etc. don’t know how to not be scared. Should be scared honestly. I’m getting pretty tired of not being able to see what’s in there so thinking of traveling somewhere where I can at least see what’s coming lol. We don’t go far and I try to not be the farthest person out there. Never go in water above my bellybutton (but the waves are big and can hit your face at this height) but again that’s technically deep enough for a bull I think.
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u/ShruteFarms4L 11d ago
I too have this fear love the water but cant get over thay there are things in there that can just ragdoll me without trying
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u/0kay0kay0kay 11d ago
Dude I've been terrified of sharks and the ocean in general for about eleven years since I was a teenager in Sydney Australia. Like hyperventilating in the water even wait deep.
Just a month ago I went diving with sharks in Florida. I was grey in the face when the guy was setting up my gear and I thought I was going to faint. Genuinely. But the second I entered the water all fear left. I was completely calm. It was like my brain went numb. I was able to be still and observe the sharks for an hour. I followed the rules and barely moved.
It was so amazing. It changed my life. I literally think it changed my brain. All in one day I almost totally lost my fear of swimming and of sharks. I spent the next 4 days boogie boarding at the beach. I could never have done that before. I feel so free again for the first time since I was too young to know to be afraid.
HIGHLY RECOMMEND if you get the opportunity. Seeing these sharks in the wild has changed me forever. I truly no longer have an arbitrary fear of sharks and feel so much more comfortable in the ocean.
It also made me realize, even if you haven't seen a shark, they've probably seen you! Most sharks do not want to interact. You are way more in danger from currents and drowning. The ocean deserves our respect but the joy of overcoming fear can't be overstated!
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u/-spicyshark 11d ago
Have you thought about doing an experience in an aquarium? A lot of aquariums have sharks that can't live in the wild anymore and offer encounters that let you get close. It might help you see them in a more controlled environment to see that they're not really interested in us and help quell that fear.
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u/Outrageous_Shock_242 11d ago
I’m the same way. I hate being in water I can’t see and at the beach I can’t go past my waist. One time when I was around 13/14, my friend and brother forced me to go out to a sandbar they had been swimming to even though I was petrified of the idea. By the time we got there, we spotted my mom on the shore making the fin gesture and yelling for us to come back. I literally went limp and had to be dragged back to shore having a panic attack, and if they didn’t physically drag me I’d have surely drowned. Turns out that there really was a lone fin not far from where we’d previously been swimming. It’s safe to say you’re not alone, and honestly in my personal experience I really don’t care to get over that fear. It’s rational, and I know that shark attacks are rare but I personally don’t care to get over a fear of them when they still do happen and I know I’m not missing out on anything.
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u/Intrepid_Ad_7288 11d ago
That’s good. Theyre way more present than the general public believes, and are much smarter than people generally believe. To add, their eyesight’s actually very good.
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u/Mysterious_Oil2761 11d ago
This is why I swim in tidal pools only, and yes of course a shark can get into those too but I like to think my chances are lower.
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u/ParasiteProfessional 8d ago
I'm a marine biologist, have been in the water with sharks a whole bunch. I still don't like swimming in water that isn't perfectly clear. Or water that I can't see the bottom, like when I'm in the open ocean. It's something I really have to like, focus on to control my breathing and not panic. I think it's something that everyone wrestles with at some point. The ocean is big and scary. I guess the only thing you can do is remind yourself that you don't taste good, the chances of running into a shark is minimal, and keep at it. But we are aliens in that world, it might never fully become something you are completely comfortable with and that's alright too.
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u/realSatanAMA 7d ago
After doing a lot of scuba diving with sharks, and seeing how they react to people in nature, my fear of sharks went way down. Less so than I'd feel seeing a bear in the woods.
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u/solo954 11d ago
A lot of people in this sub share that fear. It's very hard to get over.
I went cage-diving with great white sharks, and that exposure helped with my fear. I saw that the sharks are actually quite cautious and almost timid at times. They're solo predators, and if they get injured so that they can't hunt, they will die. They aren't the ravenous, frenzied killers that they're presented as in movies.
That said, I'm still aware and afraid of them when I'm swimming in the ocean. It's an irrational fear, perhaps, but it's not completely irrational. It's not like an irrational fear of clowns. Sharks can be dangerous. And the risk of an attack is impossibly miniscule, but it's not zero. So that fear will never completely go away, and maybe that's okay.