It’s Battle Week on Big Brother Australia, and Aleisha Campbell got more than she bargained for when battling it out against Johnson Ashak for an Italian feast.
Stepping into Big Brother’s “battle ring”, Aleisha went head-to-head against the Big Brother super fan — only to be faced with her worst nightmare. Birds.
Bound to the floor of the battle ring and covered in molasses and animal feed, Aleisha was visibly distraught when chicken clucking noises began to play.
“No, no, no! I don’t want a bird to peck my fanny!” she exclaimed, and same, girl. Same.
“This is my biggest fear! I don’t think you understand! This is my worst!” she said, while Johnson consoled her and held her hand.
While the whole ordeal was quite hilarious to watch, a fear of birds is no joke.
What Is a Fear of Birds?
According to Healthline, fearing birds is called “ornithophobia”.
Phobias are one of the most common anxiety disorders and if you have ornithophobia, “you may experience intense anxiety when thinking about or being around birds.”
While they often develop during childhood, the specific cause of the phobia is still unclear. However, in Australia, surely it has something to do with creating a helmet out of an ice-cream container to scare away swooping magpies!!
Other reasons could include observational learning (if someone you know has the fear), information learning (reading or hearing about negative situations about birds) and even genetics can play a part. WTAF!
What Symptoms do People With Ornithophobia Have?
Symptoms can vary from person to person, with symptoms divided into two categories: physical and psychological.
Some of the psychological symptoms include an overwhelming feeling of anxiety or fear, awareness that your fear or anxiety is exaggerated but being unable to control it, feeling like you need to escape or run away and a feeling of losing control.
Some of these fears can become so bad that people have physical symptoms, including racing heartbeat, shaking or trembling, feeling short of breath, sweating, dry mouth, tightness in your chest and nausea.
How Is a Fear of Birds Treated?
While it may feel like the end of the world, Healthline says ornithophobia can be treated.
Mental health professionals can teach you breathing techniques, learning how to change thought patterns, and even exposure therapy can help you deal with the phobia.
“For example, your therapist may start with having you think about birds, progress to looking at pictures of birds, and move toward going near to or touching an actual bird,” the website reads, while adding that anxiety and depression medication can also help.
Well, there you have it! Here’s hoping Aleisha doesn’t have to face anymore birds during the season.
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