Koumpounophobia: Fear of buttons
The fear of buttons on clothing, known as button phobia or koumpounophobia, is an irrational phobia which is, perhaps surprisingly, a fairly common fear.
Most people who suffer from this phobia are convinced that they are the only ones in the world to suffer from such a strange fear, and they are often teased or taunted by others who do not understand or believe that they are telling the truth.
Irrational fears may be evoked due to traumatic happenings in early childhood, however, most people who do suffer from button phobia seem to admit that they have been afraid of buttons for as long as they can remember. For some people, the fear can also extend to all button-like objects, such as small coins, sequins and other small discs.
Types of buttons
Some people find that plastic buttons are worse than metal ones (like the ones on jeans) or that buttons with four holes are more fear or panic-inducing than those with two.
Degrees of severity
There are several degrees of severity to the phobia, ranging from cringing when others wear buttons and chosing not to wear buttons yourself to not wanting to breathe next to buttons in fear of inhaling one or washing your hands with soap for an extended period of time after any (accidental) contact with buttons. In some people, the sight of buttons may induce vomiting.
Some patients have found that hypnotherapy has been of help to overcome or make their button-suffering less severe.
Popularity: 35% [?]
July 25th, 2006 at 3:37 pm
Thank you for writing about Koumpounophobia and giving the facts instead of making fun of people like me who suffer from this disabling phobia.
My whole life i have had to not only avoid buttons but also avoid other people who question why i cant be near certain people on certain days or why i freak out when i see one or even hear the word. Because when people find out, they treat me like im insane and call me weird or irrational. Some people dont even believe me.
Ive always felt like such a freak for this because i have never met anyone else with this same fear. It wasnt even mentioned on the complete phobia list making me feel like i was completely alone. But through the internet i discovered that there are other people with this and that it is actually one of the more common of the ‘rare and unusual phobias’.
I finally have people to talk to, albeit it is over the internet but the button phobia still didnt have a name and was not recognised by the medical community. Recently i found out that they finally gave it the name Koumpounophobia and i cried with relief that it was finally something real. That i didnt have to defend myself about it anymore. That i wasnt alone.
The person you are close to is extremely lucky to have such an understanding friend as you.
October 12th, 2006 at 10:09 pm
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November 1st, 2006 at 12:37 am
I have never liked buttons since I was very little in school. I thought I would grow out of it but I never have.I don’t mind metal buttons or buttons covered in fabric (although I would never wear fabric ones myself). I hate the small plastic ones the shinier they are the worse they are. I hate sequins as well. I think small plastic buttons have a horrible smell and are horrible to touch. I don’t have to wash my hands but I will often cover them up if they are showing on clothes drying somewhere and I can’t eat with them in sight (although I am forced to sometimes). I ued to work in a bank and I deliberately ordered shirts with small square buttons (ironically these didnt bother me. I think it was because they didn’t have holes in them). I don’t mind men wearing shirts but polo shirts are awful because they dont have many but they are more noticeable - just staring you in the face! I dont like shirts with buttons sewn on with coloured coton either again I think they stand out more. I avoid buying clothes (except jeans) with buttons on them always buy zipped clothing.
November 3rd, 2006 at 2:43 am
I was actually quite afraid of buttons when I was a child.. in particular, the little plastic ones that have that faux marble texture. I thought they looked dirty, and I vividly remember seeing a bowlful of them at my aunt’s house when I was young and from that moment on.. I became afraid of them. I had a private school uniform so I had a button up shirt (of course) but i concocted ways to do them up creatively without ever tocuhing them. It wasn’t until high school that I got rid of this fear. I am now 22, and I still avoid clothing with tiny little buttons like that. It was a fear that I never expressed, and yes i did think I was alone… because what a silly fear to have. But it sticks with u.. and I’m glad I decided to look this up. Thanks
November 14th, 2006 at 4:51 am
Thank you, Haje, to continue this article even when it was taken off the original website
November 14th, 2006 at 10:28 pm
I have a four yr old son,who suffers from this condition.Although not a sufferer myself, I too, like the actual sufferers, thought till today that my son was the only person experiencing this irrational fear or should i say disgust towards buttons. I cannot explain why he feels this way, because nothing traumatic ever happened to him to trigger this attitude. I started to notice his feelings when as a little child of about 2 years, he would hold himself stiff and start to cry if i put a polo shirt or any item with buttons on it. He just wouldnt relax and would spread his arms wide and cry looking at the buttons!! I’d see panic on his face so I would relent and take the shirt off him.
I till today, thought he was just being silly, that he should get over this, for the simple reason that I knew that nothing triggered this fear. I feel very guilty now, especially since I am a psychology graduate, and work with children as a profession. I had never imagined or considered it as a serious condition. Today I decided to browse the net, and was amazed by what I found. I never imagined so many people suffered from this condition. My biggest concern is that soon he will start school and schools in my country all have a uniform that includes buttoned shirts. I have no idea how to deal with this issue.
My son does not, unlike many, is not only repulsed by plastic buttons. He even hates the metal ones on jeans and it also goes further than that…he even detests the ring (which circles the hole for strings) on draw string pants or hooded tops. I’m at a loss on how to help him and how i will cope when he starts school. I often mention to him that soon he will have to wear shirts with lots of buttons on them, trying to cushion his reaction…I hope the idea is not aggravating him more.
December 11th, 2006 at 9:07 pm
since i can remember i have been scared of buttons - even the word brings a slightly siky feeling to my stomach. I never realised there were other poeple out there who had the same fear!
Certain buttons I can stand like metal ones or ones without holes in them. I usually ok with them aslong as the are attacted to some form of clothing - anthing else I hate! I have to wear buttoned shirts to school and at first putting it on in the morning was horrible but eventually I got used to it and now I can deal with them.
I’m not saying I like buttons at all. Liek I said I even hate the word - but I fond the best way to get around it is straight on confrontation - it elped me amazingly!!
January 3rd, 2007 at 1:04 pm
here we go. im 16 years old, me and my twin sister have had a fear of buttons since we can remember, nothing triggerd it but whenever i see one it reminds me of some kind of silky gunk that someone wants to put in my mouth, the thought of a button in my mouth makes me want to vomit.
The 4 holes is the worst i mean can u imagine someone putting a button in a shallow puddle of water and u can see the water come thought the holes im shivering just thinking about it. i have huge problems trying to explain to boyfriends why i cant hug or look at them when they are wearing a shirt, button up or polo its all the same. i found it alot easier to tell people about it and now im still embarrsed but its easier to let people know so they dont make me feel uncomfy, i also have issues with silk, a silk button shirt really makes me feel ill….
I’m totally nuts i know but its made my life so much harder as i have to find boyfriends who will wear normal t-shirts and i have problems with school and work uniforms. i dont think this hatered for the small round enemy will go away anytime soon but im glad im not on my own.
January 11th, 2007 at 3:10 am
I hate the horrible little B****rds. Why the hell should we be embarrassed. Maybe someone can provide a reason for why a perfectly functional item of clothing should then be split down the front when it can just as easily be pulled over one’s head. Then let’s shove a totally functionless band of cloth round our neck to cover the uneccesary prissy little nusances. Then let’s dip that in some soup or get it caught in some machinery. Having read many testimonies from fellow koumpounophobics it seems that the peculiar special hatred of the small plastic 4 hole type points (in the absence any evidence of early trauma) to an inherited instinctive fear and to ignore it would be to defy nature. I’m quite relaxed with my hatred and disgust of the objects (which fortunately is not as severe as some). My particular revulsion is when they are there for no reason but decoration. The bigger they are, the more nausea I feel. I also find this when they are a contrasting colour to the clothing. Anyway that’s my tuppence worth. One day we’ll all look back on them as some historical sartorial abberation. Asap please.
January 11th, 2007 at 9:09 pm
To Ashley and anybody who can assit:
You say that you got over your phobia of buttons! Please share with me how? My son, who is 6 has been suffering from this phobia for 2 years now and I am at a loss.
I really feel for all of you, it really is uncommon and nobody else seemsto understand what my son is going through.
January 26th, 2007 at 10:15 pm
I am now 67 and have had this phobia of buttons all my life and it is very reassuring to know I am not alone. I find it difficult if people are wearing certain kinds but I can’t explain why or which but many make my skin crawl and even talking about them “turns me up”.
I even feel uneasy sometimes when I watch a film or television and then I realise that it is the clothes that people are wearing that have these awful things on them that upset me.
I like others cannot abide them when they are loose on clothes or on a long thread but I too can wear the metal buttons on jeans.
February 9th, 2007 at 9:02 am
The fact that there have already been posts from several fellow koumpounophobics on here already in 2007 really gives new perspective on this irrational phobia. I have experienced button (ehhh. . .) anxiety for as long as I can remember, with no recollection of a traumatic experience involving the subject. Earliest memories include morning fits before school, during the days when my mother picked out my outfits. I know I was forced to wear clothes with thoses damn fasteners. . .resulting in extremely uneasy days.
As for work uniforms, I held one job that required a button-up. I handled this in several different ways. I have seen in mentioned somewhere in my research during this insightful night. . . creatively doing them up, avoiding contact with skin. . . I am familiar with this . . .also, having others do them up for me. Upon wearing “contaminated” clothing, I tend to avoid looking down at them.
I’ve seen more discussion and description of varieties of these objects and the negative feelings they provoke than I could have ever imagined. Four holes are much worse than two. . . unattached; say, on the floor is worse than on clothing. Loose thread definitely adds to disgust. The little plastic marble varieties are the worst for me, for sure!
Everyone seems to be digusted by these rather than afraid. . .many seem to claim interactions evoke nausea. One notable time in high school, a close friend of mine whom was aware of my unusual issue saw to it that I witness him licking a comparatively large. . .you know, and putting it in his mouth and whatnot. Caused me to gag.
ALSO
- I will not willingly wear tops of any kind with these, polos are the worst, ick. I have always found them so unattractive.
-Metal varieties are much more tolerable (jeans), but I still don’t like to think about it too much or touch them for extended periods of time.
-I have been known, in recent times, to remove these from clothing, especially on pants with several non-functioning things.
-Induces more anxiety when focusing on subject, such as right now. Sometimes the word wont bother me much. You may have noted I am trying to avoid the word. I bet some will appreciate that.
-I have seen several reports of hand-washing after contact, I don’t experience anxiety to this extreme. . . but it is within conceivable grasp. I am able to kind of avoid obsessive thoughts about subject . . . most of the time.
-I am very open with trait in relationships. I feel it is an interesting and entertaining factor on many levels. I had to let my boyfriend know of my quarrels very recently, I had broken a zipper on my pants, so he was about to search for. . object. . . to sew onto pants. I first advised him against it and proceeded to explain my situation. He gets a kick out of it. When we first started dating he would often speak of a pair of pants he favored due to a b-t-o- made out of a shell. At this point I didn’t dare bring up my phobia. I adore(d) his appreciation of such simple things. He picks on me. . . hides them in places for surprise encounters. . . has chased me around with them , and tossed them my way. Worst of all, I have dreadlocks, and he’s joked about sewing them in while I sleep, only to wake up with them stuck on my head, feeling absolutely defenseless. He also wears clothes with them quite often. I avoid focusing in. When removiing articles ;), I pull shirts over his head instead of interacting.
- We are not weird! There are even stranger phobias, anyway. I am so fascinated by the feedback on the subject. . .
February 12th, 2007 at 5:50 am
Our 9 year old son also has a fear of buttons, which started around the time he was 2 1/2 or so. He used to not be able to eat if someone had buttons on, and wouldn’t play with children if they had buttons on his shirt. He’s gotten better about that part, but still refuses to wear them. We had him work with a psychologist for about a year and at one point he could wear a polo shirt for a full day (we were rewarding him for doing so), but then he went right back to not being able to do it again. He starts almost to hyperventilate when he knows he’s wearing them, so we have to distract or bribe him on the few occassions he needs to wear them. He says they make his stomach feel sick and that the buttons smell bad and look disgusting.
I feel really bad for him because he loves to play baseball, but said he wouldn’t join the team because of the buttons on the shirt. He also dropped out of boy scouts for the same reason. We are hoping to try again with another therapist, but would love to hear if others have had any luck with treatments for this phobia!!!
February 12th, 2007 at 7:35 pm
There are a lot of others out there who have this phobia. Check out http://www.unusualphobias.com/buttons.html
February 14th, 2007 at 5:24 am
WOW, i THOUGHT i WAS THE ONLY ONE, i AM A 38 YEAR OLD MALE , i HAD THIS PROBLEM ALL MY LIFE, i NEVER TOLD ANY ONE BECAUSE i THOUGHT IT WAS CRAZY, THIS MORNING i WENT INTO THE CLOSET, MY GIRL FRIEND HAD A BUTTON LAYING ON THE FILE CABINET AND I ALMOST THREW UP I IMMEDIATLY GRABEBD TOILET TISSUE SO I CAN PICK UP THE BUTTON AND THREW IT AWAY IN THE STREET, THE TRASH CAN WAS NOT GOOD ENOUGH, SO LATER ON THAT DAY I THOUGHT ITS TIME TO TELL MY GIRLFRIEND THE PROBLEM, AND SHE LOOK THE PROBLEM UP ON THE INTERNET, AND FOUND THIS SITE, i WANT TO THANK YOU FOR THIS SITE, I THOUGHT IT WAS JUST ME, i TRY TO AVOID SHIRTS WITH BUTTONS, THE FEW I BROUGHT I TIE THEM UP IN TRASH BAGS SO I DONT HAVE TO LOOK AT THEM, IF I WEAR A SHIRT WITH BUTTONS I’M VERY UNCOMFORTABLE AND I HAVE TO TAKE IT OFF. POLO SHIRTS ARE THE WORST, I DON’T KNOW WHY, A SINGLE BUTTON LAYING AROUND TURNS MY STOMACH, I DONT KNOW WHY, I HATE TO HEAR THE SOUND OF A SHIRT DRYING AND THE BUTTONS HITTING THE WALLS OF THE DRYER.
February 17th, 2007 at 9:28 pm
It is not a “condition” that should be cured. It is not about fear either. It is probaply genetical, the urge to vomit and cringe in the presense of buttons. So many individuals have the excactly same symptoms, you can not be alone.
Some people misunderstand it as “fear”. It has nothing to do with being afraid. It is more like feeling severe nausea and illness in the soul itself. Even the word “phobia” is incorrect, because this goes deeper inside.
For me, buttons make me crouch, vomit and I feel like my mind gets twisted into something I do not know. I feel pure, clean and streamlined with a simple t-shirt on myself. People have to get warm, right? Then why has it been made so difficult? The whole fashion thing is twisted. This is not our fault. Everyone with this same anxiety. I wish you many buttonless hugs.
February 20th, 2007 at 6:13 pm
I am amazed, my husband found this website last night. I have had this phobia for my whole life. The only ones that know about it are my family, because I was afraid that people think I am nuts. I just hide it, I never wear clothes with b…. on them (except for jeans). I have to wear shirts for work though and I force myself through that. If I accidentally get touched by one I have to wash my hands immediately. Like most of you, I don’t care about the jeans ones. But if I see a lose one, since I cannot touch them (they make me gag) I have to put it on a piece of paper and throw it out. I cannot eat if there is one “staring” at me, so if I am at a party and there is one on a jacket, I hope that no one sees me and I rearrange the jacket to that the b….. doesn’t stare at me. I don’t even want to type the word. I really thought I was the only one. Another reason why I don’t tell anyone is, because once they know and they just don’t understand it at all, they want to tease you with it and dangle one in front of you.
I am normal functioning person, I have no mental issues whatsoever, it is just the b……. thing and I know that it is obviously totallly irrational. Does anyone know why we have this phobia and how to overcome it (besides by desensitizing), which I don’t think I could go through. I would literally throw up.
Wow, not only am I not the only one, we all have the same symptoms. How interesting, if I didn’t have this phobia mysyelf I would never believe it in a million years.
February 24th, 2007 at 11:03 pm
Didn’t realize this was a phenomenon. the bizarre thing is my husband has the same phobia as myself. i don’t mind the sewn on type, but hate them alone- depends on the type. my husband can’t stand them on the duvet cover. both of us can recall episodes from childhood that probably contributed. i don’t like other objects of similar shape which i can’t type never alone verbalise. The whole subject of b…….. is very embarassing and they should be banned!
February 25th, 2007 at 10:36 pm
im kelly and im 12 i have the same problem i tend to shiver wen i c people in school wearing the poloshirts(i even hate sayin that word it freaks me out) sometimes i feel like throughing up im in 6th class and im about 2 make my conformation and we have 2 wear are uniforms and i just cant stand it and i dont want people takin pictures of me because i dont want 2 be remembered by that day. every one else is really looking 4ward 2 it but im really not.i want there 2 b a cure but i still cant c me wearing them.
:)
i thought i was the only one in the world who hated them i woudnt dare tell my friends bout it but wen my family new they thought i was crazie but i thought id get over it but i didnt and i cant think of me wearing them wen i grow up and have 2 wear them at work i always wear a cout for school to cover my uniform i even wear my uniform all year round
i just hope this fear will go away but im so relieved that other people suffer from it 2 and its not just me!!!!!
February 28th, 2007 at 5:00 pm
I never thought there would even be a site on button phobia as I thought there was only me I can’t believe other people have it too. I watched a programme once where a lady had it and she had to face her fear and put one in her mouth with cotton on too….how disgusting….anyway I couldn’t even look and started wretching just at the thought of it. My family and friends used to think I was making it up until my mum took me to a market stall where they had lots of them in plastic tubes and I nearly passed out. I don’t have to wash my hands if i accidently touch one but I have to rub them in case its got stuck on me. The losse ones are the worst or the ones that are not attatched to anything but have cotton still on them. My nana used to have a button box and my sister used to put her hand in it to wind me up I would rather put my hand in a box of tarantulas.I don’t mind the metal ones on jeans or press studs but small ones that babies have on their clothes are the worst
March 21st, 2007 at 9:27 pm
I’ve always found buttons disgusting. Even as a child I would not button my clothes or would refuse to wear them. A loose button on the floor I pick up with tissue and throw away or kick under the washing machine. I can now wear buttons but rarely button anything. If pants have buttons I can button but if a button falls off I cannot touch let alone put it back. I am 71. I am better than I was but the plastic ones and men’s shirt buttons are the worst. Make my stomach turn.
‘ve made my self the butt of jokes for years. If you laugh first it hurts less.
March 27th, 2007 at 6:22 pm
My ten year old son is in treatment for this problem. It’s being treated as OCD because he washes his hands so much, but all contamination revolves around buttons. Please share any successful treatment stories. I’m sure my son will be thrilled to feel he’s not alone in this.
LF
March 30th, 2007 at 11:43 pm
I’ve actually known for a while that this isn’t as uncommon a phobia as people at first think. I used to have the phobia myself, when i was very young. The first time i realised i had this phobia was my first day of school, when i had to put on a buttoned shirt. It was a horrible experience; I got very upset NOT because of the buttons themselves, but because I couldnt understand why I was so afraid of them.
I no longer have the phobia and when I look back I just feel very confused because I can’t explain it. I actually very much like wearing shirts now and wouldnt think twice about it lol.
I would encourage anyone who has the fear, to tell someone who ISNT a button phobic. Its strange, but talking to someone who isnt in the same position as you can help a lot.
April 10th, 2007 at 10:23 pm
Im so glad to read all your comments!!I too cringe at buttons! Im lucky its not as severe as some poor people! I too dont mind jeans buttons and I absolutly agree that polo shirts and the ones just for show on the front of a tshirt just for “decoration” are the worst!The fake marble ones disgust me and if i touch one my hands feel contaminated. I dont have to wash my hands but have to wipe themand shake them coz the tingle and feel dirty! Also I too feel sick at the sight of a loose one!!YUKYUK!!SHIVER!!I dont like the plasic lids off sports drinks either!I have to get someone to throw them away for me if they are in my house!!
April 14th, 2007 at 9:38 am
The BBC are to screen an episode of their “Panic Room” programme about this fear of buttons. It will be sometime in late April. The programme is a bit tacky but claims to genuinely cure people of their phobias by locking them in a room with the thing they fear most. As a fellow sufferer, even the thought of being in that situation with loads of buttons makes me ill.
April 18th, 2007 at 1:12 pm
Hi. I’m a 51 yr old college lecturer in maths & English, so fairly sane. I have been disgusted by the sight of buttons since I was a young child and agree with most of the other comments about the worst & better types of buttons. I found that the very worst were the large-ish milky white types found on old fashioned men’s pyjamas (could never eat breakfast with my dad around) and the ones that were attached to the waistbands of trousers to attach old style leather braces. Also - why on earth do people wear buttons as a fashion/design accessory? I can understand their function but as a decoration!
April 18th, 2007 at 1:21 pm
I am shocked how many people have this phobia!! I can relate to everything everyone is saying! Just in case you havent noticed next tue at 9pm on bbc three, there is a programme on called Panic Room, which features a lady with a phobia of buttons, and they drop hundreds of buttons over her, which actually nearly made me throw up
Ive always had this phobia, and it seems to have got worse as the years go on, as i read above, the only buttons i can handle are jeans buttons which are metal. I feel less sick if the button also doesnt have the 2 holes with the bit of cotton where it has been sewn?!! I dont own any clothes with buttons on, nor will i touch any, and a button near someones mouth (as if eating or licking it) or seeing a button whilst i’m eating makes me feel so ill.
Everyone who knows me is used to my phobia, and a few have tried to scare me by leaving me little presents with them in!! But anyone who doesnt realise just cant believe it, and i almost wish i never told them! Its become part of my every day life.
April 23rd, 2007 at 5:42 pm
Kerry and Laura your comments made me laugh out loud becasue I have been saying the same thing all my life! Buttons for decoration is just wrong. Buttons hanging off a piece of material by a loose thread will make me gag, and seeing water oozing through the four holes on a button would make me run a mile. I am able to wear clothes with buttons on them, but I cant if the have got a spare button sewn onto the label, I really really dont like that! I cant wear single buttons on their own, and deffiantly cant have them on my duvet.
I once won a raffle and was present my prize by a ‘pearly king and queen’, and had to run off stage, it was the worse day of my life!!
April 24th, 2007 at 9:49 pm
Wow- I am delighted at the amount of people (not in a nasty way of course) who understand. i have had this fear all of my life _ iam am now 48 and it’s slightly better but still there. I cannot bring myself to say the word unless there’s no other way round it (like not trying to draw attention to the phobia). My awful sister used to fill my pockets with them when I was small which brough ton an asthma attack. My children and husband never use the word and use the term ‘fastener’and when they were little I became an expert at avoiding anything with them on as I do myself. My husband has to wear a shirt for work and immediately chages out of it when he gets hom- if he wants me anywhere near him.
Differently to some my worse kind of ‘fastener’ has tow holes and is plastic with an eye in the middle and makes me want to vomit and I physically shudder. Furthermore people who wear shirts fastened up to the neck……YUK! I once wnet on a dat when I was younger and as he had a shirt on it was bad enough but it was done up to the neck so I could not even stay in his presence long enough to say goodbye as I was physically repulsed and went home on the next bus! When I was smaller i used to have nightmares about them and also visual the grooves with the holes in filled up with old food slops….how disgusting is that!
I dont want to get over my fear as I don’t WANT to touch them……..and would rather live with it. I do agree about loose ones being more threathening and if next to food………..too gross to contemplate. My immediate family apologise if they accidentally say the real word….and finally can you imagine falling in love with that racing car driver (Jensen……..) and he asks to marry you.
Pleased it has a name and chuffed others understand as everyone that has found out thinks it’s hilarious- and yes they think it’s funny to leave them lying around to watch for a reaction. That lady who puts them in her husbands bed and pack lunch box is extremely cruel- she obviously doesn’t realise the feeling he must get.
April 26th, 2007 at 2:45 pm
OMG I am not alone! I can relate to each and everyone of you. I’m 26 now and the only buttons i can wear are the metal ones on jeans, i dont own a single piece of clothing with any on and i cant look at them on other people.
I dont think ill ever be cured but i can live with that,.
April 26th, 2007 at 9:17 pm
Hi i wouldn’t say i have a fear of buttos i jsut dont like them! i can’t stand the poppers on duvets or like baby clothes. I don’t like buttons they just look ugly and as long as i can remember i have disliked them.
May 9th, 2007 at 6:11 am
Well, reading the comments above has given me a wide variety of emotions and reactions. Some of the comments I just couldn’t read, like Steph’s, where the guy at school was licking and… well you know the rest. I have been a koumpounophobic for as long as I remember, infact some of my earliest memories are of being forced to be around buttons (it makes me sick even to write the word).
For all those poor parents out there, I am sorry, I know of no treatment, and quite frankly why would you want to treat something like this… keep those things away from me and everyone else like me that is my advice.
I really like Malky’s views on the little B*****rds, couldn’t agree more.
As I am steadily progressing through my 27th year I see no reason why we as a people should be forced to suffer any longer, there are alternatives to wearing such out of date fastners as I am sure we are all awear (pardon the pun).
Finally I have gainned a great scense of satisfaction from hearing all your comments but I would like to have been able to have spoken with some of you more personally and so I am (boldly) offering my e-mail address: duncbuchanan@yahoo.com
May 11th, 2007 at 11:25 pm
Oh my word - thank the lord there are other people like me, i knew that there is a button phobia and i knew the word for it too, but i am so relieved to see that i am not a freak, as people have told me that i am. I am nearly 40 and have hated buttons and pearly things, including beads since i was little and for no reason, my parents told me that i never swallowed one or put one up my nose or in my ears, so why this phobia. I must say that it is taking me a lot of time to even type this letter as i am constantly feeling sick at the thought.
My grandmother had a b….. box and my sister loved it and i still have nightmares about it. When i had my kids, my mum would put on their clothes and they never had these things on their cardigans. i cant even say the word. I too can wear jeans and some shirts, but if they are loose i cant touch or look at them, my kids have to get them. Pearls and beads are the same and the fashion is beady necklaces and earrings and they make me feel sick that i have to give them a wide berth in a shop and why do idiots attach them to their clothes, i want to punch them when they do that it is repulsive.
The thing is that i am a confident person and i now work in a nursery school and they use them for glueing onto things and i cant even be in that room, my colleages think i am weird and have never heard of it. I feel that stressed i want them banned and that advert where someone gets them poured over them, i was physically ill. This is what prompted me to look it up as this was only this evening. Thanks to you all for adding to this site you have made me feel sane again and acceptable. Good luck everyone x
May 12th, 2007 at 11:48 pm
Ah man, the worst was science class when we were split into groups and asked to count a collection of small items. Some got pencils, some got dice, some got paper clips etc. Guess what I got? And to top it off this scruffy lad, Keith started stickin’ ‘em in his mouth. I nearly chundered. What a dilemma for a 12 year old. Do I tell the teacher and risk the rest of my school life in ridicule or do I sit through my worst nightmare?
Anyone else hate that Bond film where the lady has them all down the back of her dress? I think it was an early Connery cos Roger Moore wouldn’t put up with that crap.
And don’t even get me started on where Mr Spoon used to fly his rocket to…quickly flick over to Children’s BBC.
May 14th, 2007 at 9:20 pm
I hate buttons too, I have since I was very young, I can wear them although the smaller they are the worse my fear. If I saw a box full of old buttons I would completely freak out…
May 16th, 2007 at 7:20 pm
Never liked the things. don’t like the word either. I am 40 and my son, who is nearly 16 has grown up callings “them” fasteners. Work colleagues and friends all think I’m mad as a bag of frogs. The worse thing is “them” on pieces of card in a haberdashery stall or in those clear plastic tubes with one on the end. YUK! I can cope with “them” if they aren’t too obvious, but as soon as they become a feature or non functional, they make me shiver. silly I guess, but I like to think of it as part of my individual character and have no desire to get over my distaste of “them” Power to all fellow sufferers !!!
May 19th, 2007 at 7:13 pm
It’s funny that you mention having to classify a group of buttons in science class. I’m a science teacher and when one of my middle school classes was doing classification and dichotomous keys, I actually had them classify buttons! The funnier part is that while I wouldn’t say I have a button phobia, I find them absolutely repulsive and was gagging as I was putting the buttons into ziploc bags for each group. I only used buttons because they were the only things I had in my science supplies in large enough quantities for the entire class to use.
Like pretty much everyone else on here, I have hated buttons for as long as I remember. My mom tells me I have hated them since I was 2. I don’t mind the metal buttons on jeans, but I would never wear a button down shirt, just the thought makes me gag. One night my husband wore a button down shirt to bed (I suppose out of sheer laziness-ie: he didn’t want to change) and I told him he had to take it off because I wouldn’t be able to touch him all night! Unfortunately, my duvet cover has buttons on the bottom, but I keep that side away from me and try not to think about it. I mean, good luck finding a duvet cover without buttons! I think I might just remove them. It’s interesting that most of us have the same feelings about the gradations of button repulsiveness (clear ones are the worst, metal are oka), although I never really thought that buttons smelled. I think it’s also the string in the buttons that I really hate. Well, I’ve rambled on enough. So glad I don’t live in the UK and thus was spared footage of that woman being bombarded with buttons!
May 24th, 2007 at 12:14 am
oh gawd, im now relieved that i’m not alone. buttons and the mere sight of them make me run a mile. i used to get teased which made it worse. i dont like the four holes, its as if theyre staring at you, which makes me feel physically sick
May 27th, 2007 at 9:54 pm
I tell you what, this is a HUGE relief to find other people like me. I am 22 and have feared buttons for as long as I can remember. My mom tells me that since I was very little (about 1) I would throw a fit and rip buttons off of any clothes that had buttons and were put on my body. I still have the urge to rip off the buttons off of any clothing on my body. They make my skin crawl. I am okay with the jeans buttons without holes in them. Any buttons with holes (expecially 4) REALLY creep me out. Even that song “Buttons” by the Pussycat Dolls makes the hair on my arms stand up whenever I hear it. I have no idea where the fear came from, but I am very glad to see that I’m not the only one.
May 31st, 2007 at 1:29 pm
My fear is finally vindicated, it is not Just Me - thank you all! Every aspect of my fear is mentioned, plus some that do not affect me so I am feeling even better
about myself!
One question: does anyone else share my fear of labels in clothes? Those awful long one smade out of that vile silky smooth type material? Ugggh cannot stand them, have to cut them out of all clothes immediately, the thought of that material touching my skin makes me gag. M&S ones are the worse!
June 2nd, 2007 at 8:04 pm
This site makes very interesting reading for me. I’ve never liked buttons on clothes for as long as I can remember (I’m in my 30’s now) and never wear shirts on nights out, preferring t-shirts and knit-wear tops.
I don’t have the urge to throw-up or anything, I just don’t see the point in these horrible bits of plastic holding two flaps of clothing together - it almost seems archaic.
As has been said, Polo shirts seem so pointless, and although I don’t mind others wearing them, I could never wear one myself, if nothing more than I think they look geeky.
It’s not something I ever talk about or have any reason to, but I know my brother is the same and only wears shirts for work, preferring non-button tops the rest of the time. No one else in my family has this issue.
The twist in my story is that there is one type of button I have no fear of at all - in fact it’s the opposite, and if a female is wearing a garment with this type of fastening, no matter what she looks like, I get a kind of kick out of it.
I refer to the simple two hole button, with a concave surface, which tends to be the button of choice on many uniforms for some reason. It has to be this exact variety though, other types of two hole (eg fish eye) won’t do.
I’ve gone as far as to remove the pesky four hole variety from my work shirts and re sew the two hole variety - that way I have no problem at all.
It’s certainly a strange ‘phobia’ (not sure what the right word for it really is), and I assumed it was only me as everyone seems to wear shirts etc don’t they..?
Anyway, good to know it’s not just me, although that may not be the case for my love/ hate relationship with the two hole/ four hole variety.
June 10th, 2007 at 6:55 pm
wow, i really believed i was the only one.
June 16th, 2007 at 5:23 pm
When i read the article, it seemed so familiar, asif i had written it myself!! I can completely identify with the problems that buttons arouse in people.
When i was much younger, maybe four or five, i went net fishing in a small stream. I caught a small green button, and i dont know why…but i decided to put it in my mouth! I then nearly swallowed it, and i was horrified. My parents later took the button from me and put it in the glove box of the car…unaware that i nearly choked on it!!
Ever since this experience the thought or sight of buttons freaks me out. Sometimes I feel sick, and sometimes i even gag! I havent been physically sick because of a button for a few years. When i see them, my hairs stand on end and i get a cold chill. I do not buy any clothes with buttons on, similar to the other sufferers!! The button on jeans does not bother me, i think it is because they arent the usual plastic type with the four holes.
i wish buttons could become….extinct
June 28th, 2007 at 10:32 pm
I can not believe it; I have been so concerned about my 3 1/2 year son and his relentless protests about buttons. It has gotten to the point that I would only put a button shirt on him when he goes to church on Sunday or somewhere nice because it is such a huge fight. He has told me they make him sick, but I did not think it really did make him physically sick. This has been going on for over a year now. It started when he was 2.
I even bought him some polo shirts from the Disney store with his favorite characters and his name on them. I thought this would surely get him to wear “buttons” but it did not. It only made him dislike the Power Rangers. He has gotten a bit better about them on other people, but not wearing them himself.
He used to not let my husband get into his bed to read to him until he took off all his “buttons”. He would try the same with me, but I would stick to my guns more. He does not like to play with anyone who has buttons and treats his little brother a lot different if he has on buttons.
Anyway, I am wondering if making him wear the buttons on occasion is alright? Will that make it better or worse? I am so thankful for this website. After reading this I talked to him about buttons and while we were talking about it I could see the nervousness in his face. He also told me they made his stomach and head hurt. He seems to hate any type of button on any clothing.
Thanks so much.
July 10th, 2007 at 3:58 pm
Wow! I had no idea it was common… the internet is amazing! I’m 34 years old and have had this condition my whole life. My symptoms are almost exactly the same as everyone above so I won’t ramble on that. What I can say is that in the case of my family, it is clearly genetic (that doctor treating the kid for OCD above… give that hack a slap for me).
My mother and 2 older brothers are fine with wearing button shirts but don’t like lose ones and will gag. Myself, my niece and 2 nephews are more extreme. We all seems to function at diff’t levels with it. I CAN wear a shirt with buttons but only if REALLY necessary (If a party is labeled as casual, you’d better believe I will be wearing a crew neck).
Thankfully, I don’t have to for my job. I can wear a shirt with a tie and the suit jacket/blazer ones don’t bug me so much. My neice seems to be the worst and my brother graciously changes out of his work clothes when he gets home. Unlike the person who wrote in about done-up buttons, I’m the opposite. Undone buttons gross me out, especially if the person isn’t wearing a t-shirt underneath.
Vile, repugnant things!
July 11th, 2007 at 5:37 am
I’m in a total state of shock. My husband and I are spec. ed teachers and were talking tonight about kids and textures.Out of curiousity, I looked it up and was shocked!I’ve never had the nerve to admit to anyone my disgust for buttons-the word,too-reading this has been like reading my own mind and life story. He still doesn’t know, but we both wear tee’s most of the time. I get away with dresses and knit tops, but he has to wear a sports shirt to work, and it kills me when he leaves it on after. I tell him he doesn’t look as hip or something dumb like that. When I mention textures, he says everyone has textures they don’t like. He has no idea and neither did I till I read this. It’s caused me shame all my life, ‘cos of jobs where they want you to wear a polo shirt or something and I always get out of it. It’s real!!!!!Wow!!!!!
July 16th, 2007 at 4:25 pm
Wow, i’m actually the opposite; when i was younger none of my clothes or stuffed bears would survive more than a day if my mum didn’t sew a button on the left shoulder. Even today sometimes i sew buttons on some of my clothes… although i like to think i’ve grownup a lot since then lol
July 17th, 2007 at 1:56 pm
I have been afraid of them all my life. I thought I was because my older brother is as well. People leave them for me to find so I will scream or chase me around. I will not wear any and if I touch them by accident I must wipe my hands. I also do not mind metal only the plastic ones. I am so glad to hear of others with the same fears.
July 20th, 2007 at 3:36 am
For as long as I can remember I have had an irrational fear of buttons. No one else, not even councillers I’ve had could comprehend why this was so. I am currently in school and a few people found out about this fear and exploited it and used it against me, and made me aware of how intense this “fear” is. Although I’m not afraid of buttons as such, I find them repulsive. If I wear shirts (uniform only) with buttons on them, I simply can’t make any skin contact with them at all. If I do, I feel I have to wipe the button filth onto something.
A couple of classmates use this against me and constantly lick the buttons on their shirts to gross me out or wipe their sleeves on my hands. The thought makes me shudder. When they do this I instantly recoil in horror and wipe my hand on anything nearby. As a child it was much worse and it isn’t as obvious. It doesn’t affect my day to day life.
Again I have always found polo shirts to be the worst form of clothing ever made. Buttons on a shirt that serve no purpose… what the hell?
I’m so relieved I’m not alone.
July 23rd, 2007 at 4:41 pm
i can’t believe this site exists never mind a name for this embarrassing condition! I amd 36 and I’ve suffered with this all my life but mainly the embarrassment of it rather than the phobia itself. i suppose I’ve supressed the outward feelings, after all who wants to jump and shout at the sight of a b only to be ridiculed for ever more! i keep it as quiet as poss. Obviously my family and some friends know but I’ve always played it down.
For the record I have a problem with all plastic ones particularly the big glossy 2-hole that you find on a 70s housecoat like Olive from On The Buses would wear! Like a lot of the other contributors to this site I don’t have a problem with rivets, studs or jeans.
The strangest aspect and what got me thinking about it again recently is that my 3-year old nephew has the condition. He lives in Canada and I couldn’t possibly have influenced him!
Finally I am elated to have discovered so many fellow ‘mishuganas’ and I feel better about this than ever before.
Thanks for the site.
Stu
July 23rd, 2007 at 4:50 pm
What is the point of the vile little things anyway? Like black pudding?Civilisation could do quite nicely without them.
I can accept the need for them on a functional basis but decorative???!!!!&%£^*&)(*
My wife has a top with them all up the sleeves - WHY???
And what about the single one at the back of the collar on chavs’ shirts?
I once threw a girlfriends top out of the car window cos it was covered in them (she wasn’t in it at the time!). i hope that makes other readers feel better.
PS Mike (No.41) those fish eye ones are my worst!
July 24th, 2007 at 2:33 pm
I’m so pleased that someone has written about koumpounophobia. I’m a very big sufferer of this and I don’ even like to say or look at the word. I’m fine with buttons on my jeans (the metal ones), but anything else I just can’t stand. I still go to school and we have to wear buttons as part of our school uniform and this is one of the bigest problems I have. I still have to put up with buttons, but when I wear my uniform I always wear a jumper t cover them. I can’t even stand to look at the things. They freak me out. I can remember when we were tidying out our lockers and I found a horrible yellow button in the back of my locker. I was shaking tremendously and my classmates were really worried. I couldn’t even touch the spot where the button had been. Also when it said about this phobia might extend to other objects like buttons, I have that problem aswell. I can’t stand earrings, 5p and 1p coins, loose beads, those small batteries that are in watches and more things. It’s terrible because these days everything is loaded with buttons!
This phobia is awful because when I grow up I want to be a headmistress or something like that, but you have to wear a suit and I can’t stand suits because of buttons. I’ve had this phobia ever since I can remember and I’m still trying tofigure out why. Thanks.
July 27th, 2007 at 5:10 am
Buttons are nauseating. I don’t hate them to the point of panic and feel lucky after reading about how intense this phobia can be.
I have narrowed my aversion down to the ones with holes aesthetically too large for the disk, dirty ones or ones with thread, or worse, lint. Big red ones and any one with a ridge that can catch grime are particularly gross. I can’t stand those little two-holers in the cyclops eye-shape.
Shanked, wood, fimo, metal or shell, cute shaped or baby-sized are ok.
I can’t really trace the source of my aversion - just always disliked buttoned clothing as a child and hated my mom’s linty cigar box of buttons. I wonder if it has something to do with an odd habit I have of seeing faces everywhere from car backs to my dinner. I wonder if anyone else does that.
My best coping mechanism is laughing at my quirk and trying to not take it too seriously. That probably saved me from the taunting that non-sufferers love to dish out.
July 30th, 2007 at 10:38 pm
thank christ for that! a website that highlights this embarrassing plight. i wonder how many of the other contributors find the embarrassment nearly as unsettling as the phobia? it’s a relief to read of kindred sufferers.
i’m 36, married with 2 gorgeous kids. only my wife, sister and a couple of friends know about my disgust of the b things. what gets me is the general lack of need for them, like black pudding - what’s the point??!!
my worst ones are the big fish-eye that remind me of a 70s housecoat like olive from on the buses would wear.
my wife has a top with them half up the sleeve and down the front - for decoration only!!!
the weirdest development is that my 3-year old nephew has the same phobia, however he lives in canada and i’ve not spent enough time with him to influence him - and wouldn’t bring it up anyway. weird or what?
finally thankyou thankyou for this site. i’ve hated this phobia all my life and felt 10 times better overnight
August 2nd, 2007 at 7:26 am
thank goodness - and it has a proper name!
i’m 57 and finally i know that there are other people with the same symptoms - just like that 9 year old boy i think they smell bad and they look disgusting - just like him i have since i was 2 but i hid the phobia for all those years and made the mistake to tell my husband - who tells me to get over it and teases me saying he will tip bu… all over me - even now i’ve read some of these comments out to him he thinks it is ridiculous - just as well i kept quiet for so many years -
like some others i made up excuses or just told them that i was not feeling well - the truth!!! when i was little i simply vommitted - which resulted in many trips to doctors and medical examinations and even a few years on a fat free diet
my advise to parents is be sympathetic - ridicule or curing only results in discomfort, guilt and embarrassment and anxiety!
it is good that you know about it - the child needs your trust!!
it is not necessary to have things with b… help by using zips and toggles and velcro
i can’t remember trauma but my earliest memory was when i was about 2 and i was nearly sick handing my mother the singlet of my baby brother with one on the shoulder [like Tania - that baby ones are bad?]
so has it to do with early childhood? and why do we all have the same symptoms and why are the metal ones on jeans sort of ok
i think it worth investigating
thank you all for your comments and thanks so much to Haje for her page
August 2nd, 2007 at 11:48 pm
I have had this disgust for buttons all my life. Even my mum has it, she only told me about it some 6 months ago.
It is not fear, it is about disgust and hatred, I tell you.
If someone would try to force something with buttons on me, I swear, I would be in jail for homicide. The factor of disgust is so high.
God I hate those evil things made of sickening black dark materia.
August 8th, 2007 at 5:43 pm
I hate buttons also. I always have and I guess I always will.
What really puzzles me is how anybody could possibly think that buttons are for men. I can’t imagine a more flamboyant, effeminate object on God’s green earth, yet people claim that buttons are somehow for men.
August 9th, 2007 at 5:59 pm
I found this site after my sister-in-law did some research for me. I honestly thought I was the only person who had this fear. Mine comes froma B-box my grandmother wanted me to play with as a child. GROSS. I screamed all the way to family pictures because my mother dressed me in a purple sweater with four b’s on the left shoulder. They seriously were going to eat me. And the thought of pulling the sweater back over my head was killing me. That was a horrible fam pict.
As I have grown, i am much better. I have children now, and I can dress them in shirts and polos but I HURRY and wash my hands after. I can wear a shirt with some on it, ONLY if i really like it, and I can bleach it in the wash. I ALWAYS wear a tee-shirt under something that has b’s. Never do i allow them to touch my skin. Duvet’s too make me want to puke. Can you imagine waking up to a few of them staring you in the face? YUK.
Thanks for the info, and the knowledge that there are others out there!!
August 13th, 2007 at 9:30 pm
The first time I realized I had a fear of buttons was in 3rd grade when the teacher passed around a bucket of buttons for use in an art project. I gagged when the bucket came to me and I remember picking only the metal buttons on the surface of the bucket, careful not to disturb the rest of the pile. From that point on (I am now 29) I avoid plastic buttons at all costs. Buttons lost on the floor or on a table are the worst. I cannot look at them. If I have to get rid of one, I get someone else to do it for me, or I will need to get a huge wad of kleenex to pick it up with to avoid contact. Thank you for creating this website. I thought I was the only one.
August 13th, 2007 at 11:31 pm
As the mother of a ten year old boy button hater it’s reassuring to know so many others feel the same but slightly worrying to see that you don’t seem to grow out of this. When my son was little I never forced him to wear buttons -it was easier just to avoid clothing with them. Formal occasions though few and far between are a challenge although I did once find a smart shirt for my sister’s wedding with a zip neck! School uniform has been ok so far thanks to BHS who do a nice white cotton polo shirt with a little V-neck button free collar. But next year it’s senior school and a very strict white buttoned shirt uniform policy…..for the next seven years. What can we do? I’d be glad to hear how others have got past this hurdle. I told him I’d cut them off and replace with something else - he said he quite liked the idea of being “Velcro Boy”! We laugh about it but the last thing I want is for him to be teased about it. I don’t want to “cure” him - it’s such a mild thing and makes him the interesting little lad he is (and how dull the world would be without all of you!). Most of the time we cope - it’s just the school uniform that’s going to be a problem. Thanks
August 16th, 2007 at 9:50 pm
What is it with you silly britonians? Will you never quit using those ugly, disforming, degrading school uniforms?
Anything with buttons on it is plain wrong. And vomitary.
Yeeeooouuuwwww.
The whole human race is completely sick.
August 19th, 2007 at 4:51 am
I also have the same problem but I also cringe from pearls, watches or anything that resembles that shiney uck!! I am 37 yr old married woman with 2 kids (with clothes with no buttons because of me) they know as well as my family and friends, but I don’t care..let them poke fun…as long as no one touches me with one, I just shrug it off…I actually kind of cringe with a lot of things…piling on clothes, peoples eye glasses especially if they’re dirty ughhhh makes me want to vomit..i would never ever wear another persons earings even if they soaked in in alcohol for a year, and if I touch a button by accident, I do wash my hands, then keep wipeing them on something to get the button off of me…Everyone thought I was crazy and I remeber being young and my mom saying I would grow out of it…Never did, and don’t think I ever will…Jean buttons don’t faze me, but anything else, forget it…just wondering if anyone has the same problem with the other things I mentioned…and thanks for making me know I am not alone in this…
August 24th, 2007 at 1:11 am
I am 16 years old and have had a fear of buttons a little after the middle of elementary school. I think what triggered it was the buttons on the uniform I had to wear. It was a whihte button down shirt with many buttons. Also the skirt we had to wear had two buttons as well. Now-a-days whenever I see buttons (not the metal ones on jeans though)I get creeped out. It is really annoying when some of the cute clothes have them, but I can’t wear them. I think I have a mild case of button phobia but to all who have worse cases, your not alone.
Adios ya’lls.
–marybeth–
September 1st, 2007 at 5:12 pm
Since reading this website it has given me so much insight into my son’s b-fobia. We do not have him wear buttons anymore at all. Our Sunday mornings are so much more pleasurable. I have cut the buttons off his dress pants and he is fine with them. It has changed my whole shopping perspective and I don’t dare buy anything that has a button anywhere on it.
Thanks so much Jen (#55) for your advise to parents. I am still hoping someone can offer me some more advise on the best way to deal with this and if there are any coping strategies that will help him the most. Thanks so much for all your comments-they have been so enlightning.
September 5th, 2007 at 3:07 pm
Same as everyone else on here… I have hated the nasty c**k - suckers since I can remember. Liiiittle, little… I used to throw fits of rage if my mom tried to dress me in them - she thought I was schitzo for sure. I completely feel the same about the embarrassment being as bad as the “phobia” itself… It’s extremely overwhelming, and seriously causes distractions from everyday life.
I seriously went for years and years thinking I was a freaking psycho or something having this pure hatred and disgust for the stupid things. Finally, about two years ago (I’m 27) I told my best friend. I kind of blurted it out on accident, but it felt great to get it off my chest. She thought I was joking of course and laughed her a** off. Even when she finally realized I was serious she laughed for weeks. She’d try to “joke” with me, taping random ones to gifts and things for a couple months until I finally told her enough was enough. She has gotten so good about not wearing them around me; she’s a really good friend. The best part is that she told me she’s almost the opposite and would wear them every chance she got, she loves them so much. I think that’s insane.
I mean truthfully, the thought of it (the pure hatred) actually IS absurd but I can’t help it. They make me nauseus, and pissed off just to think about them, let alone look at them. Mine is the same issue too, with the shiny plastic ones being the most repulsive. Jeans are fine, but plastic of any sort is repugnant. And I, too, have the thing with other people’s glasses but that’s not AS bad as earrings. I hate, absolutely HATE when someone finds a stray earring on the floor and is all excited like “LOOK! An earring!” I’m thinking “Do you know where that f***ing thing has been?!?!?” It’s like, if you found a dead mouse just laying around, would you pick it up and tell the world? NO! Same with stray buttons & earrings, PEOPLE!!! Makes me shudder at the sheer thought…
I agree with most everyone else too… I don’t see the flipping point in having the stupid things around. If the inventor of these horrible little bits of disgust weren’t already dead, I would murder that mother f***er in a heartbeat. I have been SO fortunate not to have gone to a school or have a job where they are required. If they were, I would go broke - I don’t care. They are ridiculous and ugly and I hate them to pieces. I feel sorry for those of you that have been forced to wear them.
I am going to continue to check this site to see just how many others are out there that are in the same boat. It really is very comforting to know there is at least one other person with this problem, let alone several!!! Thanks a MILLION to Haje for creating this site. You are an angel. (Hopefully a buttonless one… UGH sick. Just typing that word is so repulsive.)
September 5th, 2007 at 10:16 pm
I am so glad that it’s not just me. I have had a fear of b****** all my life. Even my kids make fun of me which is not good at all. If I have to sew on a “b” I feel physically sick afterwards so try to avoid it at all costs. The other day I caught my daughter chewing one and I was retching in the street.
Is there a cure out there?
September 20th, 2007 at 9:56 am
hi, i have a 9 yr old daughter that has this phobia and has had it for about two years. At first i thought that she would grow out of it but in the last few years i have realised that it has got worse or maybe that its just that shes able to voice it more. The school social worker is working through this with her very slowly but it makes it hard as my other chikldren continue to tease her about it. i hope this treatment works because id hate to see her grow up with what seems to be a cripeling thing to live with.
September 29th, 2007 at 6:32 pm
This site surprised me. I’m sixteen years old, and as long as I can remember, I’ve had this strong repulsive feeling towards buttons. I have no idea why, and I find it very strange.
I haven’t told anyone about this…anxiety, in fear that they might think I’m a nut case. Other than this…anxiety, I’m really quite sane.
It’s a relief reading all of these responses, although some of them were quite uncomfortable to read. When I read something, I visualize it, and the response describing somebody at school licking a button made me cringe.
In fact, the sight of buttons makes me cringe. I can’t touch them, and I can’t even THINK about them without cringing. So this response is a bit difficult for me to write. Perfectly smooth buttons, and the kind with four holes are the worst. As a young child, I had a button up coat, as I lived in a very cold climate. I never buttoned it up myself; I always had someone else do it. Another time, we had a pull-out couch matress. The matress had buttons sewed all over it. Even with a sheet over it, I couldn’t sleep on it. I kept jumping up, and my mother kept getting angry with me.
Even to this day, I don’t have a single piece of clothing with a button on it, and I immediately have to wipe my hand off or wash my hands when I accidently touch one while going through clothes at the store or something. I hate polo shirts, like the majority posted, but the metal piece on jeans don’t bother me. I honestly avoid touching them, and I have difficulty eating with them in sight. If someone were wearing them, I would avoid that person. I stepped on one with bare feet once [writing that made me cringe], and it just disgusted me. I kept wiping my foot on the ground.
Thinking about it, I really start to laugh at myself, because it’s a funny thing to be disgusted about. However, I’m very relieved to know that I’m not the only one.
October 1st, 2007 at 2:23 pm
i am glad to know that there are others out there that suffer from this phobia like i do. when i told people that i am afraid of buttons they just laughed at me. now i know that there are others like me =D
October 15th, 2007 at 6:59 pm
I have had this phobia for as long as I can remember, and everyone in my family thought I was just making it up. I couldn’t wear jeans for the longest time, or anything with buttons on it. When I was younger I remember loving the osh-kosh overrall clips, but only when they were latched. When I was about 14 I convinced myself that I could wear jeans, because the kids at school made fun of me for wearing sweatpants all the time. I talked my mom into buying a pair of JNCOs, which were usually very baggy and highly decorated, and I got comfortable with those.
While I was in Girl Scouts I told my mother to not bother buying me a uniform - it had buttons all over it, I thought it was ugly and seeing the other girls in it made me gag. I told her it was a waste of money so she didn’t buy one, and I wore green pants/shorts and a white t-shirt with my sash as a compromise.
My first job was at McDonald’s and I tried everything I could to avoid wearing the 2-button shirt. When the store got decorated t-shirts from the company catalog that we were allowed to wear on Fridays, I wore them everyday I could get away with. After that job I avoided a lot of jobs that forced you to wear that type of uniform, and had to work in a place where I could wear what I wanted with an apron, like A.C. Moore.
To this day I cannot stand wearing anything with these evil little demons of plastic, and when my boyfriend is wearing a shirt or jacket (he has a jean jacket that is COVERED with them, lots of pockets and the cuffs have them), I refrain from touching that person as much as possible.
I also have a wicked fear of money, mostly coins. I hate touching it and will need to wash my hands immediately after contact. My boyfriend has a tendency to leave coins where ever he happens to be standing when emptying his pockets, and sometimes will forget. I’ve flipped out on him for dropping change IN THE BED after waking up with a dime stuck to my skin (shivers), as well as on the floor after stepping on it with bare feet. He has a change jar, but still insists on putting his change on the nightstands, the kitchen table, the counters, on top of the microwave.. you get the idea. I can still pay for things with cash, but I make a bee-line for the bathroom as soon as possible afterwards.
I sent a link to this page to my boyfriend’s email. Hopefully he will take me a little more seriously after reading this… thanks for putting this up for those of us to know we aren’t alone.
October 16th, 2007 at 10:00 pm
I cannot describe my feelings when I see this site. I’m having the exact same problem than everybody here. And of course also I thought that I’m alone on this whole planet. I (24) hate b****** since I was born!
About two years ago I tried to googled my problem in German (it took me some time to type….) however - there were 0 results. Made me feel even more stupid and totally crazy. Still you don’t find too much about our pain at all.
In fact I can write the b**** word much easier in English than in my mother language. Everything else stays the same. Jeans is ok but worst case could be loose ones or something liquid to eat or even both. Holy Jesus I did some stunts to come out of the most horrible situations. Adjusting jackets at work in school at parties, sending the most beautiful guy home because his underwear was “mephitic”.
How much suffer is it not to be able to hug somebody you love? Even not your mum or dad. I would have to puke right away.
I created a black list in my mind where I immediately sort out people that are wearing b***. That makes it difficult to like somebody on their real character because my phobia plays such a big role all around! Nice people are the ones who wear normal T-shirts. NOT POLO! I would love to run away on a place where I’m alone. Gosh this is so crazy!
Anyways I’m so curious to find out how this crazy situation came up. Some of you had their bad experience but I cannot relate this feeling to any moment happening in my life.
Rather than all this I’d like to know what to do against it! Is there a way out?? Did anybody experience success with any therapy?
I talked to 3 people about this in my total life. The last person found this site for me and supports me in finding a solution. Even this already turned my life.
Thanks to him and thanks to everybody writing here. This feels so good to know about you….
All the best. Doris
October 18th, 2007 at 4:18 pm
[…] Garderobe und leide wohl an Koumpounophobie. Nee, das habe ich nicht erfunden, das habe ich in diesem Blog gefunden. Das wusste ich gar nicht. Ich meine, daß es das gibt. Aber wie mein Therapeut immer sagt: unter […]
October 19th, 2007 at 6:24 pm
Is there any cure for this?
October 20th, 2007 at 11:11 am
Wow - so pleased I’ve found this site as I thought I was the only person experiencing this phobia. My daughter is now 5 and has had a phobia of buttons since she could talk. I spoke to my health visitor about it a while ago and she advised avoiding them altogether. This has worked until now, when my daughter has started school. Uniform is a shirt or polo short. I bought polo shirts and have taken the buittons off, but she still hates them because she knows the buttons were there. She screams when getting dressed in the morning and it takes ages, its causing us both so much stress - does anyone have any advice?
I find it hard to be sympathetic, as I don’t really understand what it is she’s feeling - she tells me they’re “scary” but a lot of you seem to say they make you feel sick. Does it get better as you get older?
October 21st, 2007 at 9:36 pm
wow… i really did think i was the only one. Glad to know i’m not. Thought i was crazy for a while.
October 23rd, 2007 at 1:21 pm
I am so glad I have read this. I have been repulsed and terrified of coming into contact with buttons for as long as I can remember. I don’t think anything triggered it, it has just always been that way. I can’t look at them without getting all shivery and emotional and if I have to touch them I cry and then get all shaky for about an hour. The plastic ones are the worst, the more holes the worse and if they are unnecessary or not attached to anything especially in large numbers it sets me off. My mum has always had a jar of buttons which absolutely repulses me. I am ok with Jean buttons as there aren’t any holes and they aren’t plastic and aren’t attached to clothing by thread. Usually they have a kind of hole thing that they go through so they are ok. i got really freaked out the other day as there was a show on TV where Derren Brown was asking a woman to shake a tray of buttons and he counted them really quickly, I had to look away from the telly and was nearly crying before my boyfriend would turn it off. I’m just glad that other people feel the same way and although I have always known there were others with the same thing I am glad to hear that my reasons are the same. It’s irrational but I can’t help it. I get teased by people who think it’s a load of bollocks but it is not and it’s nice to know.
October 24th, 2007 at 6:25 pm
I am 24 now. I have written my story but there are a few things I want to add.
I haven’t found it to get any better as I grew up - just easier to avoid when I can buy my own clothes. My mother had 2 babies when I was 17 and 19, and when they go shopping for new clothes she lets them pick out what they want to wear. If a school has a uniform your child won’t wear because of b*****, ask the school if there is an alternative, like soft sweaters in place of b****down shirts, or turtlenecks, something that looks nice but doesn’t have these things on it.
I still feel nauseas when seeing these things, but have learned to hide my gagging if I am forced to touch them by faking a sneeze or something. I wouldn’t say it’s ruined my life, but it definitely makes some situations a bit more challenging. I now work in an office environment and have to wear “business casual” clothes. I shop at Kohls (US) for most of my clothes, because they have a nice style for dressy attire, and use a lot of strings and lines instead of b****. Finding pants is the WORST though. EVERYTHING has these evil things on them. I have found a style of Dockers than have a flap that goes across the inside near hooks that is supposed to b*****, but I leave it to keep the thing from touching my skin.
Luckily most days I can wear jeans. Just not the kind with the things on the butt pockets. Those are so ugly and unnecessary. I am still looking for a nice business suit that I will probably have to wear someday, that doesn’t have b’s on them.
October 24th, 2007 at 8:37 pm
It’s so good to read all these messages and know I’m not the only one!
I won’t let my boyfriend wear polo shirts when he is near me (even though he loves to wear them) because he knows I won’t go anyhere near him if he has them on.
I particularly hate buttons which are unecessary, like polo shirts or button down shirts with lots of little buttons on, or jeans with loads of buttons instead of a zip.
Weirdly I seem to be converting a few people, some have complained that they are now noticing buttons everywhere!
Oh and a warning to everyone in Britain - beware the TenaLady advert! Without warning four humungous buttons fill the whole screen; I nearly fell off my chair when they appeared, they are quite revolting.
October 29th, 2007 at 5:44 pm
Yuhuuu!! There is so many of us… I cannot believe it! I am 30 years old and I just found out my “weird” phobia has a name. I already knew I was not the only one… as I met my boyfriend I also realised he never wore any buttons… this might have been one of the many qualities I liked about him. As the years went by I decided to tell him about my phobia (until then only my mom, dad and sister knew about it- I was so embarrassed to tell anyone) suprise suprise it turned out he never wore buttons because he also had the same phobia and confesed to me that one of his younger sisters also suffered the same problem! I MARRIED HIM of course!
Luckly for me as I grow older I lear to be more tolerant towards butttons.. Ok I have only managed to cope with the big ones, provided they are attached somewhere are not too shiny or flat or in contact with any type of liquid or slime! The small ones are still a puking matter for me. Buachh!
November 5th, 2007 at 1:05 am
Haje, thank you so much for doing this site!
It’s been amazing to read. We all have such incredibly similar symptoms!
I too have had this since at least the age of 4 (I’m now 49).
Like Cheryl, I have the same thing with pearls, although not in oysters, only on a string. Safety pins also (any one else got that one?). I also can’t remember any traumatic incident that may have triggered this, I too thought I was the only one in the world with this. Like most, I’m fine with jeans, and often wear cargo pants with buttoned pockets (I just avoid touching them). I can wear buttoned shirts if the occasion demands it, but feel better when I get home and can take it off. I also do the Kleenex thing if I have to pick a loose one up and also wash my hands if I touch one. I am particularly repulsed by chipped ones or loose thread.
Another area of commonality I find fascinating is the repulsion for decorative use of them. I had a girlfriend once who had a duvet cover she’d had since childhood with then sewn all over it. I couldn’t tell her why I wouldn’t sleep under it (UUUURRRRGGGGHHHH!!!). I’m also intrigued by the amount of people in this forum who find them “archaic”. I have the same feelings,and see the shirt and tie thing as weird and insane.
I’ve kept this secret all my life, except for one ex-partner that I told. She teased me so much about it I never told anyone since. However, after reading this page, I’ve decided to show it to my girlfriend when she gets home (We’ve been together over 5 years, have 2 kids, and I’ve never told her).
Thanks to you all for making me feel like slightly less of a weirdo (well at least in one of the many ways that I am)
Keep tryin’ with the kittens Haje!
November 5th, 2007 at 1:11 am
Also meant to mention, I too have an aversion to even saying or typing the B word. I’m studying Web-design at the moment, and our tutor has us structuring our sites with an “images” folder, and a “buttons” folder. I’ve had to change mine to “Menus” so I don’t have to keep typing it or even looking at it.
Thanks again Haje
November 24th, 2007 at 6:39 am
I am 27 and have had this fear of buttons for as long as I can remember. I told my mum about it when I was about 6 and she made me go to a doctor to see if I was lying because it sounded ridiculous. I remember that when I was about 2 my long hair got caught around one when mum was putting a shirt on me and she couldn’t untangle it. I had to get my hair cut short and that is when my mum reckons the phobia started. I am okay with the metal buttons on jeans but plastic ones completely gross me out. I cannot have a button touch my skin and if I have to touch one I will use gloves or a cloth because otherwise I have to spend about 5 or so minutes washing whatever part of my skin that the button has touched with soap and warm water.
Everyone I have told thinks that I am a complete nutter and they all make fun of it, so it is nice to know that I am not alone.
December 3rd, 2007 at 2:06 pm
Hi Adam,
I also dislike safety pins(but not as much as buttons and only depending on the size or placement of the safety pins). But here again I am sure we are not the only ones.
I actually belive if we where to carry out a survey of all the people who wrote on this page, we would probably find out that most of us are also repulsed by other little things like earings, coins, bracket braces etc…
Maybe because these things are buttonlike things?
December 7th, 2007 at 5:22 pm
I hate buttons, pretty much with a passion. I never knew if I should call it a phobia because they do not scare me, but they completely disgust me out! I am not able to wear buttons, except my polo for work, but even that is hard for me! I have a hard time eating with someone who is wearing buttons or look at someone across the room who has buttons on. It grosses me out when people wear shirts with buttons and don’t wear shirts underneath them because the buttons are touching their skin! Gross! There is a certain smell that goes along with people who are wearing buttons and I am not for sure where it comes from, but it does. When I’m forced to wear the buttons I have to have somebody button them up for me and I have to look away and not breathe.
December 8th, 2007 at 3:33 am
Amazing what an internet search throws up. Yes, I too thought it was just me! I’m not exactly afraid of buttons, they just give me the creeps. I also hate the word. I don’t wear anything with buttons (metal ones on jeans are fine) although I bought a t shirt with small buttons on recently. However I haven’t actually work it yet! I do feel sorry for men who share the button phobia. How do they get round the shirt and tie thing?
My personal top hate - the little translucent ones with 2 holes and a sort of diagonal slash. Yuk! Closely followed by the small 4 hole ones.
December 11th, 2007 at 12:12 am
I was about 25 when I realised that I wasn’t the only one! We had moved offices and where everything had been moved around there was a dusty, large plastic bu***n that needed to be moved out of my way (cos I couldn’t do it-certainly not without vomiting). I had to ask a colleague to do it only to find that she squealed and protested with the same vigour as I would!
I have had a revulsion of them for as long as I can remember. I don’t fear them…ie I don’t panic/adreneline flight or flight. They simply make me want to vomit.
My aunties used to knit jumpers (with them on the shoulder for fastening) for me when I was small and I would retch and vomit when mum tried to put one on me…….thank god for zips for this is what she had to replace them with!
She also had a b****n jar which I can recall perfectly now and I still want to retch.
The worst is a b****n against my face.
I am repulsed by large plastic ones, small shirt ones, old fashioned kitten eye ones, ones that are really loose on clothing and worst of all are the ones which are loose…fallen off a shirt, lost in a dark dusty corner.
My best explanation is that it is something really primitive…that’s what it feels like. They just aren’t natural…!
I even had a problem with peas because they were just too round and have only started eating them recently!
I have no patience for these designers who insist on blummin well stick them on everything …..for decoration for goodness sake, not even for a function! Jewellry even! Euugh!
I’ve had to temper my revulsion since I am a nurse and so have had to dress and undress people over the years… can’t really start retching when I’m undoing their shirt…although there has been the exception!
I don’t like to hug my fiance if his shirt buttons will be against my skin! He’s well aware of my revulsion and thinks it’s extremely funny and taunts me occasionally with a loose one!
My fiance came home drunk one night and ripped his shirt off as was far to wasted to manipulate the damn things so they were haunting me in the bathroom for weeks until I had a strong stomach day and ridded myself of them with marigolds on!
I think we should campaign for designer to ditch b****ns as there seems to be so many of us!!!
(I don’t like the word either!!)
I have absolutely NO interest in having any sort of therapy to get over it, I’d rather just avoid the nasty little buggers. I never want to ‘get used’ to them they should just be made illegal!
December 11th, 2007 at 4:17 pm
i dont like plastic buttons especially red ones and black shiney ones. they make feel sick. i also dont like it when people but plastic in their mouth, for example a pen lid. although i dont mind the buttons which are on jeans as they are metal. i also dont like sports caps on bottles, i cant drink from them! does any one else have these issues?
December 16th, 2007 at 10:43 pm
hi i left a comment a while back
i have also got a phoebia of butons ive had since as long as i can remember
i had all ways thought i was the only person who had a phobea of butons but when i found out there was a name for this and that lots of people have it i was trilled. i would love to now someone that has this phobea as well because no one can really understand how hard this is to go true even my own mother and my bestest friend dont understand this.
they seem to think i can just get over it but i coudnt even see my self wairing them in front of them (im not trying to be mean to them be cause they have helped me true this a lot)some times i walk into a shop and think ill just pick some thing up and try it on with buttons on them even though no one in the shop nows i have a phobea of buttons i still cant do it know matter how much i try i just cant get it on me i cant even pick it up of the shelfe its on.sometimes i look at all the fashion thats in and must of them have buttons on them some of them i might really like.i can where jeans with the metal buttons and i dont mind the ones with the fabric around them but i still wouldnt were them because i know that theres a button under neath them.i hate all kind of buttons exsept the metal ones there fine.i wish people would understand this is such a hard thing to go true and i wish some people wouldnt laugh and tease you about it because wen i was in primary i told people a bout it and they told other people and then they blackmailed me about it and stuck buttons in my face. but know im in first year and wouldnt dare tell any one about it. im even scared that people will c this and laugh but its not some thing to laugh about at all
so please if any one lives in limerick like me and has this phobea then please write about it and tell me ur storie please it would be so great.
when im older i will hope to get rid of this phobea and be able to wear them and touch them and even be ok with other people wareing them
December 18th, 2007 at 12:53 am
I’ve always had a moderate dislike of buttons - but only under certain circumstances. The button collection in a tea caddy my mother had, with lots of grubby bits of thread, freaked me out. I really dislike buttons lying loose or dangling from a garment, about to drop off. They make me a bit nauseous.
I am bothered by most buttons with only two holes, as my dislike seems to be linked to the fact of them coming loose or even breaking. I don’t like other small round objects (i.e. pearls, sequins YUKKK! and grubby coins)
Interestingly, I always disliked clothing where the ornamentation didn’t serve a purpose. Button plackets that couldn’t even be opened freaked me a bit.
I must confess (probably to many co-sufferers’ disgust) that I find buttons a turn-on in some cases. If they are the smallish four-hole type, securely fastened on the front of a tight, collarless soft T-shirt that only opens half way down, I find them rather erotic. I suppose erotic titillation is a type of purpose of clothing too. Just as I also like lots of pockets fastened with solidly fixed press-studs.
I think my dislike/obsession re. buttons might have to do with being breast fed. On old photographs I see my mother wearing those classic 60’s cardigans with the two-hole cyclops eye buttons. Maybe it’s to do with the baby’s instinct of recognising the breast teat, but at the same time avoiding anything that looks like, but isn’t, the real thing (such as buttons). So if they aren’t properly attached to mum - they’re wrong.
January 4th, 2008 at 3:28 am
Oh my gosh!!!!!! I can’t believe I am not the only person who deals with this!!! I have hated buttons since as long as I can remember. My mom would buy me clothes and I would always refuse to wear them if I found they had buttons on them. To this day the sight of these random “items” for “stylish decoration” DISGUSTS me. I think they are the ugliest things in the world and if I have an article of clothing that has them (besides jeans) I cut those suckers off. I especially hate big buttons on sweaters and wooden ones (GROSS!) I can tolerate polo shirts for the most part unless they stand out too much then it grosses me out. I also can stand guys button up shirts as long as they aren’t a different color than the shirt….ex: White shirt….Black Items. WHAT?! ewww.
January 15th, 2008 at 2:22 pm
I have recently been given a pencil case with buttons all over by my colleagues - do these people just not understand me? They should just leave us koumpounophobics alone! The buttons are out to get me….
January 16th, 2008 at 11:22 am
I have had a button phobia since I was a child (I am now 50)… especially the semi-transparent sort with 4 holes - and especially when they are not attached to clothing, and - even worse - if there is a bit of cotton attached!
A few years ago, it occurred to me that they reminded me of being confronted with hordes of jellyfish when I was paddling, when I was very young… these jellyfish were the sort that have 4 circles on their back. (4 circles = 4 holes; bits of cotton = jellyfish tendrils ??). Amazingly, since I made this link, the problem got much, much better. I still avoid buttons if possible, but they don’t freak me out anything like as much as they used to!
February 2nd, 2008 at 1:41 pm
Incredible! I,m not the only self perceived crazy person on the planet. Yes, I too have suffered from this condition for as long as I can remember. I am married and we have two daughters. I am the only one in my family who suffers from this.
I have told only my wife.I am 44 years of age and have endured many very uncomfortable days and occasions on account of the requirement for me to conform to the customary dress codes required for school and work attire. So repulsed was I as a student, in the wearing of school shirts as part of the uniform, I would only do up two of the fasteners and would always wear a school jumper even when the temperature was over 42 degrees Celsius, and then the school blazer would go on over that along with the school tie. When undressing immediately after getting home from school, I would not touch the fasteners but would leave the two done up and pull the shirt over my head. Touching these things was to be avoided whenever possible.
For me also, they had an unpleasant odour and if I touched one or it me, I felt contaminated and would rub my fingers on something to remove the soiled sensation the object had left. This sensation on my figures would last for a few minutes. Even now I will do them up but will only undo enough to remove the garment over my head.
Since I met my wife 16 years ago, I have been making some progress in overcoming this phobia. My wife thinks I look nice in a shirt and so with her encouragement, I chose to wear a stiff fabric business shirt done up to the neck with small 4 hole fasteners stitched diagonally through the holes. I cannot wear shirts in which have fasteners which are stitched parallel through the four holes. (The two hole fastener is not a possibility.) I find the slight rubbing around my neck of the shear fabric and hard collar comfortable but I will only wear shirts this way in the privacy of my own home when we are not expecting visitors. I like the feel of the shirt but still detest the look and presence of the fasteners. I am extremely particular about the shirt that I wear. So much so that I have 12 of the exact same shirt which I wear for work and 3 others the same only different in colour which I wear only at home.
I always find it incredibly difficult on the rare occasions that I shop for clothes, and literally run through the shirt areas of department stores and feel very uncomfortable still. I usually return home empty handed. Sometimes my wife will accompany me to try to settle me down and we have the occasional success.
I don’t consider that I have overcome my phobia which I discovered ( a significant many also suffer from) just two days ago, but by very careful selection, I feel I am managing to lessen the embarrassing difficulties which have endured to date.
It was a very sad day when these fasteners were invented.
Having read the entries on the website, I thought I should submit my story as it is much the same only a bit different.
It has eased my mind now knowing that I am not alone.
I
February 6th, 2008 at 6:15 am
I am also shocked that other people have this phobia. I am 25 years old and have not told anyone in my life. I am too embarassed to tell anyone. For some reason, I think they look smelly!! The worst for me is when I see poeple wearing those t-shirts with 3 buttons down the front. It makes me gag.
I sometimes have to wear dress shirts for work, but I ALWAYS wear a t-shirt underneath so the button is not touching my body.
I am very fortuante that my girlfriend always wears tank tops or hoodies or t-shirts. She has no clue about me, but it makes it easier for me to cuddle with her knowing she never wears them either.
She always tells me to buy polos or button shirts because she think it looks hot on guys. I just tell her I think they are ugly and I would rather wear a t-shirt.
I hope it is something I will overcome but I am not ready to tell anyone my phobia.
Good luck everyone!
March 14th, 2008 at 9:25 am
I am so happy that there is more of us. As most of you, I don’t mind touching metal buttons on jeans. Most of the time it is as well OK to wear wooden ones, but they must be big. I think, that most evil ones are those with pearly shine. I do not mind, how many holes are in them. Two or four, if they are shiny, they are disgusting. Over the years I got to the stage, where I am able to touch plastic buttons, which are black or dark blue and have sharp edges without any curves. But only with the tips of my fingers. If I touch any of the plastic ones with my nails, I feel like vomitting. As well, when I am in a clothes shop and I touch dress, which has the buttons, I start to scratch and wipe that hand. Sometimes I must even leave the shop. When my boyfriend wears the boxer shorts with buttons, I am not able to open them.
March 16th, 2008 at 8:59 pm
hey guys, ma name is kirsten and i am 14, for as long as i can remember i have hated the sight,word,and thought of buttons
i thought i was the only one lol i am to scared of telling ma dad incase he laughs of doesnt belive me (what should i do?) ……x if any won wants to talk about it add: kirst-the-worst@hotmail.co.uk
March 19th, 2008 at 4:52 am
Why is it that no one seems bothered by buttons on jeans, I wonder?
I couldn’t even read this thread properly because the descriptions were making me cringe.
I have gotten better with age, but I’m yet to grow out of it.
March 19th, 2008 at 5:39 am
Does anyone know where the word ‘koumpounophobia’ derives from?
March 28th, 2008 at 7:20 am
[…] Untuk mengetahui dengan lebih mendalam tentang kondisi ini, rajin-rajinlah ke laman web ini, Haje’s Writings. Di sana kita dapat membaca testimoni-testimoni penderita koumpounophibia yang rata-rata merasa […]
March 28th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
I can’t believe there are so many other people with this phobia. My friends and family all think I am completely mad and think it is funny to put them in unexpected places. As a primary teacher my biggest fear is that the children find out and start leaving them around the place. They don’t seem to notice that I always have an excuse and direct them to another adult to help do up buttons after PE!!
I think they are dirty and smelly and I can’t look at a loose one and I certainly cannot pick one up that has fallen off or sew one back on - if it falls off thet is it. I can wear some clothes with buttons now but I naturally avoid them when shopping for me and my child!
I also hate second hand clothing and jumbles sales which i think is connected - the smell and the hand washing reaction is the same!!
March 29th, 2008 at 1:36 am
i am really afraid of them and have been for as long as i can remember, metal ones dont seem to bother me as much but others do, i cant even bring myself to saying the word, i have only told cetain people about my phobia but they keep repeating the word etc and it makes me feel sick, i cant even breath by them as i feel im breathing in infected air in a way, i just about plucked up the courage to write the phobia in google. i cant touch them i cant look at them but i want to know how to get over this fear…im glad im not the only one
April 3rd, 2008 at 6:23 am
I have had this strange phobia since I was 2 or 3 and I’m almost 20 now. It’s hard not telling any of your friends and trying to live a normal life without people finding out, but oddly enough people don’t notice until I tell them. It also seemed to give me self-control for any and all other fears I have. If I am afraid of something, it takes a lot of effort to make me react [unless you are my sister chasing me around with b….] I don’t classify it as a true fear because it’s more of disgust to me. Kind of like how some people don’t like bugs. I would touch any bug before a b…..
As I get older it seems to lessen in degree but it’s always there. I have found ways to avoid them and it makes me forget that they even exist. One day I hope to live in a button free home with button free husband and kids. It feels selfish but even though i thought I would never get married because nobody would love a freak like me, I hoped one day I would meet someone else with the same.. problem. And now I see there are a lot more people than I thought!
Really, I am grateful for the group I hang out with because they hardly ever wear them.
Feel free to message me. I would be glad to have someone to talk and relate to who would understand and not ridicule me for my “phobia”
twizted_rune@yahoo.com
April 5th, 2008 at 3:13 am
WOW!! it is amazing that there are so many of us out there.. im 19 and have suffered from this for as long as i can remember, im so glad that there is actually a name for it now as i looked it up not that long ago and found nothing…i felt like a freak.. for me its not as though they scare me as such, they repolse me.. like when i see them or even hear the word i feel like i need to vomit, then my hands start to feel funny..
it was hard when all my friends started to turn 18 because there happened to be 2, quite popular songs that mentioned them like 100 times played at every party… that was untill my friends requested for them not to be played anymore as i would run out crying.. How embarrassing!! so at least my friends kinda supported my phobia, (after teasing me for years)
and i agree with most people’s comments.. its the plastic ones with holes that really get me, the metal ones are’nt too bad..
so a BIG Thank You to who ever it was that came up with a name for it… finally!!
WE ARE NOT FREAKS!!
April 21st, 2008 at 10:36 pm
I too am amazed that I am not a freak, after reading and article in today’s paper (the sun 21/04/08) it not only stated our phobia had a name (which helped me finf this forum but we share our phobia with one in 75,000 people in the world, so thats almost a normal thing - I have always been afriad of the above mentioned item but my fear is only for “dis-embodied” ones (where they can get you, unlike sewn on types that are retrained) i think this is because my mum wouldn’t allow a phobia as an excuse to not do up my school shirt, so i think i must have learnt to live with it. Simon4059
April 22nd, 2008 at 4:33 pm
I am so glad i found this website! I am the only on ein my family and out of all of my friends who suffer from this phobia. I’ve always though that i am a freak and that i was the only one. I felt like i couldn’t tell anyone because they would all make fun of me, in fact, when i told my mum, she just laughed at me.
I am fine with metal buttons like the ones on jeans. But the plastic ones with 4 or 2 holes in them make me sick. I am 14 and have lived with this fear since i can remember, i can’t hug anyone that is wearing them exposed. I find it extremely hard to get dressed in my school uniform in the mornings, heaving and becoming dizzy/light headed. I am just so glad that i’m not the only one and that zips were invented!!
April 23rd, 2008 at 6:04 pm
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April 25th, 2008 at 3:43 am
Like everyone else I’m amazed to find I’m not alone in this phobia. I’m in my mid-30s now but I remember it going back to when I was a young child seeing drawings in storybooks of characters wearing shirts with buttons and no collar. I was able to wear shirts to school but not at home until I was around 16. I would categorise my phobia as milder than some of the others who have submitted comments. My phobia is mainly restricted to garments that use buttons for decorative purposes and buttoned shirts without collars. If I see someone wearing these, I’m not sick but I will certainly feel uneasy and will sometimes mutter (somewhat insanely) under my breath “how can they wear that” or “pig” or “disgusting”. I also get completely distracted with them if for example I have a meeting with someone wearing decorative buttons I cannot concentrate. Luckily my dear wife puts up with it but I can’t stand it when our new baby wears those all-in-one suits with loads of poppers.
Well, no-one has offered any solution for this phobia, but I’m not that bothered. The last thing I’d want is to get cured then walk around like a weirdo wearing decorative buttons!
April 29th, 2008 at 11:22 am
I suffered with this problem from when i was about 2 up until about the age of 7, i remember my parents trying to put this pair of striped pyjamas with buttons on me and screaming the house down, It caused a problem when i started going to primary and i had to wear a uniform, i used to be the only kid in school who didnt wear a shirt, my mum and dad used to dress me in a white tshirt, the head teacher thought i was coming into school without a shirt because my parents couldnt afford them, they had to explain that it was just the fact i wouldnt wear them, in the end bribery succeeded, My tooth fell out and i asked for a pound note from the tooth fairy and when i woke up in the morning there was a pound note under my pillow with note (from the tooth fairy of course) saying you can only have this pound if you start wearing a shirt to school, My parents informed the school of this and when i went into school with a shirt the class teacher made such a big deal out of it