fear

[MTL]

I have a big big fear of places with spooky atmospheres.  I don't know if this is normal for someone my age.  I'm 31.

I've only just discovered this in my new job.  We basically have to walk through massive vast very old warehouses locking them up, walking through the dark pretty often with just a torch. 

On the outside of these warehouses is fenced off woodlands, it's desolate enough for badgers to roam around.  It's basically a situation where if you see a person walking around it's pretty much guaranteed they either have some mental problem or bad intentions of stealing, because they would have had to climb over these fences in the middle of nowhere at some ungodly hour of the night.

 Among the people I work with there's varied opinions about the night shifts.  The two Africans I worked with hated the dark, they would even hate the evening shifts in winter when it gets dark early, a few other people I've spoke to said they wouldn't do it, but the other guards on the night shift seem to be immune to this type of fear.


The question is do any of you on this forum think you would experience this fear being in this type of situation?

I don't know why this mentality arises, I have no belief in ghosts and the chances of a break in at these warehouses is slim to none, but my imagination just wanders.

I don't blame you for feeling creeped-out, that is natural, even if not everyone is affected by such fears.

However, I would urge you to never panic, and to keep a cool head.

On the other hand, while I don't know exactly the nature of the places you are in,
I do think it would be naive to say there is nothing to be afraid of.

I've done a little Urban Exploration in my time, and places like that offer a host of dangers
and it IS worth being aware of just how many things can hurt you, kill you, or make you very sick, in a place like that;

if you're not aware of these dangers, then you shouldn't even be there.

wild animals (especially potentially rabid animals)

dangerous, unpredictable people,

dangerous devices that can injure you, hidden in the grass by people, to trap animals;
or in some locations, unexploded ordnances;
or potentially even radioactive materials, again, depending on location.

Injury, tetanus from rusty nails,
or exposure to undesirable materials.

For instance, in big empty dark spaces, you will often get bats.

Bats are often vectors of rabies;

but even if they are NOT rabid,
if they roost in a place like that,
often a layer of their guano (droppings)
will cover everything below,
and when it dries out, and is disturbed by your feet,
the dust from it is not something you want to breathe;
you can contract respiratory ailments or parasitic infections like Toxoplasmosis.

That would scare me far more than any ghost would.

Risk of rusty stairwells, walkways, or unstable old floors collapsing underneath me,
hidden holes or wells in the ground with rotten wooden covers obscured by grass or leaves,
or heavy things falling from above,
of old asbestos or other unknown, potentially toxic or carcinogenic materials, heavy metals,
acid, gas, fumes, stuff like that;
risk of live electrical wires coming into contact with water you have to walk through,
flammable or explosive materials;

or, since you said it's a fenced-off wooded area,
I would indeed worry about badgers and other animals,

but I would worry even more about dangerous spider bites, snakes, bees or wasps nests, allergens,
....or even just TICKS....that might be vectors of Lyme disease.


I don't say all this to scare you more;
I acknowledge such places can generally be creepy,
but there are plenty of real dangers to be informed about in isolated industrial spaces like that,
especially at night, especially in the woods...

....without worrying about ghosts or curses!!

EDIT: Having said all that, I worry far more about crime, identity theft, tripping over my dog on the stairs, burning myself on the stove, hackers, car accidents and drunk drivers, than I do about toxoplasmosis or asbestos or radiation poisoning.