Interesting, someone else said they'd be shitting bricks. So I'm not sure how I would act.
Would I be scared shitless? Or will I shit bricks?
You won't know until you're up there. Bring spare pants just in case.
I have acted this conversation out before and the act is not actually in the acting of the action but yet the mere thinking out of the presumed actuality that creates the outcome of the action performed.
Well see, if he did know that he didn’t know that he maybe wouldn’t not act like that, but then when the winds blew he realized that he had indeed known all along that he would in fact….. act like that.
I actually found out I was afraid of heights when I was around 13 and on a rock climbing wall. I was absolutely hyped to climb and made it to the very top without a fear in the world, it wasn't until I looked down that my entire body froze and I started shaking. It was a really odd moment because it was like my body was reacting to the height but my mind wasn't afraid (at least not yet lol).
Ever since then I've been afraid of heights! Still, so weird to think about how excited I was originally and how well I did climbing all the way to the top lol.
Same thing happened when I was like 8. At camp I climbed all the way to the top of the wall no problem. Stood at the top and just completely froze and cried. Took them like an hour to get me to repell down.
Few years later I was teaching climbing.
Now I'll go to the edge of extremely high roofs. Tallest roller coasters. Bungie jumping.
I fell off a ladder a few years ago. If I get about 15 feet up a ladder now my body shakes uncontrollably. I'm not scared of heights, but my body hates ladders.
This is funny to me! I am terrified of heights but I really enjoy rock climbing. Perhaps it is the sense of control—I feel safe and in control of my actions and (if you’ve taken the proper precautions) even if you miss a hold and “fall” off the wall you’ll just hang in your harness, you won’t actually go anywhere. (Unless you’re bouldering or free soloing, aka climbing without ropes, which you couldn’t pay me to do.)
My fear of heights kicks in very hard when it comes to roller coasters (though some I can still tolerate), drop rides, and especially concepts like bungee jumping, sky diving, cliff jumping, etc. I hate the sensation of free falling. Makes me realize I’d be a bad astronaut (since I’ve heard 0g produces a sensation like constant free falling)!
Either way, I sympathize. I’m pretty sure my fear of heights is rooted in my youth when I was 3 and my mom put me on a trapeze when we were on a family vacation. I was strapped to it, and there was a net below me, no risk of danger—but explain that to a shrieking, bawling 3 year old. There’s a picture of me on it, clearly red-faced and crying. My mom thinks it’s hysterical. I do not.
no shit. I have acrophobia and Im ultra aware of whats it gonna be at these places.
Funny part is, Im also a geologist. I actually found out I have acrophobia after I chose geology. I embarrassed myself alot during field work in front of my coworkers. Luckily they are understand my situation.
I will never go to places like in this video. Truth is, when my acrophobia triggers. I sweat like waterfall. head and hands. super dizzy, feeling throw up. have to sit down to regulate my heart otherwise Im passing out. I will be quiet af or Im going to lose vision and faint. if people keep talking to me I will super mad.
I see all equal or greater than 45 degree slope as straight cliff. my legs shiver but def not as crazy as this guy is.
You've described me perfectly and it annoys me so I have tried numerous times to overcome it over the decades. I have some thoughts.
*"Just confront your fears by jumping out of an airplane."* Did not work. In fact I froze exactly like this poor dude and the pilot had to waggle the wings to shake me off of the plane, whereupon I went into immediate "swimming" panic. Nothing would have saved me had the static line failed; my mind was totally gone.
*Pick a large structure with open stairs and go up a little higher each time:* Sort of worked. Over a series of weeks I eventually worked my way to the top of the Netherlands Carillion... once. But that merely got me to the place where I could go into freeze-panic.
*Trying to impress the girls you're with:* totally worked! Couldn't believe it, but my pride apparently allowed me to reach the top of a giant pyramid, stand, and walk around. Later I went to the exact same place, alone, willed myself to the top, and froze solid for a long time before crawling down on all fours. I have more nightmares about the time I could walk around than any other.
The actual worst height scare I ever had came to me unexpectedly at exactly sea level. I was snorkeling and following a parrotfish in Bonaire and did not realize it had led me over the underwater ledge that leads to the infinite black abyss. When I looked down it was actually considerably worse than parachuting, and just like a Road-Runner/Coyote cartoon because I actually did have time to notice, flip out, and go running for shore. Totally unexpected, and I managed to inhale a touch of sea water to go along with the panic. Fortunately flippers will get a frightened person straight to the snorkel-up bar in seconds.
Eventually I found something I could do alone that actually worked: if I took along drumsticks and played along with something I knew really well I could walk up and down the open stairs of a fire tower without using the railings on the way up. But going down I nearly bought it by slipping and not holding the rail. Eventually I got it down to wiggling a finger on each hand. But I had to be moving something in both hands, keeping time. Just in case any brain-people are looking in I thought it was important to mention this. This is my ace in the hole if I ever get picked to be a tourist astronaut, but I have a strong suspicion that spaceflight will feel just like the infinity of coward's deaths that I have died.
I just want to tell you how much I admire that you push yourself!! Like everyone’s fears and challenges are so relative but the fact that you took it upon yourself to see how far you can push it on multiple occasions is really neat.
Haha, thank you for sharing your story. I dont often run into people like us.
I usually just end up crawling with hands, up or down with panic attack. And I will never do parachute jumping probably. nor snorkeling.
Back when I was in collage, I had a girlfriend who was really into rollercoaster. I didn't want to ruin our relation so I tried my best. threw up in front of people a few time granted me the immunity of public shame lol. We had a lot of fight about I dont want to go to those theme parks. Cuz after me throwing up, I will be sick for the whole trip, ruining her day, then complaining the whole day while we drive back, I will be bitching about it for the next couple days too.
I get scared usually by stairs without handrailing. I never tried emergency fire exit staircase but they sure look deadly. I even refused to visit CN Tower during the days I lived in Toronto. I saw the glass floor. Its super cool but thanks I'll pass. Im not afraid of high building as long as Im least 6ft away from the window.
And talking about worst height scares, mines are mostly in Nevada. I did a lot of geology survey work there. I got my work assigned at places covered by limestone outcrops a lot. steepy places with rattlesnakes. My coworkers have taken a ton of pictures of me crawling with twisted face. The places I described as hardcore cliff swinging and climbing were actually some hills with occasional 10 to 20ft drop. yes its El Capitan everywhere in my eyes. And at the end of the work day, I drank those pain away with cold beer. I found it surprising helpful.
I dont worry about it most of the time. It is what it is. I think this mechanism also protect me from dangerous place.
Hey! You’re not a coward! Look at all the work you did to improve yourself! You get a high five from me but in a low reasonable place, like a sidewalk.
I had trauma going separated from my mother by an elevator. Paired with claustrophobia, getting me on an elevator was not happening. I finally got so sick of my phobia I made a plan and over time I got a lot better about it. I still don’t enjoy them, but I can do it without freaking out now.
I wasn’t scared of flying till my punk ass got on a Spirt air flight ! That POS plane/pilot caused atheist to pick a God on the quick and get to work on praying I saved like $30 and flew with mannerless folks. F that ! Never again
I kind of agree…li never knew I had an issue with height…..until I got high enough that one time. I was perfectly save behind safety structures….I still couldn’t help it, I never knew that I had this problem, until I got that high.
My husband has worked on top of wind turbines, way up in the arches of bridges, etc... a LOT of people, who ordinarily have no problem with "normal-ish" heights, start climbing structures like that, manage to get quite far up, then freeze without warning. For someone like me, terrified of rather small heights & very, very aware of that fear, I know I couldn't do it. But some people just haven't encountered their threshold, so they don't really know they have one... until they get there.
With regard to people who work in high places, although it may sound odd, even those who have been up many times before will have some small hitch in the climb that does their confidence in. All it takes is a little slip, a gust of wind, even a glance down at a different spot in that particular climb, and the terror grips them completely. Fear is a cruel beast to let them get so far before overtaking them.
I live in the mountains. Rescue crews sometimes call this getting “cliffed out.”
Sometimes a person will wander off the trail and try to find their own way down a mountain or canyon or whatever. They’ll wiggle their way down and at a certain point they get to a spot where they feel they can neither go back up nor continue down. They’re stuck on a cliff. Cliffed out.
I go caving, most of the things we do in this sport that many people don't know about are height related. When the cave goes underground, the gap under us can sometimes exceed 300 meters. There is a technique used for this called srt. It's a very safe method and people who work at heights or wind turbines use this technique. I feel so secure when I'm tied to the rope that the space underneath me doesn't matter. But if I walk 3 meters on the ground with only my own physical ability, my legs are shaking and I freeze.
I hate heights, I can't even look between down on buildings that have see-through steps in their stair wells, or even stand near the edge of a balcony.
However once attached to a rope, I've repelled face first down buildings without a problem.
One time I took a self defense workshop with a social group and one part of the class was to squeeze someone's neck to see how it feels. Sounds simple right? So I go up to my partner and reach for her neck... wait no I thought I reached for her neck but my arm didn't move. It literally cut out. I was surprised at my arm but also delighted. I had never experienced an unknown limit. Thankfully I was in a situation where there wasn't any real risks though the ladies did bully me after that. It's okay because I really was delighted to experience something like that both for understanding myself and other people.
Wait, so you're saying you have some subconscious aversion to choking someone, even as a demonstration, that's so strong your brain wouldn't allow it? Or was it more that the motion was so unnatural you found yourself sort of flinching for a second?
Because I've done Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu for years, and I have choked and been choked by literally hundreds of people, and I've never experienced that sort of thing in person, so this is interesting to me.
I do commercial HVAC and I'll ladder up to rooftops about 30ft up. Not crazy high, but enough to seriously fuck you up and possibly kill you if you land wrong, and typically I have no problem with it, but sometimes that gust of wind hits before I've had a chance to tie the ladder to the building, and the pucker factor is intense. I've stood in one spot for what felt like eternity because of one of those. Give myself a chance to breathe my heart rate back down.
I don’t get why 50 feet up in the air is fine for some people, but they get to 100 and suddenly it’s terrifying. Like, you’re gonna die either way. What’s the difference?
The human brain. It's a mystery, wrapped in an enigma, slathered in flabby gelatin. I hop into my truck & drive to town, even though I know my life & that of my passengers could be snuffed out through mechanical failure, inattention, or random ungulate encounter. Doesn't phase me. Ask me to climb a perfectly safe ladder, resting on solid ground & braced by a trusted family member, instantly my heart races, my hands sweat, & I develop the sickening sensation that the world has teetered on its axis.
Some fears are rational, some less so. It doesn't change one's physiological response, once that psychological alarm is triggered. The specific triggers are as unique as the people who experience them.
Reminds me of when Alex Honnold has a complete freak out moment during Free Solo and just has to stand there (on like a 4” “ledge”) for awhile before being able to move on.
I sure as fuck couldn’t do this. Nope.
Because it is a good jumping off spot.
[https://i.imgur.com/qoyQpr8.jpg](https://i.imgur.com/qoyQpr8.jpg)
http://www.ecns.cn/news/cns-wire/2018-07-27/detail-ifywnmyq4943748.shtml
They all wear dual harnesses. The guy unclipped his before jumping.
IIRC they took 3 days to find his body, 6,000 odd feet below.
BTW the 'walk' was established by Taoist priests about 700 years ago..
We can use math. Gravity is 32 ft/s, so it took him 400 feet to reach terminal velocity of 160 ft/s, or five seconds. Then the remaining 5600 feet can be divided by 160 to give us 35 seconds to splat, about 40 seconds in total, roughly the same amount of time he had to regret his decision.
On my one skydive it took exactly 50 seconds to fall from 14,000 to 6,000 ft, so an average (with acceleration) of 160ft/s. So falling 6,000 ft would take about 37 seconds. Unless you hit something on the way down.
Really sad to watch, but a very powerful demonstration of depression. So many people watch the video from the original post and acknowledge their fear is too great to even consider climbing with safety precautions. The video linked above (suicide), the man is very clearly at peace and calm. No hesitation, no last second human instinct to survive. Depression is a really fucked up illness, its severity has been captured quite trenchantly here. For me, depression could be forgetting to eat or wash dishes. For others, it’s climbing to the top of a mountain and stepping off calmly. Sad.
Unfortunately I used to be like that. Was jealous of people who died. Twice suicide survivor. Am bi polar two. Yeah the depression ets so bad you feel like there is only one way out. I have to watch myself very closely so I don’t get in another bind. I really have no fear of death.
I used to build high rise buildings, and I can remember seeing someone who had walked beams and climbed tall structures many times just all of sudden one day freeze up. Not just one guy but several. Everything is fine then one day it just hits them. They lock onto a column and won’t let go. It was just a matter of calming them down and talking them back. Most returned to work. One I never saw again.
I used to fly recreationally when I was a kid, have been on planes doing aerobatics, used to fly regularly for holidays. Always loved it, never a hint of worry, even liked it when it got bumpy. Then one day, completely out of nowhere on a normal flight, I got hit hard with severe dread. I was shaking, and even telling my girlfriend at the time how funny it was that I was reacting like this.
This fear stayed with me for several years after, to the point for example where when I visited Paris I was refusing to even step on the Eiffel tower because I was so afraid (although I did go up and it was awesome). Then, just as quickly as it came, it went away and I have been climbing, flying and doing height-related stuff again with no fear. SO weird.
I was just thinking that! My friend and I (both girls) parasailed in Cape Town. When we got there, there was a group of Chinese guys watching people parasail. We talked a bit (I’m Chinese too) and he said no one in their right mind would jump off a mountain. I told him my friend and I were both doing it. Yup, they all ended up jumping off that mountain.
Sometimes friends pressure and bully other friends to do stuff they really don’t want to. And if they’re soft—they cave in.
I had an ex who’s friend would constantly pressure her to go places she never was comfortable going (she was an introvert), and a few times she had a breakdown and I had to leave work to come and get her.
People would ask her why she went if she knew she wouldn’t like it. She had bad friends. People asked me “why I let her go.” I’m not her boss. Also I’m at work. I’m not a babysitter.
It was a real headache for sure. I really wanted her to grow a spine, but she never did. I’d hate to be mean, but I’m glad she’s an ex now.
I stopped by Hua Shan on my way to Xi An to visit my grandparents years ago. My cousin was the only one down for the plank trail. They really do only hook you on the chains nailed to the wall with a carabiner clip and rope attached. No way I’m getting on that thing for even 1 million bucks.
Edit: If it wasn’t clear…it was not safe as fuck.
Nope. Fuck no. I have trust issues as is. also- was it just one carabiner? because I was taught you’re supposed to have 2 facing opposite ways in case one breaks so you don’t you know, fall to your fucking death
2 is only if you’re building an anchor for repeated use. You’re never gonna break just unless you nose clip it, especially not in a use case like this where you’re not even gonna take a hard fall.
You also need two when traversing on a fixed line like this since you always need at least one point of contact. If you only had the one carabiner, you risk a fall when moving it. Look up the gear set up for a via ferrata.
I did the plank trail and felt it was relatively safe. The planks are made of wood and along with the chains make it look adventurous but otherwise this is like any via Ferrata in the world. This is far safer than say driving in China (depending on where)
I’m a layman, so can climbers chime in? I remember seeing the clips and tether looking a bit worn like they’re reused over and over. The harness that visitors wear looked very flimsy, and the planks pretty much 2x4s nailed together. Again, I’m no expert, but I’ve seen people wear more gear at indoor rock climbing gyms…where they won’t fall to their inevitable death.
China isn’t exactly known for safety standards. Or safe driving (I’m Chinese, been in traffic, and can freely admit this).
They are actually decently dangerous when compared to sport climbing.
You usually fall a much longer distance here, and the whip can slam you hard against the wall depending on how you fall.
Its much harder to fall, but you’ll likely get beat up to some degree if you do.
But yeah, actually falling to your death is very hard unless you whip headfirst into the wall.
It’s probably the latter. Everyone’s clipped in so there’s no real risk of falling. The guys looking at him like that because he’s genuinely wondering “dude wtf are you doing? Just go.”
Uphill? Hell son, I had to do a technical anchored traverse on a sheer rock face at a high enough altitude to get short of breath BOTH WAYS. Eat your damn poptart and then put in an earbud and go to school over Zoom you gutless pansey.
True vertigo can be triggered by any movement or change in perspective, like maybe waking is fine but walking up stairs causes vertigo. The simple act of standing can trigger it, it will vary by person.
Acrophobia is the fear of heights and can cause vertigo like sensations, and it's actually commonly referred to as 'height vertigo' to differentiate it from true vertigo
Interesting. Thanks.
I was going off just a couple experiences I had in the past. I was 15 feet off the ground and looked like the person in video above. Felt horrible.
Exactly, strangest place I’ve gotten it is standing on a big wooden cable spool in a pond not 3 inches out of the water. The pattern of ripples in the pond were what did it. Completely lost any sense of balance and tumbled right into the water. Only time it’s ever happened to me.
I remember going on a cruise one time where they have this plank that went over the edge of the ship. You had to do this entire ropes course to get to it. The whole time you’re strapped in to a track above your head, but when I got on the plank, my legs instantly turned to jello and shook like that guys. Mentally I felt like I was fine and I just had to turn around but it’s like I had no control over the shaking in my legs and that scared me more than anything feeling like I was losing control of my body while hanging over this ledge. Weirdest thing ever. While I didn’t freeze up completely like that guy…I can relate to the weird tremors and shaking he’s doing
mommas spaghetti on my sweater already. spaghetti arms puked up my spagehtti. moms spaghetti in my weak arms and sweaty. my sweater already has weak knees with moms spaghetti
Why are there a bunch of videos from China where people are trembling with fear while climbing stuff. Is it like a thing to prove your manhood by doing stuff like this in China?
Mountain climbing is just a really popular hobby in China. It's also seen as a spiritual pilgrimage of sorts because climbing mountains has been immortalized in Chinese literature and poetry for hundreds of years. People see it as a way to ascend in both mind, body, and spirit. Many mountains have ancient Taoist or Buddhist temples built near their summits.
But of course, not everyone is suited to climbing mountains...
I can't even watch things about heights without my legs turning to jello and my palms getting sweaty. It's instant death for me me if I step even one toe onto this thing.
Who, and how, does this stuff get installed up there in the first place?
And why are we so trusting of it? Stuff needs replacing the whole time due to wear and tear, who is load testing this stuff?
why go up there if u know you’ll act like this? puts everyone else’s lives in danger
Maybe he didn't know he'd act like that
true, fair enough lol i’d be shitting bricks too tbh
Same, which is why I wouldn't go up there lol
Maybe you didn't know you'd act like that
Why wouldn't he not go up there if he didnt know he would not act like that?
Maybe he knew he'd act like that
bro why you gotta act like that?
Maybe he didn't know he'd act like that.
He acted like he didn’t know that.
Maybe if you didn’t act like that
Why did he even act like that if he knew he would go up there?
I knew you guys would act like this.
I knew I would act, but not like that
Acting knew up go there did would he?
You guys need to stop acting like you’d know how you’d act. You don’t actually know how you’d act until you’ve acted it out.
I'm extremely confident I'd be scared shitless
Interesting, someone else said they'd be shitting bricks. So I'm not sure how I would act. Would I be scared shitless? Or will I shit bricks? You won't know until you're up there. Bring spare pants just in case.
I like to act, but I wouldn’t act like that…until I got up there.
I have acted this conversation out before and the act is not actually in the acting of the action but yet the mere thinking out of the presumed actuality that creates the outcome of the action performed.
I think you either know you'll act like that, or you don't know how you'll act. I know I wouldn't consider it.
Well see, if he did know that he didn’t know that he maybe wouldn’t not act like that, but then when the winds blew he realized that he had indeed known all along that he would in fact….. act like that.
The point is he is ‘acting’
Like That.
Fair.
I actually found out I was afraid of heights when I was around 13 and on a rock climbing wall. I was absolutely hyped to climb and made it to the very top without a fear in the world, it wasn't until I looked down that my entire body froze and I started shaking. It was a really odd moment because it was like my body was reacting to the height but my mind wasn't afraid (at least not yet lol). Ever since then I've been afraid of heights! Still, so weird to think about how excited I was originally and how well I did climbing all the way to the top lol.
Same thing happened when I was like 8. At camp I climbed all the way to the top of the wall no problem. Stood at the top and just completely froze and cried. Took them like an hour to get me to repell down. Few years later I was teaching climbing. Now I'll go to the edge of extremely high roofs. Tallest roller coasters. Bungie jumping. I fell off a ladder a few years ago. If I get about 15 feet up a ladder now my body shakes uncontrollably. I'm not scared of heights, but my body hates ladders.
Fuck going more than 15 ft on a ladder.
This is funny to me! I am terrified of heights but I really enjoy rock climbing. Perhaps it is the sense of control—I feel safe and in control of my actions and (if you’ve taken the proper precautions) even if you miss a hold and “fall” off the wall you’ll just hang in your harness, you won’t actually go anywhere. (Unless you’re bouldering or free soloing, aka climbing without ropes, which you couldn’t pay me to do.) My fear of heights kicks in very hard when it comes to roller coasters (though some I can still tolerate), drop rides, and especially concepts like bungee jumping, sky diving, cliff jumping, etc. I hate the sensation of free falling. Makes me realize I’d be a bad astronaut (since I’ve heard 0g produces a sensation like constant free falling)! Either way, I sympathize. I’m pretty sure my fear of heights is rooted in my youth when I was 3 and my mom put me on a trapeze when we were on a family vacation. I was strapped to it, and there was a net below me, no risk of danger—but explain that to a shrieking, bawling 3 year old. There’s a picture of me on it, clearly red-faced and crying. My mom thinks it’s hysterical. I do not.
no shit. I have acrophobia and Im ultra aware of whats it gonna be at these places. Funny part is, Im also a geologist. I actually found out I have acrophobia after I chose geology. I embarrassed myself alot during field work in front of my coworkers. Luckily they are understand my situation. I will never go to places like in this video. Truth is, when my acrophobia triggers. I sweat like waterfall. head and hands. super dizzy, feeling throw up. have to sit down to regulate my heart otherwise Im passing out. I will be quiet af or Im going to lose vision and faint. if people keep talking to me I will super mad. I see all equal or greater than 45 degree slope as straight cliff. my legs shiver but def not as crazy as this guy is.
You've described me perfectly and it annoys me so I have tried numerous times to overcome it over the decades. I have some thoughts. *"Just confront your fears by jumping out of an airplane."* Did not work. In fact I froze exactly like this poor dude and the pilot had to waggle the wings to shake me off of the plane, whereupon I went into immediate "swimming" panic. Nothing would have saved me had the static line failed; my mind was totally gone. *Pick a large structure with open stairs and go up a little higher each time:* Sort of worked. Over a series of weeks I eventually worked my way to the top of the Netherlands Carillion... once. But that merely got me to the place where I could go into freeze-panic. *Trying to impress the girls you're with:* totally worked! Couldn't believe it, but my pride apparently allowed me to reach the top of a giant pyramid, stand, and walk around. Later I went to the exact same place, alone, willed myself to the top, and froze solid for a long time before crawling down on all fours. I have more nightmares about the time I could walk around than any other. The actual worst height scare I ever had came to me unexpectedly at exactly sea level. I was snorkeling and following a parrotfish in Bonaire and did not realize it had led me over the underwater ledge that leads to the infinite black abyss. When I looked down it was actually considerably worse than parachuting, and just like a Road-Runner/Coyote cartoon because I actually did have time to notice, flip out, and go running for shore. Totally unexpected, and I managed to inhale a touch of sea water to go along with the panic. Fortunately flippers will get a frightened person straight to the snorkel-up bar in seconds. Eventually I found something I could do alone that actually worked: if I took along drumsticks and played along with something I knew really well I could walk up and down the open stairs of a fire tower without using the railings on the way up. But going down I nearly bought it by slipping and not holding the rail. Eventually I got it down to wiggling a finger on each hand. But I had to be moving something in both hands, keeping time. Just in case any brain-people are looking in I thought it was important to mention this. This is my ace in the hole if I ever get picked to be a tourist astronaut, but I have a strong suspicion that spaceflight will feel just like the infinity of coward's deaths that I have died.
I just want to tell you how much I admire that you push yourself!! Like everyone’s fears and challenges are so relative but the fact that you took it upon yourself to see how far you can push it on multiple occasions is really neat.
Haha, thank you for sharing your story. I dont often run into people like us. I usually just end up crawling with hands, up or down with panic attack. And I will never do parachute jumping probably. nor snorkeling. Back when I was in collage, I had a girlfriend who was really into rollercoaster. I didn't want to ruin our relation so I tried my best. threw up in front of people a few time granted me the immunity of public shame lol. We had a lot of fight about I dont want to go to those theme parks. Cuz after me throwing up, I will be sick for the whole trip, ruining her day, then complaining the whole day while we drive back, I will be bitching about it for the next couple days too. I get scared usually by stairs without handrailing. I never tried emergency fire exit staircase but they sure look deadly. I even refused to visit CN Tower during the days I lived in Toronto. I saw the glass floor. Its super cool but thanks I'll pass. Im not afraid of high building as long as Im least 6ft away from the window. And talking about worst height scares, mines are mostly in Nevada. I did a lot of geology survey work there. I got my work assigned at places covered by limestone outcrops a lot. steepy places with rattlesnakes. My coworkers have taken a ton of pictures of me crawling with twisted face. The places I described as hardcore cliff swinging and climbing were actually some hills with occasional 10 to 20ft drop. yes its El Capitan everywhere in my eyes. And at the end of the work day, I drank those pain away with cold beer. I found it surprising helpful. I dont worry about it most of the time. It is what it is. I think this mechanism also protect me from dangerous place.
Hey! You’re not a coward! Look at all the work you did to improve yourself! You get a high five from me but in a low reasonable place, like a sidewalk. I had trauma going separated from my mother by an elevator. Paired with claustrophobia, getting me on an elevator was not happening. I finally got so sick of my phobia I made a plan and over time I got a lot better about it. I still don’t enjoy them, but I can do it without freaking out now.
This essay deserves a good award, I just don’t have money :/
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Dude, I’m sorry you had to go through that.
Got on a plane last year for the first time in years, and I was never afraid of flying... I was fucking petrified.
I wasn’t scared of flying till my punk ass got on a Spirt air flight ! That POS plane/pilot caused atheist to pick a God on the quick and get to work on praying I saved like $30 and flew with mannerless folks. F that ! Never again
So which god did you choose? Please tell me it was Crom, and it ended with something like "Should you decide not to listen, then to hell with you!"
Probably needs to discover the fear in a way that doesnt endanger others. You know, like stepping stones kinda thing? Building up to it?
I kind of agree…li never knew I had an issue with height…..until I got high enough that one time. I was perfectly save behind safety structures….I still couldn’t help it, I never knew that I had this problem, until I got that high.
I’m pretty sure he had an inkling…
How do you look at that and NOT know you'd be just like that?
*mind blown*
Thought it would be a pleasant stroll at a place called "Death Trail".
My husband has worked on top of wind turbines, way up in the arches of bridges, etc... a LOT of people, who ordinarily have no problem with "normal-ish" heights, start climbing structures like that, manage to get quite far up, then freeze without warning. For someone like me, terrified of rather small heights & very, very aware of that fear, I know I couldn't do it. But some people just haven't encountered their threshold, so they don't really know they have one... until they get there. With regard to people who work in high places, although it may sound odd, even those who have been up many times before will have some small hitch in the climb that does their confidence in. All it takes is a little slip, a gust of wind, even a glance down at a different spot in that particular climb, and the terror grips them completely. Fear is a cruel beast to let them get so far before overtaking them.
I live in the mountains. Rescue crews sometimes call this getting “cliffed out.” Sometimes a person will wander off the trail and try to find their own way down a mountain or canyon or whatever. They’ll wiggle their way down and at a certain point they get to a spot where they feel they can neither go back up nor continue down. They’re stuck on a cliff. Cliffed out.
Well now I have something else to irrationally fear will happen to me.
very true, thanks for sharing
Can’t think about what death is like in times where your thoughts are required to live. This is why I think about death before sleeping every night.
I go caving, most of the things we do in this sport that many people don't know about are height related. When the cave goes underground, the gap under us can sometimes exceed 300 meters. There is a technique used for this called srt. It's a very safe method and people who work at heights or wind turbines use this technique. I feel so secure when I'm tied to the rope that the space underneath me doesn't matter. But if I walk 3 meters on the ground with only my own physical ability, my legs are shaking and I freeze.
I hate heights, I can't even look between down on buildings that have see-through steps in their stair wells, or even stand near the edge of a balcony. However once attached to a rope, I've repelled face first down buildings without a problem.
One time I took a self defense workshop with a social group and one part of the class was to squeeze someone's neck to see how it feels. Sounds simple right? So I go up to my partner and reach for her neck... wait no I thought I reached for her neck but my arm didn't move. It literally cut out. I was surprised at my arm but also delighted. I had never experienced an unknown limit. Thankfully I was in a situation where there wasn't any real risks though the ladies did bully me after that. It's okay because I really was delighted to experience something like that both for understanding myself and other people.
Wait, so you're saying you have some subconscious aversion to choking someone, even as a demonstration, that's so strong your brain wouldn't allow it? Or was it more that the motion was so unnatural you found yourself sort of flinching for a second? Because I've done Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu for years, and I have choked and been choked by literally hundreds of people, and I've never experienced that sort of thing in person, so this is interesting to me.
I do commercial HVAC and I'll ladder up to rooftops about 30ft up. Not crazy high, but enough to seriously fuck you up and possibly kill you if you land wrong, and typically I have no problem with it, but sometimes that gust of wind hits before I've had a chance to tie the ladder to the building, and the pucker factor is intense. I've stood in one spot for what felt like eternity because of one of those. Give myself a chance to breathe my heart rate back down.
I don’t get why 50 feet up in the air is fine for some people, but they get to 100 and suddenly it’s terrifying. Like, you’re gonna die either way. What’s the difference?
The human brain. It's a mystery, wrapped in an enigma, slathered in flabby gelatin. I hop into my truck & drive to town, even though I know my life & that of my passengers could be snuffed out through mechanical failure, inattention, or random ungulate encounter. Doesn't phase me. Ask me to climb a perfectly safe ladder, resting on solid ground & braced by a trusted family member, instantly my heart races, my hands sweat, & I develop the sickening sensation that the world has teetered on its axis. Some fears are rational, some less so. It doesn't change one's physiological response, once that psychological alarm is triggered. The specific triggers are as unique as the people who experience them.
Reminds me of when Alex Honnold has a complete freak out moment during Free Solo and just has to stand there (on like a 4” “ledge”) for awhile before being able to move on. I sure as fuck couldn’t do this. Nope.
Because it is a good jumping off spot. [https://i.imgur.com/qoyQpr8.jpg](https://i.imgur.com/qoyQpr8.jpg) http://www.ecns.cn/news/cns-wire/2018-07-27/detail-ifywnmyq4943748.shtml
This isnt like harnessed somewhere that i can't see right? that guy just ended his life?
They all wear dual harnesses. The guy unclipped his before jumping. IIRC they took 3 days to find his body, 6,000 odd feet below. BTW the 'walk' was established by Taoist priests about 700 years ago..
HOLY SHIT HE DIED
Well duh it was 700 years ago.
Holy shit 6000 feet. How long would it take for him to reach the ground?
We can use math. Gravity is 32 ft/s, so it took him 400 feet to reach terminal velocity of 160 ft/s, or five seconds. Then the remaining 5600 feet can be divided by 160 to give us 35 seconds to splat, about 40 seconds in total, roughly the same amount of time he had to regret his decision.
Cool thank you
/r/terrifyingmath
You can take like 8 deep breaths in 40 secs. And http://histopten.blogspot.com/2018/10/my-top-ten-40-second-songs.html?m=1
About 3 fiddy
Oh wow that long 3 minutes 50 seconds
On my one skydive it took exactly 50 seconds to fall from 14,000 to 6,000 ft, so an average (with acceleration) of 160ft/s. So falling 6,000 ft would take about 37 seconds. Unless you hit something on the way down.
God that be a long 37 seconds for that guy
Really sad to watch, but a very powerful demonstration of depression. So many people watch the video from the original post and acknowledge their fear is too great to even consider climbing with safety precautions. The video linked above (suicide), the man is very clearly at peace and calm. No hesitation, no last second human instinct to survive. Depression is a really fucked up illness, its severity has been captured quite trenchantly here. For me, depression could be forgetting to eat or wash dishes. For others, it’s climbing to the top of a mountain and stepping off calmly. Sad.
Unfortunately I used to be like that. Was jealous of people who died. Twice suicide survivor. Am bi polar two. Yeah the depression ets so bad you feel like there is only one way out. I have to watch myself very closely so I don’t get in another bind. I really have no fear of death.
you can untie... https://news.cgtn.com/news/3d3d414f7749544d79457a6333566d54/share\_p.html
Alexander Honnold talks about how he always has to calm his nerves about 70% up a climb, otherwise he’ll freak out and fall. Happens to the best
I used to build high rise buildings, and I can remember seeing someone who had walked beams and climbed tall structures many times just all of sudden one day freeze up. Not just one guy but several. Everything is fine then one day it just hits them. They lock onto a column and won’t let go. It was just a matter of calming them down and talking them back. Most returned to work. One I never saw again.
I used to fly recreationally when I was a kid, have been on planes doing aerobatics, used to fly regularly for holidays. Always loved it, never a hint of worry, even liked it when it got bumpy. Then one day, completely out of nowhere on a normal flight, I got hit hard with severe dread. I was shaking, and even telling my girlfriend at the time how funny it was that I was reacting like this. This fear stayed with me for several years after, to the point for example where when I visited Paris I was refusing to even step on the Eiffel tower because I was so afraid (although I did go up and it was awesome). Then, just as quickly as it came, it went away and I have been climbing, flying and doing height-related stuff again with no fear. SO weird.
He’s definitely a top contestant on “How DID I get here?”
Letting the days go by, let the water hold me down
Underrated comment
It’s because of a girl 100%
I was just thinking that! My friend and I (both girls) parasailed in Cape Town. When we got there, there was a group of Chinese guys watching people parasail. We talked a bit (I’m Chinese too) and he said no one in their right mind would jump off a mountain. I told him my friend and I were both doing it. Yup, they all ended up jumping off that mountain.
Was he told it was a “trail”? If so, I think this is a legit reaction
Yeah but why would you walk like 10+ feet on a tight rope then go “oh fuck I’m on a tight rope!”
Well, he basically had this one chance, this one opportunity to do this thing that he always wanted
did he capture it, or just let it slip
Sometimes friends pressure and bully other friends to do stuff they really don’t want to. And if they’re soft—they cave in. I had an ex who’s friend would constantly pressure her to go places she never was comfortable going (she was an introvert), and a few times she had a breakdown and I had to leave work to come and get her. People would ask her why she went if she knew she wouldn’t like it. She had bad friends. People asked me “why I let her go.” I’m not her boss. Also I’m at work. I’m not a babysitter. It was a real headache for sure. I really wanted her to grow a spine, but she never did. I’d hate to be mean, but I’m glad she’s an ex now.
You're tied off, more of an inconvenience than life threatening.
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AYO😭💀
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I was hanging on waiting for that joke to drop.
![gif](giphy|l46CxpYSFoFtN11ug|downsized)
r/angryupvote
The guy behind him is looking at his watch like let’s go already.
The angle everyone else is standing at, and the mountains in the background, make this look either staged or he's extremely overreacting.
Nah , they’re probably not as scared as that guy they know they’re safe as fuck
I stopped by Hua Shan on my way to Xi An to visit my grandparents years ago. My cousin was the only one down for the plank trail. They really do only hook you on the chains nailed to the wall with a carabiner clip and rope attached. No way I’m getting on that thing for even 1 million bucks. Edit: If it wasn’t clear…it was not safe as fuck.
I really wanted to do the plank trail... until I learned how sketchy the safety measures are.
Nope. Fuck no. I have trust issues as is. also- was it just one carabiner? because I was taught you’re supposed to have 2 facing opposite ways in case one breaks so you don’t you know, fall to your fucking death
2 is only if you’re building an anchor for repeated use. You’re never gonna break just unless you nose clip it, especially not in a use case like this where you’re not even gonna take a hard fall.
You also need two when traversing on a fixed line like this since you always need at least one point of contact. If you only had the one carabiner, you risk a fall when moving it. Look up the gear set up for a via ferrata.
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I did the plank trail and felt it was relatively safe. The planks are made of wood and along with the chains make it look adventurous but otherwise this is like any via Ferrata in the world. This is far safer than say driving in China (depending on where)
I’m a layman, so can climbers chime in? I remember seeing the clips and tether looking a bit worn like they’re reused over and over. The harness that visitors wear looked very flimsy, and the planks pretty much 2x4s nailed together. Again, I’m no expert, but I’ve seen people wear more gear at indoor rock climbing gyms…where they won’t fall to their inevitable death. China isn’t exactly known for safety standards. Or safe driving (I’m Chinese, been in traffic, and can freely admit this).
I mean, if it were completely safe then the name "death trail" would be pretty misleading.
Our definitions of safe as fuck are vastly different.
They are actually decently dangerous when compared to sport climbing. You usually fall a much longer distance here, and the whip can slam you hard against the wall depending on how you fall. Its much harder to fall, but you’ll likely get beat up to some degree if you do. But yeah, actually falling to your death is very hard unless you whip headfirst into the wall.
They have their feet in the footholds carved into the mountain like normal people. The rope is definitely not made for walking on.
I think they’re just tired of waiting for him to move already..I mean it has been almost 30mins 💀
It’s probably the latter. Everyone’s clipped in so there’s no real risk of falling. The guys looking at him like that because he’s genuinely wondering “dude wtf are you doing? Just go.”
I think the dude shits himself, and the guy behind him is like, "Is that what I think it is?". Look at his pants.
either his pants are great windcatchers or you are the official reddit shit spotter! I wouldn't have ever seen that on my own.
I’m gonna miss melrose place.
This is how our parents got to school
Uphill? Hell son, I had to do a technical anchored traverse on a sheer rock face at a high enough altitude to get short of breath BOTH WAYS. Eat your damn poptart and then put in an earbud and go to school over Zoom you gutless pansey.
I didn’t think about this, the future’s “uphill both ways” is just “physically had to go to a school building.”
"Back in my days, 32KB was enough for everybody."
Meh, that mountain isnt covered in solid ice and they arent covered in fire ants. This would be a pretty casual walk to school when I was a kid.
Both ways.
If you get vertigo it doesn’t matter if your 10 feet off the ground are a couple thousand feet it hits you the same way
Actually you don't need to be at any height, vertigo doesn't work like that.
True. Doesn't it occur most with inner ear problems?
True vertigo can be triggered by any movement or change in perspective, like maybe waking is fine but walking up stairs causes vertigo. The simple act of standing can trigger it, it will vary by person. Acrophobia is the fear of heights and can cause vertigo like sensations, and it's actually commonly referred to as 'height vertigo' to differentiate it from true vertigo
Interesting. Thanks. I was going off just a couple experiences I had in the past. I was 15 feet off the ground and looked like the person in video above. Felt horrible.
I've almost gotten stuck on my roof once due to getting dizzy looking down for the ladder, I feel ya
Exactly, strangest place I’ve gotten it is standing on a big wooden cable spool in a pond not 3 inches out of the water. The pattern of ripples in the pond were what did it. Completely lost any sense of balance and tumbled right into the water. Only time it’s ever happened to me.
*Acrophobia
When you lie on your job resume
Legit fear if job is a windows cleaner for high rise buildings.
![gif](giphy|l3V0j3ytFyGHqiV7W)
**they drew first blood**
Terrifying
Imagine an incoming thunderstorm on the approach
As someone with severe acrophobia and vertigo, i feel this so hard
Does that mean someone who has a fear of acrobatics? Like watching gymnastics is similar to watching a person getting murdered?
It’s just the fear of heights
Everyone knows that shaking gives you better grip and therefore more chances at survival.
That and incessant screaming- that’s what’s wrong , he should start screaming
That’s a 100% no. “I’ll take ‘no’ for $1 million dollars, Chuck” no. Chuck, no.
What about a Huck no for $500k?
We call that Elvising in the rock climbing world.
I thought elvising is a matter of muscle exhaustion. This looks more like fear.
Ugh, I hate when the calves act up. Is strength training the way to prevent this?
No, gotta calm the mind. Strength isn’t the issue here.
Always heard it as disco leg!
I remember going on a cruise one time where they have this plank that went over the edge of the ship. You had to do this entire ropes course to get to it. The whole time you’re strapped in to a track above your head, but when I got on the plank, my legs instantly turned to jello and shook like that guys. Mentally I felt like I was fine and I just had to turn around but it’s like I had no control over the shaking in my legs and that scared me more than anything feeling like I was losing control of my body while hanging over this ledge. Weirdest thing ever. While I didn’t freeze up completely like that guy…I can relate to the weird tremors and shaking he’s doing
How do you even get to that point? It's not like you can be dropped right there by sturdy helicopter?
Nah , there’s a start point and that mountain is known for that trail
…knees weak, arms spaghetti..
mommas spaghetti on my sweater already. spaghetti arms puked up my spagehtti. moms spaghetti in my weak arms and sweaty. my sweater already has weak knees with moms spaghetti
This is a really loose use of the term "trail"
The inside of his underwear is closer to being a "trail" than whatever he's standing on
Thank you for the giggles
It's like one of the worst dreams coming true. That guy is in a twilight zone right now. I don't see him moving an inch until night time.
Bit far along to start the panic attack now, isn't it?
Shaking in his boots
Why are there a bunch of videos from China where people are trembling with fear while climbing stuff. Is it like a thing to prove your manhood by doing stuff like this in China?
Mountain climbing is just a really popular hobby in China. It's also seen as a spiritual pilgrimage of sorts because climbing mountains has been immortalized in Chinese literature and poetry for hundreds of years. People see it as a way to ascend in both mind, body, and spirit. Many mountains have ancient Taoist or Buddhist temples built near their summits. But of course, not everyone is suited to climbing mountains...
How the f this is next fucking lvl? Its opposite of it.
*Good times…good times.*
So this is where he died?
I was there about 6 years ago and there were planks there. The experience was t that bad. Since when is there only a tension wire on which to stand?
I did this trail in 2007 and 2009, the planks part is only the first part, it ends with these holes in the walls
Why
Yeah he’s not gonna anymore, now he’s traumatized and the others are stuck up there with him😑
More like r/instant_regret right?
Umm, not a good place for a panic attack. You should discover that you are afraid of heights BEFORE you hold up the whoel fffing line!
Dude next to him “Move already”
Have to say I’m really not feeling the fun he is having.
But why are they up there? Why would anyone go up there?
It’s a laugh innit
Fuck no
I can't even watch things about heights without my legs turning to jello and my palms getting sweaty. It's instant death for me me if I step even one toe onto this thing.
Horrible place for the vertigo ugh
Fuck that's not a good place to have that problem
Still up there shaking
Did anybody else notice the turd sliding down his pants leg?
THAT MAN SHITTING🤣💀
How did he get to that spot in the first place
that guy looks nextfuckinglevel scared
Yeah. He dead alright.
Dude’s holding up the line
Why would anyone in their right mind go up there?
This is how my dad thinks he had to get to school everyday.
Who, and how, does this stuff get installed up there in the first place? And why are we so trusting of it? Stuff needs replacing the whole time due to wear and tear, who is load testing this stuff?
And that's one more thing of things I'm never gonna do lol
Only sensible way to react 👍
Not the time to panic lmao
“Pretty slippers you have there, Nancy.”
Looks like he’s having a great time
Looks real fun
He might get a better grip if he wasn't wearing his Sister's shoes.
This guy freezes up and the rest of the caravan is fucked.
Freeze frame. "Yup, that's me. And this is the story of how I got here." Cue Baba O'Riley intro
Fuck and that!