With a name like Triskaidekaphobia, it’s no wonder so many people have a Fear of the Number 13. Whether you Fear the Number 13 for religious reasons, superstitious beliefs, or because that’s just what all the cool people are doing these days, the phobia itself has been around for a long time. 13 has been constantly referred to as an unlucky number. The reason for this dates back to a period in time that involved The Knights Templar who were involved in a massive religious war. On Friday the 13th, an order was given to slaughter everyone who was associated with, or believed to be associated with, this group of “radicals” that the church believed were up to no good. Okay, that was the most simplistic back story possible but this is an article about the Fear, not a history lesson!
13 Reasons Why You Have a Fear of The Number 13
So what’s so evil about 13? There’s nothing frightening about a 1 or a 3 on their own. Put them together and sinister things are afoot. Many buildings around the world omit the number 13 from their elevator systems. Or remove the floor altogether. Some people just want to pretend like there is nothing in between 12 and 14. The fact of the matter is 13, like any other superstitious belief, started somewhere and spread like wildfire because of a few “coincidences”. Sure, maybe a few people died here and there due to suspicious causes related to the 13. But is that enough reason to give a number the ol’ Pluto treatment? Perhaps 13 people were injured because of a car accident involving 13 cars. Or maybe someone was blowing out 13 candles and spontaneously combusted. The possibilities for why we Fear this number are endless.
If someone tells you ‘hold my beverage, I am going to go pick up this black cat and then walk underneath a ladder across that pile of glass from that mirror I just dropped’ you would probably think they are insane. Especially if they were weren’t even holding onto their lucky shrunken rabbits foot. That scenario is identical to having a Fear of the Number 13. You already know nothing good can come out of a circumstance like that. Especially because now you have to keep that cat as a pet.
Counting Down Your Fear of The Number 13
Realistically, there’s no reason to Fear 13. It’s just a number that doesn’t really mean a whole lot. But if you are someone who Fears the number, try doing things that involve the number to help you realize it’s no different than 5 or 862. Start with something small like counting to 13 then stopping and see if anything happens. If a cataclysmic event occurs, my bad. Eventually, you will be able to eat an entire meal while chewing 13 times, taking 13 steps to go wash your hands, and then celebrate the accomplishment by purchasing 13 candles online using all 13 of your credit cards. Maybe it’s the same 13 candles that caused the combustion from earlier in this post. Spooky!
The point is 13 isn’t all that bad and there are ways to overcome your Fear of it. Just don’t start the healing process by going to the 13th floor of certain buildings on Friday the 13th and expect to come out just fine. Because you will die. 13 deaths.
