In Gitty Daneshvari’s book School of Fear, four kids attend a bizarre school to help them overcome their fear of spiders, closed spaces, deep water, and dying. For Daneshvari, however, overcoming fear was something she had to deal with on her own – as she reveals in this funny September 15, 2009 phone interview where she shares her lists of phobias – and how she faced them. The following is an edited version of the interview.
Childhood Fears
S101: What childhood fears of yours inspired School of Fear?
GD: When I was a child, I had tons [of phobias], but the main one was claustrophobia. I was terrified of bathrooms. A lot of times I wouldn’t use the restroom at all. When my sister and I would fly across the country or overseas, I wouldn’t have any beverages on the plane because I didn’t want to have to use the bathroom.
I was petrified of elevators. On numerous occasions I would do crazy things like ask the concierge if I could sleep in the lobby because I didn’t want to get in the elevator to get to my room. My parents had a friend who lived on the fourteenth floor, and I would make my dad climb fourteen flights of stairs with me. Luckily my dad’s really into physical fitness.
I was always afraid of sleeping at friends’ houses. I’d get homesick and it would be two o’clock in the morning and I’d be calling my parents, crying and telling them to pick me up. And they always did, which in retrospect wasn’t always a good idea.
I was petrified of spiders and bugs – I would go into complete hysterics over seeing a spider. And my dad, who’s a vegan, would say, “Take the spider outside and let him live his life!” And I was like, “No, he’s going to come back in!” I would often spray my bed rim with Raid – and a tiny mist in my hair in case they climbed down from the ceiling.
Overcoming Fears
S101: Now you didn’t go to a School of Fear or a summer camp for attacking anxiety…
GD: I didn’t! Actually the one time I went to summer camp I cried the whole time because I wanted to go home!
S101: So how did you end up overcoming your anxiety?
GD: With the sleeping at friends’ houses, I had a friend whose mother was a bit mean. So at two o’clock in the morning I woke up and said, “I have to call my parents!” And she said, “No. You can’t use the phone. You need to sleep. They’re asleep. Go back to sleep.”
And I thought she was so mean, but actually it was the best thing to happen to me because I was forced to go to sleep and realize it’s fine – you go to sleep and the next thing it’s morning.
With elevators – when I came back to L.A. after graduating, I was suddenly faced with all these job interviews and had to get into elevators all the time which stressed me out. I remember asking the talent manager to meet me in the lobby of the building because I was scared to ride the elevator. Clearly I did not get that job – I was acting like a maniac!
But the one job I really wanted was at Creative Artists Agency. My roommate at the time dropped me off at the interview and was still in her pajamas. I told her, “You have to ride the elevator with me.” So she rode up in her pajamas and when we got in the lobby I pretended I didn’t know her.
And then I got that job and wanted it so much so I forced myself to get into that elevator every day – and that was the experience where it clicked for me that the only way you can overcome any of your fears is if you [face them] over and over.
Lists of Phobias
S101: Have you had to face any other fears?
GD: I have a fear of being lost at sea. That terrifies me. The idea of a plane crash in the water… I’d always say, “If this plane has to crash, let it crash on land!”
I developed a fear of flying because I was afraid I’d feel claustrophobic in the air. And I’d been flying since before I could remember and always loved flying. But then it became the same thing – I had to force myself to fly constantly. And now it’s totally fine.
In my twenties, I started to have a freeway phobia in Los Angeles which is ridiculous. If you live there you have to drive on the freeway! So again I had to force myself to do it.
S101: Sounds like you have plenty of phobias to write about…
GD: I’ve got enough fears to write probably a hundred books! But I won’t!
Read what Gitty has to say about School of Fear at An Interview with Author Gitty Daneshvari and learn how Warner Brothers optioned her book's film rights at From Development Executive to Author.
And visit Gitty on the Official Website of Gitty Daneshvari.
Like to read about weird and scary things? Check out Weird and Scary Nonfiction Trivia Books for Kids.
Michael Jung - Michael Jung is a professional writer, children’s literature specialist, and online book dealer whose articles, reviews, interviews, ...
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