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.
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Hi, I too have this phobia its really disgusting! All my life I’ve been tormented by these plastic abominations. I’m 17 and to me buttons should not exist. In my elementary school years, I never liked wearing the uniform. Every time I come home from school and quickly take off my shirt and pants and run nude. Yes, I know you didn’t need to hear that but its true. In High school I finally expressed to my English Teacher about my phobia. He then told the class that I had it. I was ashamed but the entire class was willing to help me get rid of this phobia. Still today I cant touch a button but I can barely touch in a plastic bag and look at it for 2 seconds. But I believe that I’m getting better. The Jeans I have no problem with but wearing the plastic ones make me freak out. That’s why I never liked golf nor Tennis. I really want to become a business man but in order to that I first must take the greatest challenge of wearing a suit to work. I believe that I will surpass and overcome my fear eventually. Thanks for reading.
I always thought I was the only one that had this phobia and my friends would always think that I was just faking it. I don’t really have it to the extent that I can’t wear buttons but the buttons on my clothes have to match and be non-discript and not too big. If I see sparkley buttons or buttons on scrapbooking pages, I feel like i’m going to vomit and it makes me feel nervous. I’m glad that i’m not the only one and that it’s pretty common!
I taut i was the only one to have buuton phobia n now seeing this site it makes me feel so happy :O Everyone always teases me n now i can prove to them that im telling the truth
Tank Gawd 
My daughter absolutely screams the house down if i try to put anything with buttons on. she is 5 and its a nightmare, have to cut buttons of clothes for her.
is there any profesional help to be gotten for this?
i hate buttons!!!! Everything about them. I am very young and people in my grade always tease me about. I laugh and smile, but really I wish they would stop. People don’t believe me about it, either. Some boy threw one at me, and I freaked out and went and washed my hands. It has been like this as long as I remember. They are nasty!!!
Its really nice to know i’m not the only person with this phobia. But i think its a bit much to call it an irrational fear. It isn’t irrational. They are gross and i feel like i may breathe one in and choke if im around them. But its not a massive problem, just wear clothes without them on! And don’t try to stop your children having the phobia, its not their fault and i remember my mother trying to stop me fearing them! It was more traumatic than it would be worth being without the fear of them, and it made me feel humiliated. I’m 17 and really happy so its not like its held me back! Please don’t traumatise your children!
The thing that creeps me out the most about buttons is when they touch my skin. I would never buy a shirt that had buttons on it, but i have been put in situations in which i was forced to wear a button down shirt (band concerts in high school, wearing polos for volunteering, etc.), and i have learned to cope with it by wearing a cotton shirt underneath. I still hated those damn buttons, but at least there was a layer between them and my skin!
I have this fear also and always thought it was just me. I never told anyone as I knew I would be tormented. Plastic ones and cloth covered are the ones I hate the most. Plastic if used, big ones and cloth covered always. I have just always forced myself to touch them so no-one would find out. I cannot stand buttons that have been cut off the clothing and still have thread, I am shuddering now just typing this. I am working in an op-shop and have to handle cloths with them and sometimes even remove them, when ever I touch them I rum my hands on my pants and wash them whenever I can. If I have to wear a shirt then I try to keep the buttons always done up so I don’t have to touch them. My son 15 has had to wear them for school. I managed to put him in some button clothes when he was little if they were new and I could wash my hands. Just typing this is making my hand s feel icky (only word I can think off, but I need to wash them). I can now touch new ones in a store but not attached to clothes. I love Tim Burton movies, and Coraline is one I have , the button eyes freak me a bit also.
I have hated them for as long as I can remember. When I was younger I watched a programme where a woman had to confront her fear of buttons. The rest of my family made jokes about how stupid she was which hurt. However I decided to pluck up the courage to tell my sister that night but she laughed at me saying I was just making it up cause that woman had the fear. She teased so much that I decided it was best to just play along and pretend I was joking. It was only when I was 17 that I then decided to tell 2 of my best friends, one of which has been very understanding. I have not told anyone else. I am 18 now and just not sure whether I should tell my family/boyfriend or whether its best to keep quiet. I hate buttons and I always will.
Buttons have always made me feel sick – even reading some of the posts on this site has started to make me feel abit queasy. They are just disgusting, they make me gag! I have never owned clothes with buttons, and i feel sick if im out and one of my friends is wearing buttons on their clothes… I am not scared of them, they just are absolutely gross!! I HATE it when someone reaches out their arms to give me a hug and they are wearing a shirt or something… and the thought of my hair getting tangled in buttons? repulsive!! metal jeans buttons are not a problem, only the disgusting ones with holes….. absolutely sick!
this is so crazy, i can’t believe I’m not alone in this. I had to get over the fear cuz i ironically went to fashion school and I became a fashion designer where you have to pick buttons etc…i’m not completely over it but i manage. The bigger the button the better I am. Clusters of buttons are what freak me out! If there is a button on the loose on the floor or drawer i want to barf.
really cool that others can relate.
I have had a the phobia since i can remeber, the first time was when my nanna bought me a dressing gown with a button on it ( the plastic ones ) i looked at it and i thought it was ugly and horrid and i couldn’t touch it so i had to get my nanna to take it off and ever since i can’t touch,wear or even look at them sometimes, i dont mind the silver metal ones on jeans though its mostly the plastic ones, i thought i was the only one as i know nobody who has this phobia, it is also a major turn off if i see a guy wearing a top with buttons on.
i don’t like buttons!!!
I am so happy i found this
I’m a teenager now and ever since i was 3 i haven’t been able to stand the sight of buttons… when i was in primary school my mum use to have to take the buttons off a shirt and replace them with velcro:L
I’m much better with them now and i can hold them and everything but i still feel i have to wash my hands after touching them! and plus my stomach churns when i look at them…. But I can’t stand the feel or sight of the ones with four holes ! the make me want to get SICK !!!
Oh my goodness, this is SO true! My sister and I have hated buttons for as long as I can remember, we never even let our mom put them on us when we were babies! We always left my other sister out when she wore them and it was kind of mean but we couldn’t help it! Whenever we touched one we said we were ‘button infected’ and would wash our hands over and over again.
Our brothers used to chase us around the house with ‘buttony’ shirts, and whenever our mom made us wear something with buttons on it we’d cry.
We have even made ‘buttony’ and adjective over the years, calling gross things ‘buttony’ without it even realizing that it is not a common word. =P
It’s less bad now but we still hate ‘the yuckiest kind of button’. That is, buttons with grey, brown, black, and white (or some other combination with those same colors). Sometimes I find myself holding my breath around that kind.
I always thought that I was the only one in the world with a button phobia! But I’m clearly not! I find I can’t eat when I look at buttons as it repulses me. The plastic ones with holes are the worst! I feel sick around them and I feel as if I want to cry when I touch one. Shell/pearly ones are also extremely disgusting but the metal ones on jeans are fine. I’ve had the phobia ever since I was aware of what went on around me (according to my parents) although I don’t think I’m scared of buttons, I just find them revolting.
ny sin just turned 4 and like “melly”,im worried about the buttons on his uniform he will have to wear at school next year.the principal spoke to me today and said because he wont turn 5 until march next year its best to leave him home another year to give him time to”get over it”
when will people realise you cant just get over it???
i get so angry with people laughing when i say he hates buttons its not funny its affecting his day to day life.
we have to make sure we dont wear buttons(though he is ok with his sibblings wearing them for school now because he knows they dont have a choice.but he wont go near them till they change their top.
his wardrobe sonsists of tee shirts,board shorts,fleecy jumpers(no zips)and trackies(wont wear jeans or dress shorts either)
i have heard of 2 children who are now 7 and 13 who had this phiobia and were diagnosed with assbergers disorder which makes me worry even more now.
Well I also have this “issue”. I am 34 and never get rid of it. I don’t think I’ll ever get “cured” either.
Anyway a word for those parents who think they were the unluckiest couples to have this kind of kids: GET OVER IT!!!
THERE IS CANCER, LEUKEMIA, DIABETES and OTHER diseases that are real problems.
This is nothing. Don’t try to cure them! There is simply no cure. Just stay away from the damn things and you will live happily ever after.
i almost had a heart attct when i searched fear of buttons on google and landed on this site and others like it. i was convinced that i was the only person in the world who delt with this phobia. i have alwasy been disgusted by buttons. ever since i was like 4, i coundlnt go near buttons. i would aviod by brothers when they wore button shirts. they always had to ask me if “this button shirt is ok”. its so weird but i always feel like throwing up when i see them. the plastic ones gross me out, especially the ones that are like marbeled with brown and black. yuck. most peoepl make fun of me for it, i sometimes make fun of myself, i ts just the weirdest thing. good to finally know im not the only one.
oh yeah i forgot to add this. i saw an episode of malcom in the middle with my brother. and a kid on the show had a button collection. i was trying not to throw up the entire episode. and then he did the unthinkable, he put one in his mouth! i was freaking out and almost screamed.
Ive hated buttons ever since I can first remember, Ive just recently ended a relationship because my girl friend decided she would start wearing buttons again, Im realy not attracted to a woman who would intend to wear buttons in a relationship with me, I guess this stacks up the odds against finding my soul mate, four4wd@ymail.com , if your female, attractive and between 30 and 42 contact me, we maybe soul mates, I totaly understand and relate to this phobia and how it feels, I could never accept buttons in a relationship, no buttons please, honestly I never thought there were so many people who feel the same as I do about buttons, sometimes it turns my guts having to say the B word !
I just want those of you with young children to know — I am 58 years old and have always hated buttons. It never went away. I am better that I used to be. I can wear SOME clothes with buttons, but it’s rare. I still find them disgusting. (except for the metal ones, those don’t bother me at all.) I sew, and I go to the fabric store, but I have to avoid the aisle that has all the buttons – it is overwhelming and makes me sick. So NO I don’t think there is a cure for it! But I sure wish I knew why they bother me so much.
Help!!, my 4 year old cannot stand contact with buttons, and copes badly with anyone else wearing them, does anyone have any ideas re school uniform, he starts this sept!
Just to reassure all the parents with button phobic kids out there – I’m nearly 40 and still have it, and it hasn’t ruined my life. (Who would want to wear a cardigan any way?)
I just had to cope when I went to secondary school (although shirt buttons are not too bad when they are attached to the shirt – funnily enough it’s when they’re on their own that I really can’t handle them). I was most disappointed a few years ago when duvet manufacturers started putting buttons on covers instead of press studs, but it has turned into a great excuse to get my husband to change the bed. I can manage one button on a trouser waistband (but not a button fly).
Plastic buttons are the worst, especially white or pale ones on a dark background. And I don’t like touching any part of a cardigan, or being touched by or being close to anyone wearing one.
I also feel this way about bananas. But I can pick up spiders with my bare hands.
Do you think that for some people it could stem from the classroom? I remember buttons were used to teach counting and they were always sticky. I havent got a phobia of buttons, but I do not like touching anything sticky that had been handled by someone else. ie. doors, especially toilet doors, taps, and the thought of touching a door when I know darn well that some people don’t wash their hands after using the toilet makes me feel very uncomfortable. Menus, have you noticed how sticky they are? I’m not one of those who have to keep washing their hands, but if I’ve been out, the first thing I do when I get home is wash my hands. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that. It’s basic hygiene.
I hate buttons. I hate them very much. They are disgusting, they smell, they are tacky and ugly and dorky and I HATE THEM. I can somewhat (and only somewhat) tolerate buttons on pants on the condition that they are not visible. The larger buttons are not as bad as the small ones, but I am still disgusted. The button-down shirts are not as bad as shirts with 3 buttons or 4 buttons, but they are still extremely gross. And buttons that are the same color as the shirt are not as bad as those that contrast and are more visible, but I still can’t deal with them. Buttons of all kinds disgust me, even buttons in the shape of something else, like on children’s clothing or tacky holiday clothing. I don’t want a cure for my phobia because I don’t want to be OK with buttons. I despise them. Just the way they look on clothes is something I hate.
Button holes are also disgusting, and the thought of a button falling off of clothing makes me cringe. When there are people with visible buttons on their clothing, either on TV or real life, I desperately try to cope with it by avoiding looking directly at the buttons, and on TV sometimes I put my hand up to block the buttons from being in my view. I cannot, and will not EVER, wear buttons on my clothes. NEVER. I’ve had this absolute hatred of buttons ever since I can remember. It’s more of a hatred of them ON CLOTHING than it is of a hatred of loose buttons, (with the exception of the idea of buttons falling off of clothing, which really freaks me out), but loose buttons are also gross. At least loose buttons are not actually ON a person though. I hate the way that buttons are so common, especially for men to wear. I know that some men don’t have any sense of style when it comes to clothing, but come on….. Surely a regular T-shirt is nice and comfortable. Why do so many guys have to wear buttons? And I don’t understand people who use buttons for decorative purposes. Buttons, to me, are actually offensive. And I’m not the type of person who gets offended easily, and usually I’m always the one doing the stuff that others find strangely offensive. But with me, all people have to do is exist with those clothes on, and I’m appalled. Even typing or writing the word “button” is terrible. And yet I tolerate the people with buttons, however, I try my best to avoid staring at their buttons.
Even cartoon depictions of people or animals with buttons is disgusting, and hearing people mention the word “button” is sickening. I hate the tacky clothes that most people regard as normal or acceptable, and buttons especially. I feel my best in clothing other people find bizarre, and yet I personally find my clothing normal for myself and wear these “weird” styles 24/7. I am also considered autistic, which means I am used to being singled out as the oddball in any given situation.
This button thing is something that I don’t even usually like to mention. And another phobia I have is of dots. Like, the dots on certain letters, such as “i” or “j” or periods that come at the end of sentences. Also, when I am actually writing something out with a pen, I have to make sure that there are no little “breaks” in the words or letters, and therefore I always retrace my letters if I see a flaw to make sure that everything is connected. I need the ink to flow flawlessly, and that’s difficult. The whole thing is very time consuming when I have a large paper to write. And I dot my letters when I write with a sort of slant, rather than an actual dot. In school, my teachers have taken notice of these things and mentioned them to my parents. They weren’t sure what I was doing, or if my coping mechanisms were actually something I was trying to do for style. But they were not, and they were coping mechanisms for something that would always continue to plague me. As an adult, I still feel the same exact way about writing dots and the whole connecting things issue. And when I draw something, also, I always have to be precise and make sure that everything is filled in and that there are no little dots left behind, or just in general with art I make sure there are no little dot points ANYWHERE in my art, such as on the Paint program that I often draw with on my computer. I hate dots. I wish I never had to use any dots, ever.
I’m scared of the big ones!!
The Knit cardigan sweater can either serve as a dinner jacket or as the main piece of clothes.
I have aways hated buttons, I don’t understand the why they are in use today, THEY ARE USELESS, I think they smell bad to me anyway, and people say that they make me look thin but to me it make me look even fatter. The earliest memory I have of this phobia is when I was in school, we had to make something with buttons and they or use them in some way, I remember then I could not even physically touch them I had to pick them up with a cloth and I don’t remember what happens after that. My newest encounter with them happened last week, I was going to church with my grandparents and my grandmother wanted me to wear a polo shirt and I eminently start to think about how they world make me feel, I tired to wear a reg. shirt under it but my grandmother world not let me because it was to hot that day, and being my grandmother I could not say anything because I love her and don’t want to disappoint her, so i had no choose, i put it on with nothing under it, and i uselessly put a undershirt when i do, so i am in church and I can’t stop thinks about the button, they are DIGGING INTO MY CHEST, I CAN FELL THEM ALL THE TIME, so my dad pick me up and i take of the EVIL SHIRT put on a T-Shirt and give the polo back to my grandmothers, and my Dad’s wife can’t help to notice and she says, “we should get a few polo’s for you for church it respectable”, And I did not under stand why just wearing just a button shirt is “Respectable” Can anyone tell me how it is respectable please I have not thought of it yet. Well thanks for reading it felt good to get that off of my chest just like buttons, lol.
I can wear button down shirts. But it’s polo shirts and collarless shirts that I cant stand! Ahhhh
I seriously thought I was the only one on this earth with this phobia! and i curiously was thinking about it lately and tonight i googled it just to see what would come up i was so surprised! Ive had this phobia my whole life. I just dealt with it because i thought i had to but now that I’ve read everyones experiences i cant believe how relative everyone’s experience is towards me. I cant stand buttons…and even if i explained it to someone i feel like no one would understand. I am so relieved that i found this website
Phew… I tot i was the only one having this phobia. But after reading this site , im glad im not alone! I hated buttons since i was a child. My parents even took picture of me crying cozim wearing buttons. I juz hate the sight of buttons, if i saw a button on the floor i will try to avoid the whole area !! Now im 28 have a one year old daughter, when her mum make her wear a button blouse or anything wirh buttons, i try to avoid picking her up and cuddling her to my body!! But she will laugh it off like im a freak!!!
Ahhhh, no way! Yeah I did think I was rather alone in this, and like loads of people have said – it’s not strictly a fear more like I just find them disgusting.
How strange. Anyway, this hasn’t really affected my life negatively at all so I suppose it’s just one of those things.
I don’t have a fear of buttons, but i’m really interested about this phobia… To me, it doesn’t make sense. Why are these people scared of buttons? I take no notice of them, they’re just buttons to me. I don’t really understand – what is it that makes you all so scared of them? How do they make you feel sick? When i first found out that there was a Phobia of Buttons, i thought it was hilarious! It sounded really silly that anyone could be ‘scared’ of them, and it would to someone who’s never heard of this phobia or doesn’t have a fear of buttons. Could someone please explain to me why, exactly, you are scared of them? Thanks.
I am so happy to have found all your comments. My four year old son has started diliking buttons ever since he was able to sit up. I remeber him pushing little shirts with buttons away when I wanted to dress him. He will not go near a person with buttons on their cloth but he will play with them in a box. I asked him once why he doesn’t like buttons and he said they make him shiver. He is starting school this year and I have been searching for school trousers and shirts without buttons everywhere. Luckily I found trousers and polo shirts without buttons in matalan. I think he will dislike buttons all his life and therefore I won’t try to ‘get him out of it’. I just try to find cloth without buttons.:)
My 4 year old son has a fear of buttons. He cries if you try to get him to wear anything with them on. I have given up now. My partner blames me for influencing my other son and his fear of spiders, but i have definitely not started this one! However, when i was a child my mother used to keep spare buttons in a tin, with needle and thread and they would all get tangled up. I hated that tin !! I have no problem now though. My son is starting school in September and he is already expressing his disgust at the school shirts i point out, whilst shopping. Hence i am on here trawling sites for shirts without buttons.
My son began refusing to wear anything with buttons when he was very small, about age 3 or 4. He didn’t seem to mind them on other people but didn’t want them on his clothes. We just let him choose his clothing and let it go and as he has grown up there were a few times (like a funeral, first communion, etc) where he just HAD to wear a dress shirt and he was able to do it. These events have become more common as he’s gotten older and now he wears clothes with buttons when appropriate. He is 16 and would still prefer not to wear buttons, but he is aware of a need to put on a dress shirt occasionally and can do it without severe anxiety issues. To some extent now, the reason he’d prefer clothes without buttons is that t-shirts and athletic shorts are more comfortable anyhow. I post this so the mom’s can know that sometimes kids grow out of this, or learn to deal with it.
I’m not afraid of them. They simply make me need to wash my hands, and make me shudder even thinking about them. My mum never allowed my dislike of them to hold me back. I find it simply mind over matter alot of the time to make sure i dont think about them if im wearing them. altho i never buy them if given the option. and hate them on the inside of clothing. as a prank a friend shoved some down my back and i freaked out.
2 hole buttons! They absolutely disgust me. I have ended relationships with women who would insist on wearing 2 hole buttons. I am not a great fan of buttons in general but can tolerate regular dress shirt style 4 holers. I myself wear western shirts with snaps mostly. I can trace this back to maybe three years old,but cannot find the initial trigger.
My fear of buttons is not actually a fear, they are just disgustng to me. Not even on clothes so much, I hate them on bedclothes! OMG! I remember when I was a child, I didn’t want to lie down in my bed cuz the buttons were on it! Now I’m not afraid of buttons on clotes like I was before, but in bed, I sleep with sheets with no buttons.. And when I read this posts of you guys, I realise I’m not the only one. I hate touching them, I hate looking at them.
I am not afraid of buttons, per se, I would fight one to the death, but they do make me physically ill. If I have lunch with someone that is wearing a shirt with pronouced buttons. I will not be able to look at the person’s shirt for risk of puking on them during the meal. I can wear them, but my body becomes stiff and I am not very comfortable.
Thank goodness, I am not the only weirdo. I am glad I am part of this disturbed club. We should start a movement that would make buttons socially unacceptable. death to buttons!
Wow! I thought my daughter was the only person that was disgusted by buttons. I feel so much better reading this. I have always thought it was just a phase, or that she was just doing it to get attention. I never realized that it was a real phobia. She has hated buttons for as long as I can remember. She is 13 now and still hates them and probably always will. She can’t stand seeing someone wearing buttons, especially when she is eating. If I wear something with buttons and we are eating together, she will put something between her & I to block her view of the buttons on my shirt. If I hug her, I can’t be wearing buttons & if I am, I have to make sure they don’t touch her. There have been many days that I will purposefully not wear a button up shirt, because I know that I will be with her or be hugging her. She absolutely will not wear buttons, except for maybe the button on a pair of blue jeans. She thinks that buttons are the most disgusting, gross things on Earth.
[...] I call that unfair play. He wins, of course. And I shit you not, fear of buttons totally exists so stop laughing at [...]
It wasn’t a problem for me as a child as i remember but has become a problem for me in my 20′s and 30′s.
Plastic buttons with holes in are discusting, and the big giant ones they put on coats are horrible, i can’t touch them as they feel like they are on my skin still.
Walking through clothing shops makes me shudder and cringe so i don’t tend to go anymore.
And i can not get over the fact people use them as decoration, like pointless ones that don’t even have a use?! I saw a woman on tv that had made a neclace with them things on, i had to turn it off it made me feel il.
metal jeans buttons are ok though, seems to be plastic ones. i don’t actually like touching plastic things either, or using plastic cuttlery or cups, drinking out of plastic bottles.
Wow! I had no clue that I wasn’t the only person with this phobia. I can barely even type the name of the horrid things. I’m not joking, but I actually get gag reflexes when I sit with someone wearing a shirt with them. I’m really embarrased by this phobia too. Nobody in my family even knows that I have this phobia. My phobia gets even worse if the shirt is wet and has “you know whats” and even as a baby I couldn’t wear them. I cringe when I hug someone wearing them and I hate the idea of even thinking of touching them. We were working with them in my sewing class and I had to leave because I was getting sick. I couldn’t even think of touching them.
Until the last few years I figured I was the only person on this planet who did not like buttons. It’s been weird to find out I have a lot of company.
I pretty much don’t wear anything with them, apart from my pants.
The blouses I wear are all pullover and designed to be worn loose; not tucked in. If anyone should ever comment I would say I like loose clothing because it’s comfortable. They also make my belly fat, which I have been collecting since I hit menopause, a little less noticible.
When I’m not at work I wear T-shirts (which I love anyway; I have a lot from all the places I’ve been) and either jeans or denim shorts. The metal buttons on pants don’t seem to bother me.
I’ve never understood my some clothing has buttons that are just decorative. If they don’t serve a purpose why have them?
I can’t stand them. I have been that way all my life. I hate the feel of them and won’t touch them unless they are metal or cloth. I can’t stand to wear them, especially near to my face. My sisters made fun of me and still do. I have no idea why I can’t stand buttons. I don’t like seeing them on others, and looking back on it I realize that when I was young I stopped liking my favorite singer/entertainer because of a photo of him with a big hat on with a huge button on the hat and a pronounced one on the top of of his shirt. Somehow that turned me off him, but I never realized that consciously til recently. He also once posed for a photo holding two huge shiny things resembling buttons over his eyes, sort of like CD disks. That was unlikeable. I wonder where this comes from? I guessed it was from a chilhood trauma. I have vague recollections of a trauma associated with buttons when I was two or three, but otherwise I have no idea. Maybe many children were given toys with buttons eyes and that somehow affected them, perhaps. Amazing that Steve Jobs hated buttons: puts us in fairly good company. I didn’t know til today that it is fairly common. I wonder what other common denominators there are.
We need a big house where we can all live without them D: I can’t actually type the word but lets s run away!!
I have hated buttons for as long as I can remember. I believe that my phobia has come from the feeling that they are dirty. I too hate touching anything that looks similar to a button. I dont like touching them or wearing them, but I can handle seeing them etc. I am in a job that requires a uniform and I have to wear a button shirt. I can handle this but as soon as possible I will take it off, purely because I hate buttons. I put the fact that I have buttons on to the back of my mind. I never buy clothes with buttons.
By the way I am 40 and my phobia has got better with age.
Sigh of relief; just like everybody else I thought I was alone in the world. I was always disgusted by them clear buttons with holes, especially the small white clear one; and to make things my paternal uncle came to live with us – this guy was a tailor and used to leave buttons scattered around the house. Most times I would throw up, others I wouldn’t go home from school until late night: I never told my parents about it because I thought I was weird. You guys can’t imagine how happy I am to read this post…phew