Oudenophobia (from Greek ouden, meaning "nothing") or nilophobia (from Latin nihil, meaning "nothing") is the fear of nothing or the number 0. Oudenophobes may obsess over what happens to a person after death, since they may believe that the dead experience an eternity of nothingness. This phobia may be triggered by objects that are empty. Expecting a container to contain something only to discover that it is empty would trigger a panic attack in most people with the phobia. Oudenophobes are typically also scared of the number zero, which represents nothingness. They often get scared by instances of the number zero. When the countdown on a timer reaches zero, they panic. They may believe that their lifespan is a countdown and zero is their death, resulting in death anxiety. Oudenophobia can be treated with behavior therapy and medication.
See also[]
- Omalonumerophobia, the fear of even numbers
- Panphobia, the fear of everything
- Thanatophobia, the fear of dying
- Voidophobia, the fear of the void