Although we all have habits that seem to prove that, as human beings, we are rather odd creatures, there are some habits that form part of people’s daily routines which take things the extra mile. From the curious to the downright bizarre, here are ten peculiar habits people actually have, but you may not be aware of.
1. Getting Completely Naked to Poop
You might think most people simply pull down their pants to their ankles to take a dump but holy moly! It appears there is a whole army of people out there who have to get stark naked before floating their load.
We’re not talking about simply busting one out naked before having a shower – this is a real bonafide must do for every single nugget dropped, meaning that pooping in a public facility is an absolute no-no.
2. Pillow Burying
We have a soft spot for pillows (excuse the pun); there’s nothing like your face hitting one after a long hard day. But some folks take their love for pillows to a whole new level.
Although to some people, this might sound like the perfect claustrophobic nightmare, others actually have a thing about entirely covering themselves with pillows either while lying in bed or watching TV. One of the strangest forms of self-soothing we’ve heard of in a while!
3. Number Crushing
Many of us might have a lucky number, or might avoid the number 13 for fear of it being unlucky. But imagine having to execute pretty much all of your daily actions – washing hands, shutting doors, brushing your teeth – in even numbers, because you have an aversion to odd numbers.
Or how about having to have everything in your house – like your thermostat, volume controls, and alarm clocks – set to odd numbers because only odd numbers feel right? This strong need to count and have your life governed by odd, even, or certain numbers is otherwise known as arithmomania.
4. Sleep Driving
Okay, so sleep walking or sleep eating is not exactly something to raise your eyebrows at, but how about sleep driving? Eek! Taking the meaning of going for a night drive to a whole other level, some people actually get up, take their car for a ride, return, hop back into bed, and remember nothing of it. A strange and risky habit indeed.
5. Breath Syncing
To most people, breathing is just something that happens without us even thinking about it. Your breathing rate is set by your subconscious mind. Job done. Or is it? What if you could only breathe in set patterns? Or had to breathe in time to any music you listened to?
Breathing could suddenly go from something that you take entirely for granted to an overwhelming daily experience – no joke. This phenomenon is known as sensorimotor obsession, more commonly known as a body-focused obsession.
6. Eating the Unthinkable
Fancy eating the foam out of your pillow? Or perhaps a spot of cleaning sponge with a side of toilet paper? How about some good old-fashioned mud, a wedge of brick, or a chunk of wood?
Unbelievably, some people would rather chow down on these oddities as opposed to tonight’s dinner – a condition otherwise known as pica. This strange condition where people eat non-food items of no nutritional value is increasing. And they’re not even pregnant.
7. Whiffy Behaviour
We all know that old books smell so good, and who can blame people if they want to smell them all day; and, of course we’re all guilty of a bit of pit smelling.
But did you know that some people cannot get enough of smelling other things, such as their own fingernails, mildew-scented towels, Play Doh (yes, really), and even laundry detergent? People literally cannot go through a day without smelling some downright oddities, otherwise known as having an olfactory obsession.
8. Hair Hating
Most of us have been guilty of plucking our eyebrows to smithereens at one time or another, but the habit of hair tearing – otherwise known as trichotillomania – takes the habit of pulling hair, whether it be from from your scalp, eyelashes, eyebrows, or pubic area – to a whole different level.
Incredibly for some, hair tearing is actually a self-soothing act, luring people into a trance-like state that can become incredibly addictive.
9. Blow Drying “Down There”
Truth be told, it is not just a strange whim of certain celebrities that have a habit of blow drying their nether regions to make sure their lady gardens and so forth are bone dry after a shower.
Although there is a logical argument for doing this, in that it is claimed to prevent yeast infections, for some it’s purely about the comforting caress of warm air “down there.” No towel needed.
10. Rehearsing, Repeating
You think you’re having a pretty normal conversation with a friend, but what if you knew that conversation – and every other conversation you had with them – had in some way been rehearsed and then repeated with different outcomes?
We’ve probably all tossed and turned over a conversation that didn’t turn out particularly well, but for some people this quirky habit, and making sure they have an answer for every eventuality, is part of their daily thread of life.
You never really know what goes on behind closed doors, but maybe now, you might just have a better idea! Things are never quite as they seem.