How can I (as an adult) overcome my fear of the dark and other things?

Since you believe in the paranormal/supernatural (whatever you wish to call it, I think the best suggestion may be to talk to a psychic/voodoo priest(ess)/supernatural expert. Avoid the advice of those that ask for valuables and exceedingly large amounts of money as these are scams. These people may be able to find a way to help you get these paranormal entities to leave you alone with a ritual, a charm, etc. I wish you the best of luck.

With the others such as heights… it really depends, some people may need therapy (as the source of the phobia may be trauma related), some people just have to face these fears. It all varies.

And welcome to fluther, a pretty damn good site for advice until someone brings up beliefs… then we tend to get into “heated” discussions.

I think maybe you should be evaluated for paranoid schizophrenia. I am not dismissing your feelings that it might be a paranormal experience, but schizophrenia is more likey and there might be medication to help you if it is. I thinl they have better diagnostic tools for the diagnosis including brain scans. Did you ever have a brain injury as a young child? Hitting your head? Being shaken?

Also, it seems reasonable to me that you might have some extra fear compared to the average person with your disability. It’s scary to feel helpless, completely understandable. Seeing a therapist might help you deal with it better. Have you ever seen one?

At minimum dealingnwith your anxiety might be helpful. Anxiety can balloon and get worse and worse. It can be very paralyzing emotionally and some people stop wanting to do anything because they are so fearful of being panicked. Better not to et it get to that point.

No one here is qualified to diagnose you, particularly with such very limited knowledge of your mental condition and you reality. I have to absolutely disagree with @King_Pariah, that you see a psychic/voodoo priestess. You need to be evaluated by a mental health professional; either a psychiatrist or a licensed, clinical psychologist. Like @JLeslie, I don’t want to completely dismiss your feelings that you are having paranormal experiences, but if you feel as though you are being watched and followed and are possibly hearing voices that aren’t really there and seeing things that aren’t really there, then you could very well have a serious mental illness, like schizophrenia, or, you could possibly just have severe phobias and some kind of anxiety disorder.

Either way, you should seek the help of a mental health professional, not a witch doctor; and not try to deal with this on your own or asking people on the internet. Whatever is going on, it is bothering you and seems that it is interfering with your ability to function and feel comfortable and calm and centered in your own skin; in your own life. You need to seek some kind of professional help, I think. You will not find the answer to your problems on a Q&A site or anywhere on the internet.

^^ What she said.

When some of us were in school, and faced with the problem of a bully, no one could tell us the problem was in us—we knew better: the problem was the bully.

I too have had to deal with fears of the dark, and the unknown. I too have heard voices, and been touched by what appeared not to be there. There used to be an apparition that stood in my bedroom doorway and watched me during the night.

While I am not disabled, I have known a few disabled folk along the way—none of whom were particularly inclined, financially, toward “professional” help. And who are these professionals, anyway? They are business men and women trained to tell you that your reality is not real.

In a way, you and I must realize that we have something ‘more’ in our experience than all the idiots in the world and their professionals. However, when our experiences threaten to overwhelm us, and become problematic, the real answer rests within ourselves. I say that because the school kid faced with a bully, always has to deal with him personally. We have to be meaner and more adamant that our personal bullies.

In all that I have said, I have not offered advice, but merely an opinion based on our shared experiences. I do however offer this as advice: surround yourself with good and genuine friends, as such are always a source of strength and comfort.

Embrace the magical powers of the carrot.

Don’t be in the dark. Use night lights.