[zedcom]

As a teenager, my sister and I got stuck in an SF hospital elevator for an hour.  We didn't realize it until that moment, but my sister was (and is) severely claustrophobic.  Not a very pleasant experience, let me tell you.  To this day, she takes stairs almost exclusively.

I would not have done well in the linemen's predicament. Never thought of myself as claustrophobic until 5 or so years ago but have become increasing susceptible since then...not sure why. Non-aisle seats in airplanes, MRIs, being in a crowd of people with tight quarters, or reading/thinking about kidnap victims in car trunks or buried underground, really trigger a physical/mental reaction for me. The only thing from my childhood that I can think may have caused this was a day of spelunking where, after barely being able to squeeze through a small passage way on my stomach into a small room, my friend/guide said "this doesn't look at all like I remembered it" and suggested we exit fairly expeditiously. Claustrophobia is very real for me and not a pleasant thing...I empathize with your sister.

[zedcom]

As a teenager, my sister and I got stuck in an SF hospital elevator for an hour.  We didn't realize it until that moment, but my sister was (and is) severely claustrophobic.  Not a very pleasant experience, let me tell you.  To this day, she takes stairs almost exclusively.

I would not have done well in the linemen's predicament. Never thought of myself as claustrophobic until 5 or so years ago but have become increasing susceptible since then...not sure why. Non-aisle seats in airplanes, MRIs, being in a crowd of people with tight quarters, or reading/thinking about kidnap victims in car trunks or buried underground, really trigger a physical/mental reaction for me. The only thing from my childhood that I can think may have caused this was a day of spelunking where, after barely being able to squeeze through a small passage way on my stomach into a small room, my friend/guide said "this doesn't look at all like I remembered it" and suggested we exit fairly expeditiously. Claustrophobia is very real for me and not a pleasant thing...I empathize with your sister.