# Overcoming Irritional Fear of Spiders



## Trademark (Nov 13, 2014)

*Overcoming Irrational Fear of Spiders*








Yeah, I'm one of the Arachnophobic patients. I have this when I'm just 4 and it's been getting worst when I'm getting older. It's very shameful: what if I had a girlfriend with me and we're sitting on the sofa while the spider is creeping from the ceiling? Should I scream? whoaOh I'm not really a coward of any tiny insects.... except for stretchy spiders :'( haha. So that's why my house geckos are making fun of me whenever I see wandering spiders indoor. I know they're not agressive as bees but venomous however. Some people and farmers consider them as pests control and tend not to kill them. But it's just their creepy appearance to worry about. I know some spiders like Black Widow are extremely deadly but pretty rare (I think). But what if when I'm in situation of while I'm inside the restroom and there's a sudden sneaking long-leg spider will surprise in front of me that would be the worst awkward experience I can tell. I know this is awkward but is it me or the spiders had the problem? p.s what will happen if all arachnids are extinct?


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## Trademark (Nov 13, 2014)

Hahaha *Irritional* sorry for the typos


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## ScarlettHayden (Jun 8, 2012)

If all the arachnids are extinct then there will be an over-population of flies and other insects.

Well, I don't really have an answer for you. Just saying I relate. Here in the UK there's only one type of poisonous spider which isn't native and is a new species here, but other than that the fear is pretty much completely irrational. Doesn't change that I'm bat-shit scared of them though.


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## Robert2928 (Apr 6, 2012)

Get to the core of why you have the fear. Fears are usually a symbol for potential danger or a perceived threat. You may not fear the spider at all but the idea of being bit by a spider. You probably got bit by a spider at the age of 4 and associate the long legs with the pain of the bite or something. Get to the core of why the fear exists then go from there. 

For example I hate spiders, those little bastards are sneaky. I like to be aware of potential threats and they fly under my radar and catch me off guard thus my fear of those little 8 legged bastards lol


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## Reluctanine (May 11, 2014)

Oooo, I don't think it's an irrational fear. They're small and creepy and crawly and can crawl up your nose. I have it too! Still trying to conquer it.

I also used to be scared of the lizards that would crawl around the walls in my room. I sleep in a double-decker bed, so they were really close. The biggest is like the size of my palm and finger length.

But then one day I decided I don't want to be afraid of them anymore. Lizards are good because they eat the insects which I don't like even more.

So I decided to make friends with them. I named this large lizard I was looking at, Jim. A few days later a smaller lizard popped out, so I named him Bobby. Bobby is Jim's son. One time, Bobby had his tail missing, so I watched him grow bigger when he comes to visit me. I think that maybe I'm on Jim the 3rd or Bobby the 5th or something by now, but it's okay. Large lizards are Jim. Small lizards are Bobby. I guess they're attracted to the light in my room since that's where insects typically are. They keep me company when I work through the night. Sometimes when I've had a bad day, I talk to them.

Things are a lot less scary when you give them a name, especially a nickname, which is kinda like what Jim and Bob are, since I don't know if lizards have names. I doubt I can speak lizard-talk even if I tried. When you're scared of something, and you give it a name, and you see it again, it's kind of under you since you named it, like your parents give you your name. You're also familiar with it when it pops up again. So they're like your lonely friend that appears again to visit you.

I guess I would name big spiders Parker and small spiders Peter.


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## Bassmasterzac (Jun 6, 2014)

Ain't you ever seen Batman Begins? If you have, you know what to do.


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## Psychophant (Nov 29, 2013)

Can such a thing really be overcome? Spiders scare the hell out of me too, and have since I was very young. It's the most common phobia, and for pretty obvious reasons.


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## Jennywocky (Aug 7, 2009)

Yomiel said:


> Can such a thing really be overcome? Spiders scare the hell out of me too, and have since I was very young. It's the most common phobia, and for pretty obvious reasons.


Yeah, I think some fears are hard-coded... you see this commonly with spiders and snakes. Snakes don't bother me in the least, but spiders -- it's like an involuntary response, even after all these years. It's the way they move and the alienness of the appearance. Even normal bugs don't trigger the same visceral reaction. I saw spider crabs in Thailand a few years back at the aquarium and despite them obviously being crabs, they were HUGE (3-4' diameter) and moved/resembled spiders so I felt my skin crawling. I know some people who freak out about mice and rats -- I wonder if there are movement triggers for these kinds of fears. (Mice can dart in different directions, snakes slither, spiders... do something.) Usually if they're sitting there, no one freaks, but as soon as they move, that's the main freakout moment. I dunno.

It's helped that I have tried to study spiders a bit. I watch them in situations I feel are controlled, read about them, educate myself on what they do. If you threw one on me, I'd still have to maintain a LOT of self-control not to just bugger out, especially if it handed in my hair, but the self-education has at least allowed me to maintain my composure. Intellectually, they are pretty fascinating; and their behavior and webs can be beautiful; but the physical response is still a fear one.


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## s2theizay (Nov 12, 2014)

Reluctanine said:


> Things are a lot less scary when you give them a name, especially a nickname, which is kinda like what Jim and Bob are, since I don't know if lizards have names. I doubt I can speak lizard-talk even if I tried. When you're scared of something, and you give it a name, and you see it again, it's kind of under you since you named it, like your parents give you your name. You're also familiar with it when it pops up again. So they're like your lonely friend that appears again to visit you.
> .


This is what I've done in the past to get over fears and it worked for me. I love spiders, but I don't blame people who are afraid of them, and I don't think it's irrational.

I have a debilitating fear of sunflowers. No lie. When I see them I want to curl up in a ball and cry. I begin to shake and I feel sick. I'm also pretty sure that's irrational. :crying:


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## s2theizay (Nov 12, 2014)

Another thing I just thought about (I don't remember if it was mentioned) is flooding. It may not be practical or even the best solution, but forcing yourself to be exposed to something you are afraid of until the fears subside.

Not a medical professional. Not a medical professional. Not a medical professional.

Anyway, I had a bad fall down some steps, and after that, I was terrified of long, narrow staircases. Instead of avoiding them, I took every chance I could to descend steps (how brave!) until eventually the fear subsided.

I guess, fear is something I see as needing to be faced head-on.

Except for sunflowers


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## Psychophant (Nov 29, 2013)

Jennywocky said:


> Yeah, I think some fears are hard-coded... you see this commonly with spiders and snakes. Snakes don't bother me in the least, but spiders -- it's like an involuntary response, even after all these years. It's the way they move and the alienness of the appearance. Even normal bugs don't trigger the same visceral reaction. I saw spider crabs in Thailand a few years back at the aquarium and despite them obviously being crabs, they were HUGE (3-4' diameter) and moved/resembled spiders so I felt my skin crawling. I know some people who freak out about mice and rats -- I wonder if there are movement triggers for these kinds of fears. (Mice can dart in different directions, snakes slither, spiders... do something.) Usually if they're sitting there, no one freaks, but as soon as they move, that's the main freakout moment. I dunno.
> 
> It's helped that I have tried to study spiders a bit. I watch them in situations I feel are controlled, read about them, educate myself on what they do. If you threw one on me, I'd still have to maintain a LOT of self-control not to just bugger out, especially if it handed in my hair, but the self-education has at least allowed me to maintain my composure. Intellectually, they are pretty fascinating; and their behavior and webs can be beautiful; but the physical response is still a fear one.


The movement bit is very true. The main reason I hate stomping on or vacuuming a spider is because I know my movement will send it scuttling off and even if I still kill it, the movement is so unsettling.


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## Amine (Feb 23, 2014)




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## leftover crack (May 12, 2013)

s2theizay said:


> This is what I've done in the past to get over fears and it worked for me. I love spiders, but I don't blame people who are afraid of them, and I don't think it's irrational.
> 
> I have a debilitating fear of sunflowers. No lie. When I see them I want to curl up in a ball and cry. I begin to shake and I feel sick. I'm also pretty sure that's irrational. :crying:


You're not alone. Sunflowers are creepy. And spiders, but mostly spiders.


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## Sparkling (Jul 12, 2013)

Imagine it comes over your body. And what is happening? Nothing. Little spider is afraid of you: baby, baby, don't hurt me, don't hurt me, no more.


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## Ermenegildo (Feb 25, 2014)

*Alice Robb: Why Are We Afraid of Spiders? There Are Two Competing Theories.*

[...] Other researchers, however, have argued that the fear of spiders has a cultural origin. When Graham Davey, then a psychologist at London’s City University, surveyed 260 British adults on their attitudes towards different animals, he found that people who are afraid of spiders are also more likely to fear animals such as cockroaches, snails and slugs. None of these animals is predatory, but they all have one thing in common: They evoke disgust. Davey believes there is a single variable, *“disgust sensitivity,”* underlying all these fears—and that it’s cultural, not evolutionary. “It is unlikely that this single underlying factor is an evolutionary predisposition to fear either venomous or harmful animals, because it is difficult to conceive of the selection pressures that would have selected for fear of some of the animals in this covarying group," wrote Davey. “It is unlikely that our ancestors ever had to avoid packs of predatory slugs or snails.”

Davey suggests three ways these animals could have taken on their “disgust-evoking status”: by being associated with the spread of disease (like rats); by having features that resemble things associated with disease, like mucus (slugs); or by being associated with dirt or rotten food (maggots). The historical association between spiders and disease, according to Davey, dates back to the Middle Ages:

_In most of Europe during the Middle Ages, spiders were considered a source of contamination that absorbed poisons in their environments (e.g. from plants). Any food which had come into contact with a spider was considered infected. Similarly, if a spider fell into water that water was then held to be poisoned (Renner, 1990). In Central Europe during the Great Plagues, spiders were seen as harbingers of the plague and death… Until the late seventeenth century many European spiders were thought to be ‘poisonous’ in the sense that their bites caused a variety of illnesses._

And though fear of spiders is widespread, it’s hardly universal. In some African cultures, the spider is honored as a wise creature; in Ashanti cosmology, the god Anansi sometimes takes the form of a spider. In parts of Indo-China and the Caribbean, spiders are traditionally eaten as a delicacy, and Hindus in eastern Bengal even consider them a sign of good luck.

Spiders in Rock Art Raise Question, Why Are We Afraid of Spiders? | New Republic


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## Judson Joist (Oct 25, 2013)

Jakenpoi said:


> It's very shameful


Feeling shame over an irrational phobia is irrational (but not shameful). So don't feel ashamed, you!



> what if I had a girlfriend with me and we're sitting on the sofa while the spider is creeping from the ceiling?


First, identify the species. You have to think like a "nature detective." That will empower you to overpower your irrational fear with rationality and observation, perhaps even fascination.



> Should I scream?


No.



> stretchy spiders


I wanna see a stretchy spider!
:crazy:
*Note:* Spiders are arachnids, not insects. "Arthropod" is a good general term that encompasses both.



> I know they're not aggressive as bees


Depends on species. Bumble bees, for example, are non-aggressive. Most spiders are more interested in finding their next meal or a mate than in ruining your day.
:tongue:


> it's just their creepy appearance to worry about.


You say "creepy." I say "adorbs."
:kitteh:










> a sudden sneaking long-leg spider


Like this one?







Just remember, from the spider's point of view, you're just part of the scenery.



> What would happen if all arachnids went extinct?


The ecosystem would collapse.


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## Wayside (Nov 29, 2012)

This is going to sound strange, but I overcame a fear of insects by empathizing with them and getting curious about them. I started with ants because I didn't find them scary and worked my way to other things. But I was going through vegetarian/spiritual phase and I can't say this approach is for everyone. Very effective though. I was able to sleep in rooms with scary giant tropical spiders and even a scorpion.

Another thing to look into is exposure therapy. From what I remember it involves exposing yourself to the thing you fear in less intense manageable doses until you develop the ability to sit with the thing your afraid of before moving on to the next level.


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## will-o'-wisp (Feb 11, 2013)

I found educating myself about their lifecycle etc helped. They are amazing creatures. They are so well adapted, each to it's own specific environment. They are amazing predators, truly fearsome for other insects. Their mating rituals are fascinating and dangerous, and they come in an amazing array of sizes and colours.
I took the time (and admittedly it was nerve wracking to start with) to look at them up close, and understand the reasons for their anatomy.

Once I understood and saw all the neat things I found a respect and admiration for them as a species and their unique place in the food chain. One of the best parts of that was reading about a specific spider and it's life cycle/habits and then being able to observe that myself...such an aha! moment, explaining for example the emergence of so many house spiders in Britain in October.

My favourite spider is the cellar spider. Their speciality is preying on other spiders and they frequently catch spiders much bigger than themselves. I never evict spiders any more.


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## ForestPaix (Aug 30, 2014)

Are you really that scared of spiders? That you'd put a gif of them into your post?
Just remember, that the spider is probably waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyy more scared than you are.
I mean, I've killed quite a few spiders in my time, but they really didn't deserve it. 
I saw a guy sitting opposite to me on the bus yesterday, and I suddenly noticed a small brown spiders running over his neck and collar.
I thought about what to do for a minute, and whether I should tell him, but then he might freak out and upset the spider. So I said nothing.


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## 45130 (Aug 26, 2012)

@_Jakenpoi_ You should definitely visit a psychologist for that. They can treat it in a few sessions... by gradually exposing you to a spider. Things you once feared more than death become less and less scary as you go through it. 
There's usually no 'underlying issue' except that you acquired a strong link between spiders and danger during childhood, be it through seeing others become frightened by spiders or through being scared by a spider yourself.

for more info; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exposure_therapy


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