Guest Posted October 18, 2013 Share Posted October 18, 2013 I have been like this since I was about 5 years old. I have tried to control it by reading about spiders, looking at them at the museum and in pet shops and talking to spider experts. Can now pick up very small ones in a glass but the house spider terrifies me. The fear I have is uncontrollable in as much as when I come across one the feelings invoked in me are automatic and will not subside. It does not help that in our society spiders are used as tools of fear be it in films, nursery rhymes or other forms. Of all the fears known, arachnophobia is one of the greatest if not the greatest. There are millions of sufferers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XXTickerXX Posted October 18, 2013 Share Posted October 18, 2013 You need to look into exposure therapy. They'll start you out with just like photos and stuff and keep progressing until it's not controlling your life. Spiders are infinitely more afraid of you than you are of them. You're a giant apex predator to them, and all they want is to be left alone. When you realise that they cannot hurt you it takes away any power they held over you. For that you need exposure to them. Get a spider catcher from Amazon and you can deal with them at arms length. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boyfriday Posted October 18, 2013 Share Posted October 18, 2013 You need to look into exposure therapy. They'll start you out with just like photos and stuff and keep progressing until it's not controlling your life. I had this, is there a posh name for having developed a fear of tomato stalks that the therapist told you were like dead spiders? ---------- Post added 18-10-2013 at 19:12 ---------- Yep, I suffer but not as bad as you hdclarke. I've had three spiders drop down on me while driving from being on the sun visor. Now I leave the visor down all the time. Like Megalithic I go camping a lot but I don't encounter them in the tent. But then again I do keep it zipped at all times. Once went camping with my kids and ex-wife, she gets claustrophobic so wanted to sleep with the tent unzipped, I obviously didnt for fear of a spider invasion. So we slept with the tent half zipped up with her hand hanging out of it. What she didn't know was that in the night me and junior went to sleep in the car after fetching a takeout pizza Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 18, 2013 Share Posted October 18, 2013 I realise that most spiders cannot hurt me, but them hurting me is not the issue. I do not care if they are pink and sparkly and the most unaggressive creatures in the world...I simply cannot stand them, I hate the way they look, I cringe when they move and freak when they run especially when they run fast. Of course the idea that some can hurt me terrifies me but I am just as terrified of the ones that cannot hurt me. So if learning that they cannot hurt me will cure me and eradicate the power they have over me through exposure therapy then.....exposure therapy will not help me, as I realise that most cannot harm me yet they have the power to scare the hell out of me regardless. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olive Posted October 18, 2013 Share Posted October 18, 2013 I realise that most spiders cannot hurt me, but them hurting me is not the issue. I do not care if they are pink and sparkly and the most unaggressive creatures in the world...I simply cannot stand them, I hate the way they look, I cringe when they move and freak when they run especially when they run fast. Of course the idea that some can hurt me terrifies me but I am just as terrified of the ones that cannot hurt me. So if learning that they cannot hurt me will cure me and eradicate the power they have over me through exposure therapy then.....exposure therapy will not help me, as I realise that most cannot harm me yet they have the power to scare the hell out of me regardless. I know people usually mean well when they say "the can't hurt you", errmm, dur, how can they think we don't KNOW that?!!!! I share your pain, it's not just a fear, it's an absolute loathing, a dread that goes right to your bones. It's something about the physical shape for me. I can't stand pictures, not even on the telly, of big spiders. No end of times over the years I've been innocently leafing through a newspaper or magazine - on the bus, on the tram, in the doctor's waiting room, in the hairdresser's only to turn the page to be confronted by a life-sized, colour image of some diabolical bird-eating tarantula or some such horror. My reaction's not controllable, and surprised looks are exchanged by witnesses I'd love to know where this phobia comes from, my family didn't pass it on to me. It's SO common though - is there something primal about it? Insects don't bother me at all - daddy long legs can parade to their hearts' content. It's just the arachnids, like an inbuilt instinct. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Isabelle Posted October 18, 2013 Share Posted October 18, 2013 I've gotten better with spiders, small and even medium sized ones I don't mind particularly and I'll even pick the small ones up. I suppose living on your own you have to learn to cope with them. Big house spiders still make me shudder, I recently found one in the bathroom and introduced the cat to it, then I ran away when it moved Fortunately my cat is pretty good at catching them, I've found a few dead ones lately that she's obviously been playing with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boyfriday Posted October 18, 2013 Share Posted October 18, 2013 I've gotten better with spiders, small and even medium sized ones I don't mind particularly and I'll even pick the small ones up. I suppose living on your own you have to learn to cope with them.You don't have to cope with them-you can sleep in your car, or do as I did and move house! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melthebell Posted October 18, 2013 Share Posted October 18, 2013 You don't have to cope with them-you can sleep in your car, or do as I did and move house! tut they follow you you stupid lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monkeygirl Posted October 18, 2013 Share Posted October 18, 2013 sounds like you are really suffering and this phobia is really impacting your life. i agree with what others have said about getting some kind of help - hypnotherapy (i don't know of any hypnotherapists whose work includes you having to pick up a spider), exposure therapy or cbt is supposed to be good for helping people deal with fears and phobias. even if you don't get over disliking spiders, even some improvement for you would be good i have a spider catcher and they are great Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boyfriday Posted October 18, 2013 Share Posted October 18, 2013 tut they follow you you stupid lol I hope they can swim then Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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