I'm arachnophobic. Help me?!


Question: How the hell do I overcome my great (as in big not good) fear of spiders? It's really starting to get to me! An example is when I clean my rat's cage in the backyard. There are spider webs everywhere in my yard and sometimes big spiders just crawl out from my rat's cage or over it and sometimes there are webs right in front of my face! I've tried reasoning with my mum to let him stay inside but she hates him (she thinks he has rabies or some s***) and wont let him so.....help me! I need to overcome my fear of spiders or my rat will be living in his own crap!

PS: Please dont go on about how dumb it is that im scared of spiders but i own a rat.
PPS: Please dont say anything stupid like "give away your rat" or "get a pet spider"


Answers: How the hell do I overcome my great (as in big not good) fear of spiders? It's really starting to get to me! An example is when I clean my rat's cage in the backyard. There are spider webs everywhere in my yard and sometimes big spiders just crawl out from my rat's cage or over it and sometimes there are webs right in front of my face! I've tried reasoning with my mum to let him stay inside but she hates him (she thinks he has rabies or some s***) and wont let him so.....help me! I need to overcome my fear of spiders or my rat will be living in his own crap!

PS: Please dont go on about how dumb it is that im scared of spiders but i own a rat.
PPS: Please dont say anything stupid like "give away your rat" or "get a pet spider"

Good luck! I have a lifelong case of arachnophobia (I get freaked out just looking at pictures of spiders or spiders in video games).

However, if I were in your predicament, I would use a long handled broom to brush the webbing away from the cage and then walk away for a bit. The bugs will wander away and then you should be able to clean the cage with a minimum of fuss.

Here is a good spider repellant recipe that should do no harm to your rat. You can use it to clean the cage and spray the area around the cage with it. You will need, 1 cup of vegetable oil, 1/4 cup of dawn liquid soap, 1 tsp of vanilla extract. Mix oil soap and extract in a container. Now in a spray bottle put 1 table spoon of the mixture for every 1 cup of water. shake and spray your spiders away

I wish I knew...I freak out about spiders too...!!!!

Spiders are absolutely harmless if you don't bother them.

So, if you're not like taunting them and trying to squash them - they mind their own business. Nothing to be too afraid of.

i have the same thing.
i am VERY terrified of spiders!
i ve tried to figure out ways too.
im not exactly sure how to overcome it.
im not sure if you can.
i wish i knew how tho!
but i dont think your stupid at all!
good luck.
if i find any answers i will deff let you know!

I too have a terrible fear of spiders. I'm so scared of them that I can't even kill them. One time I set off so many spider bombs in my basement that I inhaled too many fumes, stopped breathing and almost died. The only thing that has worked for me is to slowly work up to killing them, then I feel empowered.

its all in the mind

1. try to overcome ur fears by just "doing it" or "by force" ex. just go and clean the cage and dont run or hesitate

2. easier version on the web they sell cds u listen to when u sleep to over come fears smoking and other stuff

http://www.stevegjones.com/fearofspiders...

I am afraid of rats but own 2 tarantula's.. Anyhow..I was afraid of snakes until my brother threw one at me when i was a kid & i caught it.. They say the way to get over your fears is by facing them. If you can't face the fears then just try to be really careful when out there & be sure to wear long sleeves & gloves..

Start hand feeding your rat spiders. Then you can overcome the fear of spiders and your rat will develop a new taste.

I learned once in psychology class that people can get over their phobias by being exposed to them untill they calm down. For example, a person afraid of heights would be taken way up high. They'd freak out like crazy, but then the adrenalin and all sorts of chemicals that are causing the intense fear wear down eventually so they calm down more. Once they are calm, then they can start to understand why their phobia is irrational.
So you've just got to sit with the spiders until you can calm yourself down and see how irrational it is. Unless they are black widows or something. But if they hang out in the yard, they are probably not bad at all.

"Getting a pet spider" is not a stupid answer.
What I'd recommend is maybe reading up on spiders. Check out a few books from your local library or online, and study up on them to see if you learn anything new. Try to slowly expose yourself that way. The video link there is a good educational resource to begin your path to understanding spiders.

There is a web sight called emotional freedom techniques. (EFT). It can help with phobias. I didn't believe these things until i tried it. Also gradual exposure technique where you slowly reassure yourself little by little that the spiders will not harm me.

I used to have an extreme fear of spiders also. One day I made the mistake of telling a co-worker who put one of those wolf spiders in a box of parts i was working in. I had to keep reaching in for parts knowing that thing was in there, or get fired for not doing my job. I chose to keep my job And I kept reaching in that box in an icy cold sweat on the brink of passing out! By the time I actually saw the spider (about 2 hrs later) I was no longer afraid, and to this day I am no more afraid of a spider than I am of a warm summer breeze! I had no choice but to face my fear and conquer it.

oh, how i wish i could help u AND me! i'm not afraid of ANYTHING, not snakes, not bugs, not even rats! BUT SPIDERS! They are just TOO CREEPY!! NOTHING should have THAT MANY LEGS!! i guess my suggestion for you would be to take your rat out and put him AWAY from the cage (in a box or something) so that you can spray the whole cage and area around it with some good bug spray that lasts for several weeks. I would think that should discourage them. When they start to return, repeat the process. And i would take a broom out with me, to knock down any cobwebs/spiders in the area, which will discourage them from having to constantly go to all the trouble of re-building webs. I sure hopes this helps! you have my sympathy!!

First of all, it's not dumb that you own a rat, but are scared of spiders. They're two different creatures. Second, I actually happen to know how to overcome this.

A little background: Your body has a natural, normal response generally called "fight or flight". You probably know what that is, but just in case, it is your body's natural defense mechanism to prepare itself to either fight an enemy or flee. When you fear spiders, this fight or flight mechanism kicks in; however, it cannot sustain itself for longer than a couple of minutes and it is "trainable" (meaning that you can train your body not to have this response).

With that info in mind, the key thing to do is to start slowly exposing yourself to the stimulus that you fear (spiders). Start by sitting close to the cage and looking at the spiders. Take deep slow breaths while you do it to help moderate the fight or flight (slow deep breaths can actual stop the response). Once you start feeling more comfortable, move a little closer. Continue to do your deep breathing and give yourself words of encouragement (example, I know the spider can't hurt me, yada, yada, yada). Pace yourself, though, and try not to do this too quickly.

Eventually, you will be able to approach the cage without having the same level of fear because you would have diminished the fight or flight response. The important thing is to go slowly and keep it up, even when it's hard. Good luck!

When you clean his\her cage wear long rubber gloves. The more education you have on spiders the less likely you are to be afaid of them.Did you know that a spider has up to eight eyes, and when he sees you coming, hes ready to run.You look eight more times then you should and huge... Im surprised your rat doesnt get rid of the spiders itself.

You can ask your mum about seeing a therapist, they have lots of ways that can help you overcome fears. The best way to do it would be to try to get yourself used to the spiders, but that being said I'm also terrified of spiders and have no desire to 'get used to them'.

Any chance you can use a vacuum cleaner to clean so you can suck up all the webs and spiders?





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