Arachnophobia is one of the most common phobias on earth. According to statistics, every fifth man suffers from a fear of spiders. Among women the rate is even higher. Uncontrollable fear of insects interferes with normal life. And they can be found everywhere: meadows, fields, city apartments, public institutions. This is the essence of spiders. Let's look at the causes of fear and ways to eliminate it.
Causes of fear of spiders
Scientists talk about several theories about the origin of arachnophobia. A psychological disorder of this kind is explained by various reasons and has many factors of origin.
Interesting facts about arachnophobia
- In some religions, killing a spider is considered a sin.
- There is an opposite statement: one religion believes that killing an insect removes 40 sins from a person.
- Today there are African tribes where arachnophobia is completely absent. People peacefully coexist with insects and eat them.
- If one of the parents is susceptible to this phobia, the risk that it will be passed on to the child is very high. Children copy the behavior of adults and begin to fear along with them.
Scientists believe that one of the possible causes of arachnophobia is a significant difference in the structure of the spider’s body. Most animals have a similar build to humans. Arthropods are strikingly different, which on a subconscious level can cause rejection and hostility. And this is a prerequisite for the emergence of the phobia itself. According to this principle, people are afraid of snakes.
The reason for arachnophobia may lie in the awareness of the population about the presence of deadly individuals. The same reason causes fear of diseases and provokes other fears. A person imagines how a spider bites him, after which he dies. This thought becomes unbearable, is embedded in the subconscious, and pops up every time you see an insect, even on TV or in a picture.
Another reason for the development of arachnophobia is the unpredictability of animals. Spiders jump, they are very fast. Their web is sticky and unpleasant.
Arachnophobia is more common in people who live in areas where poisonous species live. The real fear of death provokes a subconscious reaction even to small individuals.
Symptoms and signs
Many people ask what the fear of spiders is called because they believe that they have this phobia. In fact, almost everyone has a dislike for them. This, as mentioned above, is explained by a significant difference in the body structure and plasticity of the arthropod.
Arachnophobia is a mental disorder that provokes uncontrollable reactions when seeing a spider:
- panic attack;
- horror, scream, desire to run away;
- desire to kill the spider immediately;
- trembling in the body;
- increased heart rate;
- high blood pressure;
- nervousness, feeling like someone is crawling on your body;
- cold extremities;
- facial redness or pallor due to a surge in blood pressure.
If there is no such reaction, but only hostility towards the insect, then the person does not have arachnophobia. A phobia necessarily contains a component of uncontrollable horror: the reaction of the vegetative-vascular system. A person is unable to cope with fear.
Signs and symptoms of arachnophobia
The classic triad of symptoms is noticeable:
- increasing anxiety upon contact with a spider and something that resembles it;
- somatic deterioration (interruptions in heart function, rapid breathing, sweating, etc.);
- avoidance reaction (the patient tries with all his might to protect himself, he treats the house and clothes with cleansing agents).
In the case of arachnophobia, anxiety does not subside even for a second. A person is afraid that an insect will suddenly descend from somewhere and land right on him.
During an unexpected contact with a spider, an arachnophobe experiences a panic attack. It is manifested by a complex of somatic reactions:
- tachycardia,
- arrhythmia,
- dyspnea,
- labored breathing,
- chest pain,
- nausea,
- chills,
- sweating,
- dizziness.
It is important! The more advanced the state of an arachnophobe, the more dangerous he is to himself and others. For example, when he sees a spider, he may try to burn it and thereby burn down his own and other people's apartments.
What are the dangers of arachnophobia?
Arachnophobia is the fear of arachnids, even to the point of death. This phobia gives rise to primal fear, as if there is a danger of attack. A person has a desire to kill an insect. The instinct of self-preservation tells him so. Otherwise he will not feel safe.
A phobia can cause attacks of fear in which a person loses consciousness and his blood pressure and pulse begin to rise sharply. This is dangerous to your health. If you have heart disease, such panic attacks can cause a heart attack or stroke. They can also cause cardiovascular diseases, ulcers, and gastritis.
The released adrenaline is designed to make a person run, escape or fight. What does a person usually do when he sees a spider and experiences a panic attack? He calls his neighbor to kill him. And then he can’t calm down for a long time. Adrenaline finds no outlet. It poisons the body, accelerating the pulse. It wears out the heart. The more often such attacks occur, the more damage arachnophobia will cause to a person.
Exercises to treat arachnophobia
Dissociations
- Imagine that the spider is further and further from the arachnophobe: first at arm's length, then in the next room, on the street, in another city or in space. Then look at the insect through imaginary binoculars or a telescope to see that the arthropod means nothing.
- Change the time of action mentally. To begin, fix a state of peace and tranquility in your mind. At the moment of an attack of arachnophobia, try to remember this feeling and imagine that such a moment has come right now.
- Change reality. In your imagination, paint the world around you with all sorts of (possibly unusual) colors, and “repaint” the spider in a gray, nondescript color. Imagine all the surrounding objects as large and significant, and the arthropod as small. Then imagine that the insect shrinks and disappears completely.
Interesting fact. Some psychotherapists recommend going to a country where spiders are a delicacy, and try to eat your fear (if possible).
Eat your fear
Art therapy
This method is effective for both treating adults and children:
- Make a detailed figurine of a spider from plasticine. Moreover, make it as similar as possible to the object of fear, both in color and size.
- For some time, examine the sculpture in detail and mentally connect your fear with it.
- Kill your fear (tear off your head, crush it, etc.).
- The sculpture can be replaced with a drawing, but, according to experts, destroying the plasticine figurine is more effective in eliminating fear.
Plasticine spider
Many people underestimate arachnophobia and consider it something insignificant. Without timely treatment, this disease leads to chronic stress, mental disorders, and can cause heart attack and stroke. At the initial stage of the disease, 4-5 sessions with a psychotherapist permanently cure spider phobia. An advanced phobia requires long-term and labor-intensive treatment. Arachnophobia, like any other disease, does not tolerate neglect and without proper attention takes on threatening forms.
How dangerous are arachnids really?
In what situations does an insect attack? If he has to defend himself. They do not feed on people, and therefore do not consider humans as food. Hunting is excluded. A spider attacks if it accidentally gets close to a person and feels threatened. Some animals will start to run away, others, defending themselves, will try to defeat the enemy.
When you see a spider, do not rush to panic. Move to a safe distance, look at his behavior. It is unlikely that the spider will decide to settle scores with you for noticing it. The animal goes about its business. Go on your way too.
But this is only possible if a person sees an insect in nature, outside the house. The situation changes radically if a person goes into the bathroom and there sits a huge karakurt with furry paws on the wall. He cannot be kicked out of the house like someone else's cat. Here instinct demands to kill a dangerous animal. No other way. If an arachnophobe went to get a slipper, and when he returned, there was no spider on the wall, he will probably call a special service or simply leave the room. After all, if a spider has gone somewhere, it can return just as unexpectedly. But you can’t live in constant fear.
To avoid such situations, you need to get rid of phobias.
Unfortunately, most often a person encounters a spider completely unexpectedly. Both are frightened; the arthropod can attack if a person accidentally almost steps on it. Therefore, when in the wild, in the natural habitats of poisonous spiders, it is necessary to protect the body with clothing that the spider will not bite through, and take special care.
Symptoms of arachnophobia
Fear of spiders is characterized by the following symptoms:
- Panic fear and lack of control.
- Active actions aimed at leaving the insect habitat. In some cases, lethargy or shock occurs.
- An irresistible desire to kill insects, regardless of size and level of danger.
- Increased sweating, pale skin color, heavy breathing, trembling limbs.
Arachnophobia is a mental disorder with negative symptoms. Complications of the pathology lead to the appearance of nervous diseases, chronic stress, stroke, and heart attack. If symptoms appear, it is recommended to seek help from a specialist.
What threats does a phobia hide?
Experts say that arachnophobia poses a serious threat to human health. The main danger is sudden panic, which cannot be controlled independently. When an attack occurs, a person tries to escape from a dangerous place and is unable to control his actions. The emotional state in such situations noticeably worsens.
Attention! Dangerous consequences are caused by depression, severe stress, and anxiety-depressive disorder. A phobia constantly provokes the appearance of anxiety, danger, and threat.
How to treat a fear of spiders
Fear of spiders can be treated with several methods. One of them is psychotherapy. This is the most effective remedy. Your doctor will help you find the cause of arachnophobia. He will correct the “mistake” that led to a series of incorrect mental reactions to insects. Sedative medications are used as an aid. Their choice depends on the person’s condition.
Only an experienced doctor can assess a person’s psycho-emotional state. He will also help you find the reasons for your fear of spiders. Sometimes they go back to deep childhood. To identify the cause, hypnosis and other methods are used with the patient’s consent. Contacting a specialist is the surest way to get rid of the problem.
How to get rid of arachnophobia yourself
Unfortunately, the practice of visiting psychologists is not common in our country. Not all hospitals have them. Sometimes it is simply not possible to visit a doctor. Then you should try to get rid of the fear of spiders on your own.
There is one simple, proven way to combat arachnophobia. It consists of actions that contradict fears. Psychologists recommend not hiding from fears, but facing them. When a person follows the lead of his fear, the latter only gets worse. If you avoid spiders all the time, your fear will increase.
First, study all types of poisonous individuals. Find out which ones are available in your area. Read about the cases in which they attack. Spiders are not always poisonous: in some species, only females have poison; it is released only at certain times to protect the offspring. This dramatically reduces the chance of being bitten.
To get rid of arachnophobia, you need to make friends with spiders. Of course, no one will advise you to squeeze the poisonous karakurt. You need to start with a tiny, harmless house insect. Try to pick it up and touch it. This must be done through fear, a heart beating furiously in the chest. You must understand physically that there is no danger. These arthropods are more afraid of you than you are of them.
Then look for a store that sells spiders or keeps them as exhibits. They are in all cities. Talk to the owner, ask to let you hold a specimen that is not poisonous. To be brave, you can take a sedative beforehand. The size of the animal must be increased gradually. It is better to start with small spiders and gradually work your way up to large ones.
For people living away from the city (and this is 30% of the population), there is another way out: you will have to look for spiders in nature. Just carefully study the information about all types of insects first. Make sure the method is safe before you start.
Psychologists say that this is a strategically correct move. Many arachnophobes, having gotten rid of their fear in one way or another, keep pet tarantulas and feed them. This is a kind of trophy that confirms getting rid of arachnophobia. The fear of spiders disappears completely. But there is little theory here; you have to touch the arthropod to understand that it does not pose a danger. You are not afraid of the spider, but of what you think about it.
The fear of spiders disappears completely. But there is little theory here; you have to touch the animal to understand that it does not pose a danger. You are not afraid of the spider, but of what you think about it.
Treatment of arachnophobia
How to get rid of arachnophobia? Drug treatment is aimed at stopping panic attacks. Tranquilizers and nootropics are prescribed. Sometimes taking antidepressants is indicated. As a psychotherapeutic treatment, a technique of gradual rapprochement is used: first viewing images of a spider, then making eye contact with an insect, then touching it. All this must be done under the supervision of a psychotherapist; the client must first master self-regulation techniques.
Recently, a method of virtual rapprochement with spiders has become popular. This came to us from American practice. The point is that a person is immersed in virtual reality or plays a computer game without complete immersion, in both cases he fights with spiders. This method requires even more preparation. You can read more about methods of treating phobias in this article.
It is important! You cannot self-medicate, otherwise you can worsen the course of the phobia.
