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.
Causes of spider phobia
An arachnophobe is a person who experiences an irrational fear of arachnids, without even realizing the reason for its occurrence. The causes of phobias come from childhood. Considering the causes of arachnophobia, we can highlight the following:
- Model of behavior learned by a person in childhood If close people reacted too emotionally when meeting these insects and told horror stories about them, then the child accepts this behavior as a model.
- Hereditary factor In parents suffering from a phobia, the child is also susceptible to it.
- A strong fear experienced in childhood when unexpectedly meeting a spider. In the future, a person may not remember this, but on a subconscious level he still gets scared when he sees an object of fear.
- Watching a horror movie can increase a person's inherent fear of arachnids and lead to panic.
- Sensitive Nervous Organization Fear of spiders can cause the appearance of the insect and its rapid chaotic movements, sudden appearance. A representative of the class of arachnids, harvestmen, causes great fear. This insect is harmless to humans, but is feared because of its large legs in relation to its body.
Scientists believe that arachnophobia is primarily a behavioral model, since in many less civilized societies spiders are a delicacy, and even bites when catching them do not lead to the appearance of a phobia.
Whatever the reasons led to the emergence of this fear, it must be fought. It is possible to get rid of arachnophobia on your own, but a psychologist will help you solve this problem faster and more effectively.
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.
What is arachnophobia and its symptoms
The phobia is called “arachnophobia” and is attacks of panic, irrational, uncontrollable fear of arthropods. At the same time, not only a living insect, but also its image, as well as the appearance of a web can provoke a panic attack.
Main symptoms of arachnophobia:
- An arachnophobe feels panic and severe discomfort in places where there are cobwebs and spiders may live.
- A person avoids dark basements, attics, corridors, and other places where a spider can be seen.
- Even talking or thinking about insects can trigger a panic attack.
- At the sight of an arthropod, the arachnophobe tries to run away as quickly as possible, but if this is impossible, he begins to have an uncontrollable hysteria.
- Regardless of color, danger and size, the arachnophobe is equally afraid of all arthropods.
The feeling of fear is extremely strong and uncontrollable; an arachnophobe may develop hysteria, loss of orientation in space, a feeling of suffocation, lack of air, and even loss of consciousness.
A person suffering from this fear should not only know what arachnophobia is, but also how to combat this disorder. The consequences of a phobic disorder can be very disastrous for a person - this is the development of neuroses, depressive states, and depression of the nervous system. Any panic attack is accompanied by an increased risk of stroke or heart attack.
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Manifestations of arachnophobia
Panic attacks with arachnophobia are accompanied by a number of vegetative manifestations. These include:
- severe headache and dizziness;
- cardiopalmus;
- coldness of hands and feet;
- numbness, trembling in the upper and lower extremities;
- pallor or redness of the skin;
- increased sweating;
- shortness of breath, feeling of suffocation, lack of air;
- dilated pupils;
- nausea, vomiting, involuntary urination;
- stupor, inability to move.
In the most severe cases, a person may experience spatial disorientation, sudden convulsions, and even loss of consciousness. The person has partial amnesia - he does not remember what happened at the time of the meeting with the spider, and cannot control his actions.
Phobic disorder can develop into real mania. The arachnophobe tries to make the house sterile, preventing the appearance of cobwebs, or, conversely, tries to find the habitat of spiders and destroy them.
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.
How does arachnophobia manifest itself and what are its causes?
Many people fall into a stupor at the sight of a tiny spider, some lose consciousness when they become entangled in a web or hear about the presence of a furry insect in the room. This behavior indicates a person’s arachnophobia. What is this disorder and why does it occur?
What is arachnophobia and what are its signs
Arachnophobia is one of the common phobias. This name comes from the merger of the ancient Greek words "arachno" ('spider') and "phobos" ('fear') and implies a panicky fear of spiders and arachnids.
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.
“Killing our spider!”
At home, a person can do various exercises aimed at consolidating the results of working with a psychologist.
They are quite simple to perform and can significantly improve our mood, filling us with positive emotions. You can find many examples of such exercises on the Internet, but they should not be the only way to combat the fear of spiders. Making a figurine of a spider out of plasticine and “destroying” it will clearly not be enough to achieve the desired result - getting rid of the phobia. All this, of course, is indicative of the predominance in size over the object of fear and no less funny, but if you have really made the decision to get rid of arachnophobia. You need to take your condition responsibly and seriously. And you should start by contacting a psychologist.
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.
How to get rid of arachnophobia
Only a psychotherapist can answer the question of how to stop being afraid of spiders, so an arachnophobe should definitely seek professional help.
If a person has been diagnosed with arachnophobia, treatment is carried out comprehensively and includes independent exercise, effective methods of psychotherapy, as well as the use of medications.
On one's own
Special computer programs that simulate human contact with arthropods in virtual reality will help you overcome arachnophobia on your own. This helps the human psyche adapt to adequate perception of insects and corrects his behavior.
Self-medication brings positive results only in the initial stages of a phobic disorder. Only a specialist can distinguish
Exercises for treatment
One of the simplest, most accessible and effective exercises for self-studying arachnophobia is a thorough study of the lifestyle and habits of arthropods. A person must make sure that an encounter with a spider does not pose any danger to humans, since poisonous individuals are extremely rare and are on the verge of extinction.
Independent “communication” with spiders and performing other exercises is only possible if the arachnophobe has already learned to independently control his fears, otherwise a worsening panic attack may occur.
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With the help of psychotherapy
Psychotherapy helps to effectively cure arachnophobia. Among the most popular methods:
- cognitive therapy;
- behavioral therapy;
- psychoanalysis;
- hypnotherapy.
Cognitive therapy is a technique that is based on conveying to the patient all the absurdity and inadequacy of his fears. In most cases, cognitive therapy is combined with behavioral therapy - this makes it possible to get a quick positive result.
Behavioral therapy - this technique allows you to treat arachnophobia through exposure to the object of fear. That is, the psychotherapist “forces” the patient to look at arthropods in photographs and images, videos, as well as in documentaries.
Psychoanalysis - a psychotherapist acts directly on the subconscious causes of arachnophobia, eliminating them.
Hypnotherapy - the essence of the technique is to introduce the patient into hypnosis and directly influence the subconscious causes of his fear. Treatment tactics are selected for each
Medication
Treatment of arachnophobia includes not only psychotherapy methods, but also the use of medications. These include:
- Antidepressants are taken in courses; the effect of such medications is aimed at reducing the manifestations of panic attacks and stabilizing the functioning of the nervous system.
- Neuroleptics and restorative drugs - activate blood circulation in the brain, reduce the risk of heart attack or stroke.
- Tranquilizers - reduce the feeling of tension and anxiety between attacks, as a result of which their frequency is significantly reduced.
The effectiveness of treatment for arachnophobia depends on whether the patient is ready to make contact with a psychotherapist, how he perceives his fears and whether he is ready to fight them.
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Doctors' advice for combating and preventing fear of spiders
As N.I. said Pirogov, the best treatment is prevention. You should not start a pathological process, but rather, prevent its formation. Psychotherapists in the case of arachnophobia adhere to the same principle.
Don't scare children with spiders
Parents are used to punishing their children for their offenses with sanctions in the form of “babes”, monsters or spiders. Should not be doing that. If a child for hooliganism receives his father’s threats about a big, evil arthropod that comes out from under his bed at night, then the child’s psyche will form the attitude: “I don’t want to explain, because I’m very afraid of spiders.”
Don't watch horror movies
Modern films are so realistic that they keep not only children but also adults awake. Don't be surprised if, after watching Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets in the evening, you will be woken up in the middle of the night by a child's crying associated with Hagrid's huge chitinous monster Aragog.
Be at one with nature
Fresh air, clean green forest, warm river - all this is the natural habitat of insects. While in it, you will get to know most of their representatives better and understand that they are not so scary and aggressive, but friendly and harmless.
Think logically
Don't be an elephant who is afraid of Moska's barking. Spiders are creatures that are 1000 times smaller than you. They have no need to attack a person. According to statistics, more people die each year from cow attacks than from spider bites.
Connect your creativity
Use your left brain and get creative. If you, being an arachnophobe, saw a spider on the ceiling, and it does not allow you to continue your business normally, then imagine that it is not a spider, but an ordinary ant that peacefully goes about its business.
Try to eat spiders
Of course, this method is not necessary, but in the kitchens of Central Asian and Latin countries you can find fried or baked hermit or black widow on the menu. The taste of spider meat resembles the taste of other chitinous representatives - crayfish, shrimp, crabs
