How to deal with arachnophobia? Best ways to cope

Why is arachnophobia dangerous?

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Despite the fact that the disease at first glance can be called far-fetched and insignificant, it has the ability to cause significant harm to health and disrupt the normal routine of a person’s life.

The danger of arachnophobia:

• auto injury (during an attack, the arachnophobe does not control his behavior and can injure himself or accidentally get into a dangerous situation);
• living in a constant stressful situation, unconsciously continuously expecting a spider attack and being ready to defend yourself;
• a constant state of stress leads to a weakening of the body’s defenses and worsens the mental health of the individual;
• provokes the emergence of secondary phobias, neuroses and obsessive-compulsive disorders (for example, an abnormal need to clean the surrounding space);
• a panic attack at the sight of a spider can trigger a stroke or myocardial infarction.

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:

1. An arachnophobe feels panic and severe discomfort in places where there are cobwebs and spiders may live.
2. A person avoids dark basements, attics, corridors, and other places where a spider can be seen.
3. Even talking or thinking about insects can trigger a panic attack.
4. 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.
5. 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.

Main symptoms of arachnophobia

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In order to understand arachnophobia is a fear of what, you should identify the main symptoms of the disease. Almost every person experiences disgust, disgust, disdain or rejection of arthropods. But such feelings are not an illness; spider phobia is characterized by certain symptoms:

• unconsciously boycotting places where spiders may appear;
• the type of arthropod causes increased sweating, tachycardia, trembling of the limbs and paleness of the skin;
• panic, overwhelming fear, lethargy, or desire to run away from danger;
• feeling of unreality;
• strong desire to kill an insect.

The phobia can manifest itself either through direct contact with an insect or when looking at a lifeless spider; in advanced stages of the disease, panic appears at the sight of an image or even at the mere mention of an arthropod.

The first sign of emerging arachnophobia is the desire to kill any spider. At the next stage, an obsessive need to destroy the spider nest in the home or in the surrounding area appears. If the phobia is not treated at these stages, it can develop to alarming proportions.

Panic with arachnophobia

Causes of fear of spiders

Experts say that very often the roots of this fear stretch from childhood. In 1996, a psychological study was conducted in Holland in which children aged 6 to 10 years participated. The results of the study showed that 50% of the subjects were afraid of spiders to some extent. For 40% of them, this fear appeared after they first saw an arthropod or felt its touch on their skin. The parents of the children interviewed confirmed this information.

Let's look at the main reasons why spider phobia develops.

Causes of spider phobia

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Spider phobia does not arise on its own - like any illness, it has its own causes:

1. hereditary or genetic phobia of spiders;
2. parental behavior pattern or intimidation of a child by spiders, incorrect attitude of adults towards children's fears;
3. personal negative experience, especially if a negative encounter with arthropods occurred in childhood (adults locked the child in a dark room with spiders as punishment);
4. individual mental characteristics and type of nervous system (low stress resistance and psychological endurance, sensitive nervous system provoke the emergence of various types of phobias);
5. a single sudden encounter with a large individual arthropod;
6. features of local mentality and national behavior.

Interesting. In some countries, people do not know the concept of arachnophobia and what it is, since they eat spiders as food, and food, as we know, is not scary.

Causes of arachnophobia

Why are people afraid of spiders? There can be many reasons for arachnophobia. Often the phobia results from tactile or visual contact with an arthropod.

The main causes of arachnophobia:

1. Defense mechanism - the human psyche reacts on a subconscious level to arachnids as a source of increased danger. Such a protective mechanism is inherent in humans by nature, but in some people it is extremely pronounced.
2. The presence of zoophobia in parents or other close relatives.
3. Errors in upbringing - if parents instilled in a child disgust or fear of spiders, in the future this may develop into arachnophobia.
4. Watching horror films with spiders can cause panic fear of insects in impressionable people.
5. Regional peculiarity - it has been scientifically established that in regions with a large number of poisonous, dangerous spiders, cases of arachnophobia in people of different ages are much more common.
6. The effect of surprise - a chance encounter with a spider in most cases turns into a panicked fear of the arthropod.

One of the most common causes of mental disorder is negative contact with spiders. For example, if a person unexpectedly saw a spider on his hand or an insect bit him painfully. Such contact can affect the mental state of an impressionable person and cause the development of a panicky fear of spiders.

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Genetic and other prerequisites for arachnophobia

How to get rid of arachnophobia - first of all, it is necessary to determine the cause of the development of the mental disorder . Most often, the first signs of the disease appear in childhood and are genetic in nature.

The ancient ancestors of modern man, who lived in close unity with nature, were well aware of the mortal danger posed by spiders. That is why the subconscious fear of arthropods is firmly fixed in the gene code, transmitted to all subsequent generations.

Other provoking factors:

• hereditary predisposition;
• influence of society - a negative attitude towards spiders in society inevitably leaves a certain imprint on the human psyche;
• trauma – associated with psychological
• living in a region with poisonous individuals;
• example from parents or close relatives.

Many experts believe that arachnophobia is a mental disorder that is genetic in nature. It was passed on to modern man from his ancient ancestors, and therefore the panicky feeling of fear is uncontrollable.

Genetic and other prerequisites for arachnophobia

A genetic predisposition to arachnophobia does not necessarily have to manifest itself in a person. The emergence of fear is provoked by personal negative experiences of “communication” with spiders. Researchers have found that almost all children are afraid of arthropods, but as they grow up, with the correct behavior of the adult environment, the fear of spiders completely disappears. (Many former arachnophobes keep spiders as pets.) If adults show a child their fear of insects or intimidate the baby with them, then the appearance of spider phobia will not take long to occur.

For a long time, there was an opinion among scientists that the fear of spiders has been embedded in the genetic memory of mankind since ancient times, when people were forced to protect themselves from external threats. But the existence of some modern tribes that completely lack arachnophobia refutes this version.

Most spiders are harmless

Interesting fact. What saves arthropods from complete destruction is the folk superstition that killing a spider is not good. Although adherents of some religious movements believe that for destroying a spider, 40 sins are forgiven.

Experts believe that some people who have never previously suffered from a fear of spiders can consciously “grow” it if they repeatedly replay in their minds a natural human reaction to an object (a spider) suddenly appearing in their field of vision. With each such repetition, the spider will be perceived with increasing fear.

Are spiders really that scary?

Spiders, especially in our country, are absolutely harmless creatures. Even if we are talking about poisonous representatives, they never show aggression first, that is, they do not attack, but rather defend themselves. And it’s not so easy to meet a poisonous spider, because almost all of them are listed in the Red Book. These include:

• Karakurt;
• Eresus;
• South Russian tarantula;
• Cross spider;
• Silver water spider.

They pose a danger to life and health, but only if you do not know some details about them.

If we talk about karakurts, then only females, which are several times larger than males, pose a danger. Tarantula bites are not very pleasant, as they can cause an allergic reaction, and a rather painful tumor forms at the site of the bite. True, it is quite easy to reduce the likelihood of negative consequences - just burn the bite site with a match. Eresus bites are not very pleasant, but do not pose a threat to life or health; discomfort at the site of the bite goes away after 2-6 days. The same can be said about the bites of the cross and dropsy - they are painful, but not dangerous.

From all that has been said above, we can conclude that some types of spiders actually pose a danger to human health, but in most cases their bites cause temporary inconvenience.

The number of truly dangerous species is not very large, so not every person can encounter them in everyday life. You should also remember that a spider, even the most poisonous one, does not attack first, so when you meet it you need to behave calmly, without forcing it to defend itself.

This is also interesting: Signs about spiders: how did our ancestors interpret the appearance of spiders at home?

Is it possible to recover from arachnophobia?

Modern medicine knows how to cure arachnophobia. Along with psychotherapeutic treatment, a medicinal method of getting rid of the disease is used.

Drug treatment

Medicines for fear of spiders are used extremely rarely, only in severe advanced cases. The following medications are used to relieve the symptoms of panic attacks:

• antidepressants,
• nootropic drugs,
• tranquilizers.

Psychotherapy usually helps to cope with the disease.

Psychotherapy for spider phobia

Among the many psychotherapeutic methods for treating spider phobia, the most effective are:

1. A confrontational method, during which the doctor deliberately confronts the patient with the subject of fear. In the initial stages, the patient learns to manage his fears by watching images of spiders. At the last stages of treatment, direct contact of the arachnophobe with arthropods is allowed under the supervision of a specialist. In this way, a person realizes that spiders do not pose a danger, and develops the habit of reacting evenly to their appearance in the immediate vicinity.
2. “Virtual” method of combating spider phobia, developed and tested by Russian specialists. During the treatment process, the patient, using special equipment, is immersed in virtual reality, where he will have to meet and defeat a large number of arthropods. In this way, the arachnophobe acquires the ability to control his fears and gradually completely gets rid of the phobia. American psychotherapists use a similar technique, offering patients computer games, the main task of which is to defeat spiders. Spanish psychotherapists have noticed that treatment is more effective if patients touch the monitor with their fingers while playing.

Interesting fact. Fans of the computer game "Minecraft" will never become arachnophobes.

1. A behavioral therapy method that involves the patient having direct contact with spiders. First with the smallest and most harmless in appearance, then all with larger individuals (up to the tarantula spider). Experts who use this method believe that avoiding the subject of fear strengthens the phobia, and frequent direct contact helps to overcome fears.
2. Overcompensation technology (can be used as part of behavioral therapy, or as an independent method of treatment). The point is that the arachnophobe deliberately keeps an arachnid in his home, cares for it, feeds it, and creates favorable conditions for existence. This method allows the patient not only to overcome his fears, but also to feel more complete.

"Communication" with a spider

1. The graphic method of treatment is that the patient is asked to draw an object of fear, that is, a spider, then destroy it (tear, burn or drown the drawing, sketch the image). As a rule, huge arachnid monsters appear in the first drawings, but each time the arthropods become smaller and cuter. The phobia is considered defeated if the patient begins to draw kind and cute spiders and refuses to destroy them.
2. A method of deep psychoanalysis, which allows you to transfer a problem from the depths of the subconscious to the surface of consciousness and fight with suitable methods.
3. Hypnosis sessions also help to cope with arachnophobia in a short time.

Important! Psychotherapists select treatment for each patient personally, taking into account the degree of the disease and its individual characteristics.

How to get rid of arachnophobia yourself

The initial stages of the disease or mild degrees of arachnophobia can be cured on your own. Psychotherapists believe that traditional methods of dealing with any phobias are also relevant for fear of spiders.

How to overcome arachnophobia yourself:

• Stop discussing your fears in detail with many strangers. It's better to trust a specialist. In addition, repeated re-experiencing of fear aggravates the situation.
• Learn meditation or other relaxation methods.
• Realize responsibility for your fear, overcome it and force yourself to touch the spider.
• Study the literature on this topic, learn about the habits, lifestyle and structure of arthropods. Accept that spiders are not dangerous.
• Do several exercises aimed at eliminating phobias.

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.