Anyone successfully conquered arachnophobia?

[Seziah]

Just back from a few days in the countryside and the Airbnb was absolutely full of spiders. Most were small but I came down the first morning to two giant thick whoppers and barely slept after that.

I tell myself they can’t hurt me, they’re more scared of me etc. but it just doesn’t make any difference. Completely irrational, and hard when you live alone.

Has anyone tried any therapies to get over the fear? I’ve heard of the spider programme at London Zoo but there doesn’t seem to be any availability, it’s a bit of a journey and not sure if it truly works

Same! I have vivid memories of holding a fascinated toddler DS up to see into a tarantula display case and prattling away about the red bands on the legs, while actively having to look anywhere but the case.

Now I can look at ordinary British spiders, give them stupid names, and even coexist with the ones who live in corners. Still can’t catch or kill them, though.

I've done the London Zoo course and it was worth every penny. I had a massive fear but I'm a lot better now and can regularly catch spiders and move them outside.

I think the dates get released in April time and sell out almost instantly, it was like trtinf to get tickets for a festival!. It cost £200 when I did it last year.

Remedial hypnosis; essentially hypnotherapy but without the trance bit.

Oh gosh, that sounds really difficult, keeping you in my thoughts.

Ouch, I think describing me as grotesque is a bit extreme (way to make my day start nice, not!)

I'm proud of myself for getting over the fear. And I love my pets.

They can live twice as long as your typical cats and dogs. Females can live 20-30 years in captivity. They groom themselves like little cats and are fastidious about cleanliness. They have personalities - not like a mammal does, but they do have personality traits. When they dig out the dirt for their burrow, they carry it over to their spoil pile and pat it down gently like they're making biscuits. They are endearing to get to know as individuals.

There are no pics of any on that link.
I ordered a bottle of spray once and it had a pic of a huge hairy one on the front. I was like, KNOW YOUR DEMOGRAPHIC!!! Ffs.

Also, I would highly recommend the product. I’ve just moved house but in my last house I used to get loads, huge big ones as well. I got these little plug ins, and it was lifechanging. Initially it did draw out some which was horrible for a week or so. They used to run in circles clearly very discombobulated by the ultrasonic waves. Once they were gone, I barely had another beast for the rest of the years I lived there!
Have three in the new house and praying they work as well here!!

Yes I was totally terrified until one day I was alone with my young child and she was playing with a large spider abd I realized that if I reacted in my normal way I was going to make her frightened so I managed to contain myself and started talking to her about the spider I them trapped it under a glass and put it in the garden. (Previously I wouldn't have been able to be in the same room !)
After that I have been fine

Yes I am very sorry for describing you as grotesque - big real apologies 💐🙂

It is really the concept that I find grotesque.

Well done for overcoming your fear.

For me the only animals that I can relate to as pets are other mammals.

Me!

I used to check my bed and windows every night. If I saw a spider I couldn't sleep until DH killed it. Killed it. Not released it because it might get back in!

I now own spiders and a tarantula!

Strangely, I am getting over my fear of spiders through keeping stick insects - my DD6 was obsessed with getting some after a zoo visit, and I didn't realise quite how spiderly (is that a word?!) they move until we got some...but of course I have to pick them up to clean out the cage, as DD isn't quite confident enough to handle them yet. And I've gone from really not liking it to not minding at all.

I'm not 100% cured of my fear, but so far this autumn I have managed to move a couple of harvest spiders (which I now find beautiful and fascinating) by hand, and leave a couple of big house spiders to get on with life high up on the bathroom wall...they have since disappeared and I'm not obsessing over where they might be.

So it's progress...and makes living in an old house a bit less stressful. If one jumped on me from the ceiling I'd still have the screaming ab-dabs, but so long as they don't do that we can peacefully co-exist at least...

See I don't think I could pick a stick insect up! 🤣

like pps i did the friendly spider course at London zoo. Absolutely life changing for me I was terrified!

I done it a long old time ago but even now I live alone the other day I did pick a much bigger one up in a little plastic tub and a bit of cardboard like we learned on the course.

before I done the course I would see them everywhere. Now I only see them if they be in front of me which be barely a couple of times a year. I live with small ones all year round I does only put the big ones outside.

I genuinely am no scared of them no more and I was someone who could no be in the same room as them. Now I say “it’s just a spider!”

definitely worth looking into. I was initially worry about the cost cos with the course and the travel to London it be spensive for me but 100% worth every penny it has actually cure me of it!

I started with watching videos of jumping spiders, the little fellas really are cute and like to interact with people. Have a look on YouTube and Facebook. They really are adorable little creatures and really helped me with arachnophobia.

@Gooseegando I didn't think about it until I had to tbh, and by that point I had no choice...they aren't at all spidery in themselves, it's just that the way they move has similarities...and DD was stood right next to me watching...so I just had to get on with it!

I’m scared of them though I can cope with tiny ones and the ones with tiny bodies.

Unfortunately, I’ve passed my fear on to my DC; we’ve been a hysterical mess recently with them cropping up in the house.

All the bedroom windows have got stick on mesh nets on them and I’ve also liberally sprayed them with peppermint oil!

My dad used to catch spiders with his hands when I was younger and pretend to throw them at me and my sister - we’d be in bed laughing in hysterical terror! I blame him entirely, he thought it was funny.

@8TinyToeBeans I wouldn’t ever want a spider for a pet but you have made tarantulas sound pretty cute! I did meet one once when my DD had a reptile party where a local company brought round some snakes, lizards and a tarantula for the children to meet and learn about. I held the tarantula! I never would have thought I could do that, but I enjoyed the experience. I did feel very anxious but the spider was quite beautiful and fascinating and the staff helped me handle her safely (they explained that it can be catastrophic for the spider if they are dropped from even quite a short height.)

Edit: duplicate post

I’ve had hypnotherapy for this successfully, although it took a few goes. Will never love them, but happy to pick up mid sized ones and relocate big ones with a jar

My son did. He was, as a kid, mortally scared. Autistic too, so autumn brought many a bedtime meltdown. Then as an adult, in his own flat,he had pet spiders. We were flabbergasted. No clue how he got over it

I tried everything over the years, still could not cope with anything bigger than the teeeny money spiders and even then I hoovered them up. Eventually did the zoo course and although I am not delighted to find a spider in the house I can cope and am able to get a very large one into a pint glass. Tbh I am still adjusting to the idea that my life does not need to be ruled by fear, after a lifetime of scanning rooms every time I walked in. If you had asked me before the zoo course if I would rather find an intruder in my house or a spider, I genuinely think I would have chosen an intruder. That seems crazy now.

Thank you :)

I never would have seen myself as a tarantula person but here I am. I do also have 2 snakes so I’m the strange pet person. The bonus is I’m never short of an interesting fact about myself for those terrible work ice breakers! 😂

Well I’ve been convinced and now I want to do a course! But someone said they release don’t tickets for the London Zoo one until April and the zoo near me only does it in September and October so too late for this year. I’ve seen another one in London but it’s £350 and 9 hours long 🧐. After that I’d probably hold anything so I could go home!

@Seziah where did you get window mesh from? Thanks