To feel slightly traumatised by this...?

[Davincisvault]

Last night just before bed I went to have a wee. Sat down, wee’d, pulled the toilet paper (must have slightly scrunched it up) went to wipe and a MASSIVE fucking house spider was wriggling between my fingers, in the toilet tissue I screamed the loudest I’d ever screamed, jumped up and flung the tissue and spider across the room. DH then came running up after hearing me scream and got it out for me. It was so almost on my bite before I saw it and honestly my skin was crawling all night.

I was shaking, felt sick!! I should add, I have a massive fear of spiders and house/ field spiders whatever they’re called just send me over the edge.

It took me ages this morning to pluck up the courage to go into the bathroom and have a wee!! HOW I didn’t notice that massive fucker last night I’ll never know, but I was dopey and half asleep I’m guessing that’s why!!

the exact same thing happened to me last year, except I was reaching for the toilet paper and there it was. I am not really bothered by spiders at all but even now it makes me shudder.

Picture Janis from Friends and that’s me right now.

OH. MY. GOOOOOODDDDDDDDD.

@Cattermole true, there are false widows but the bite itself is harmless unless you are vulnerable. Antibiotics and a dent left in the leg are a result of infection not the actual spider venom! The composition of their venom doesn't cause necrotic damage. It's a neurotoxic venom which cases localised pain, minor swelling and if you're really unlucky, some nausea. They're also not aggressive and need lots of provocation to actually bite. They have to be in fear of their life before they bite. If you think from their point of view, it's a waste of venom which leaves them vulnerable until they produce more. Often it's not even a spider bite - unless you see the spider actually bite you. Spiders like Segestria florentina - the tube weaver - also have a reportedly painful bite but don't have the same bad rep purely because they don't have the word 'widow' in their name to associate them back to the true widows.
Pity about the lack of super powers though!

Nothing with 8+ legs can or should be trusted 🤢

@romeolovedjulliet

alert tmi for op. !we had a huge house spider in our bedroom last night, [the bigger ones are usually female] and this morning she was sitting in the bath looking for a drink, i rung out a flannel for her and have since put her in our spare room. we've called her sindy and she's welcome to stay as long as she keeps the flies down

OMG yesterday out house was inundated with flies but today, there isn't one. Does that mean there is an army of house spiders hiding in my house, eating the flies and are going to appear all at once everywhere in the house??

I'm not scared of spiders but I would have shat myself yes

I don't mind spiders, I usually try and catch them in an old mug or something, then put them outside, even one in the bath I will catch, and fling it through the bathroom window, then feel sorry for it being flung out and falling to the ground ha ha.

But I knew a young guy once, who was doing some work in someones attic room, and he got bitten by a big spider, and all his arm swelled up and he was in acute pain for sometimes. This was in the uk, and not some foreign country with exotic spiders.

I like invertebrates but I really strongly dislike house spiders. It's August, season for the males to come out looking for a mate. They'll be away in a month or two. Solidarity, OP.

Ugh!

That gives me the shudders.

Where I live, there are venomous spiders, and we just killed one at the back door, last week.

Urgh! I'd have reacted the same way you did!

I once washed myself in the shower with one of those body puff things and as I hung it back on its hook noticed several separate bits of a really big spider... I don't know if it was already on the puff or somewhere on my body but either way I'd clearly rubbed it all over myself 🤢🤮

I find it genuinely hard to imagine not being terrified of spiders. At least the big scuttly house ones. I have such a strong physical response that I can't control, I can't really imagine living without that.

I was just drifting off to slepp last night when I felt something lightly tickle my face, presumed it was a hair but as I moved whatever it was starting attacking my face, then I could feel it stuck in my hair, jumped to put the light on, DH complaining as to what the commotion was all about. Couldn't find it anywhere and DH was convinced I'd dreamt the whole thing. Pulled back the bed covers and there sat the most enormous moth you've ever seen, shudder.

Cor OP this one has set me right on edge

@Devlesko

I wonder who taught you to be scared, such a shame, lovely creatures. I do wish parents would do something to stop this in infancy, it isn't difficult.

Neither of my parents have a fear of spiders, I do. Apparently I watched a David Attenborough programme when I was about three, and after that the phobia kicked in! My parents really tried, but I really don't think it's as simple as you make out. I'm actually OK with smaller spiders now, and can get close enough to the big ones to drop a glass on top, but it's taken 45 years!

You obviously have to burn your bathroom down now.

“Please don’t say September has come early”

It’s 2020. Of course the house spiders are out in force earlier because, you know, it’s 2020. 😂

I used to have one of the expandable curtain rails in my bedroom. The curtain rings would always get stuck on the bit where the poles slide into one another so I reached up one morning to open the curtains thinking ‘what a glorious day!’ when a giant ass spider fell directly onto my face. Like a previous poster, I slapped my self repeatedly in the face whilst sobbing. I’m not even scared of them. It was just the shock.

I'm with you. Was once sitting on the loo, enjoying a wee in peace and felt a little thud on my chest.. You got it, a bastard spider was looking at me out of its ten billion eyes. Much screaming ensued.

This thread is great, I loved ClickandForget's post but you're all brilliant arachnid raconteurs

I like spiders myself but I think there must be a small nest of them in our liviing room by my chair and the babies keep dropping on me from somewhere. That's quite irritating as the immediate response is to scratch when you literally need to blow them off (gently).

I'm sorry for all those in fear of them, I don't fear them but there was one in the bed when I got in. I shoo'ed it off. I loath moths though and they always fly into my eyes - or try to. I'm not rational with them. I've burst blood vessels in my fingers before, slapping the dainty little things. Talk about a sledgehammer to crack a nut!