desensitising

I've been dealing with my aracnophobia - specifically fear of the huntsman - by creating something resembling that type of spider with Insect Shop and containing it within the closed window. Everytime I click and check there it is happily crawling around the screen, sealed away, almost an object of affection.

via J walk

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Comments: desensitising

I think the incident that had the most impact on my (still strong) arachnophobia was when I moved into a new place in Darwin which had been sprayed, and there was this little wolf spider, and he was wretched; dying but not quite there yet, and I threw him out of my room twice, and he came back each time, and the third time I went to throw him out he just looked at me... so I put my hand on the floor in front of him, and he walked up and stepped onto it, then just sat still.

I carried him around with me everywhere for 2 days until he died.

I gave him a burial.
Posted by armaniac at August 12, 2005 03:54 PM

Oh...
That's a novel isn't it?
(Or a short story)

I am working on my hunstman-phobia.


Posted by boynton at August 12, 2005 04:01 PM

I'm glad I am not alone in my huntsman-phobia. I've been told by a lot of people, "I'm terrified of spiders, but not even I am afraid of those things."

I just think they are creepy. VERY creepy. I have learned not to act frightened when others pick them up, or else they will throw them on me. Terrible, nasty, things.

And they stink when you squish them. Which I never do on purpose, as I don't like being near them.

Good luck with your cure. I'm just going to try and avoid them.
Posted by Mark at August 13, 2005 01:57 PM

Until now I hadn't realised that they were in the US. Via Wikipedia I see they're in other places
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huntsman_spider

I also clicked on that Clock Spider link which has not helped the phobia ;)


Posted by boynton at August 13, 2005 02:58 PM

Yikes! Those really are terrifying.

I made a mistake. I was confusing "huntsman" with "harvestmen." It's the harvestmen (aka Daddy Long Legs) that I dread and no one else seems to have a problem with:

http://spiders.ucr.edu/daddylonglegs.html

Huntsman spiders are much scarier. I now have a new phobia.

Posted by Mark at August 14, 2005 11:23 AM

Growing up we mistakenly called Hunstman spiders "Daddy Long Legs" - I think this was a ruse to make them seem less terrifying. Didn't work. Even though they're harmless...
Luckily for me no other common spiders induce fear.
I am better than I used to be, but still need to be desensitised.
It's the old car sunvisor scenario I worry about...

Mcb at "Invisible Shoebox" has had a long *running* huntsman character in her cartoons. Checking into the latest I see a pertinent post:
http://invisibleshoebox.blogspot.com/2005_07_31_is_archive.html#112285170269204047
Posted by boynton at August 14, 2005 02:14 PM

Wow, that is pertinent. The internet is a wonderful thing.
Posted by Mark at August 15, 2005 06:45 AM