Is my fear of spiders normal?

I am verys scared of and disgusted with spiders.
I had a nightmare a few weeks ago of spiders being everywhere and when I went to bed the next night I came to think of it and couldnt sleep I felt terrified a spider would fall on me and got intense anxiety and wanted to run out of the room. When I was staying at a B&B a year ago I was using the shower.... And this is hard to even just write..... I reach for shampoo bottle that was on a windowsill with a curtain hanging infront of it and...... On the other side of the curtain is a huge spider. I FREAKED out. I screamed and jumped out of the shower area, slammed the glass door shut and rinsed my hair in the sink instead which made a mess all over the bathroom floor that got all wet so I had to clean it. I then went and sat in my room for over an hour crawled up on the sofa staring into the wall and couldnt eat or anything I was just having to calm myself down and I couldnt sleep well that night because I had to be alert and keep a watch for spiders. I couldnt use that bathroom again so I walked to another part of the B&B up some stairs and used that one for the rest of my stay. I feel traumatized thinking of this and like im gonna cry and pass out.

Voting Results
67% Normal
Based on 15 votes (10 yes)
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Comments ( 34 )
  • charli.m

    Ugh I feel your pain. We had two giant huntsmans in our house recently and I can't deal. At all.

    I was gibbering and crying even googling pest control cos the fucker all have spiders on their webpages and I can't touch my phone screen to scroll where there's a spider photo.

    They're evil and I hate them.

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    • SwickDinging

      This has happened to me recently too! I hadn't had a big huntsman in my house for ages and then BAM they keep showing up.

      Maybe there's more of them this year or something.

      I hate them. I don't get it when people say you shouldn't kill them. If I can kill cockroaches, ants and flies, then I can damn well kill a huntsman. Spiders aren't special, they are just another pest that I don't want in my house.

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      • charli.m

        Ugh they're so awful. These two were huge. Smallest was palm sized. I got the whole house sprayed and I'm still living in fear. Idk if they're not venomous or they're helpful. They're fucking terrifying.

        We've had the black house spiders, too. I don't like them but they don't send me running and crying like a hunstman :/ my uncle found some redbacks, too.

        I really hope we don't have funnel webs. I've never seen one but I feel like if it's gonna happen...it'll be now.

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        • SwickDinging

          Yeah, The huntsman are special fuckers. They might not be as dangerous as the other spiders, but something about them strikes the fear of God into me.

          I honestly can't compare it to anything else. We live in the country and are pretty rough and ready. We're chill about most of the scary stuff you get in Australia. We generally set a good example for the kids because we deal with stuff calmly. I've even had a deadly snake in the house during a flood, so no snake catchers could get to us, and I handled it like an absolute boss. I slept fine that night.

          But huntsman? Nah. No. They make me scream and cry. I wish they were all dead.

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          • charli.m

            Omg...I couldn't handle a snake. You belong here more than I do haha

            Ugh its the creepy scuttle...and they're so damn fast...and they just creep up on you...you turn around and the fucker's just there...taunting.

            When I was a kid, my mum pulled the visor down in the car and one dropped on her. I'm still scared of car visors 30yrs on.

            Ok Imma go cry a while just thinking about them.

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            • SwickDinging

              Yeah this conversation is making me twitchy.

              Think I'm gunna go book in a pest spray...

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  • a-curious-bunny

    They never bothered me till a brown recluse( DONT look up. Can identify by it being especially fucking ugly for a spider) camped outside my apartment and kept attacking me. Now they make me hella uncomfortable. Plus the fear ain't unfounded one little bite is all it takes for the long nap and they so tiny and ugly -shudders-

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  • JellyBeanBandit

    I wasn't quite that scared of spiders but I was still pretty bad. I couldn't sleep in my room if I saw one in there and I went through times where I'd be paranoid there were spiders everywhere and would feel a little nervous entering a room. But I did manage to get over it.

    I found that the best opportunity to practice overcoming your fear of them is if you find one trapped in the bath/sink. They can't get out then, so you're safe. You can then spend as long as you like just watching them and the way they move. Even doing that can be a little difficult but you do then start getting used to it, it becomes less frightening. Eventually you can dare yourself to quickly put your hand in with it, each time getting closer and closer. It's quite an adrenaline rush and you feel proud of yourself for achieving it each time. With enough practice, you may just feel abnormally brave one day and just say "fuck it" and pick it up. But every small achievement is something to be proud of.

    I can pick up spiders now. I'm not completely comfortable around them, I am nervous and would avoid them. But I know if I start doing that I could end up back at square one. So you may never fully get over them, but you can learn to manage your fear. Good luck!

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  • SmokeEverything

    Spiders eat other bugs you know right? If you have no spiders youll have more other bugs.

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    • Im fine with all bugs except spiders. Gross indoors but fine. Ants can infest my wholeass house if they wanna as long as theres no spiders.

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      • SwickDinging

        I get it. I feel the same.

        I live in the tropical part of Australia so there is A LOT of scary shit that can infest my house. None of it bothers me as much as spiders do. They are too scary for me.

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  • thepuppet

    it's a common phobia

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  • Cuntsiclestick

    Your fear is normal. On a side note, back when I was a kid and had a dog, I trained her to kill bugs. I would say "Blackie! Buzz Buzz!" And she'd immediately start looking for the bug, catch it, and kill it.

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  • chuy

    Any kind of phobia is normal

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  • RoseIsabella

    What kinda spider was it? How big was it?

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  • RoseIsabella

    I like spiders.

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    • Somenormie

      I like them just so I can creep out my annoying cousin is scared of them.

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      • RoseIsabella

        I like them, because they kill, and eat other insects that are pests.

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  • mouldiwarp

    You may have a legitimate phobia.

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    • Somenormie

      A phobia named arachnophobia.

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      • mouldiwarp

        Yes.

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  • Somenormie

    Normal to feel scared of teeny weeny insects.

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  • Not normal. Personally i let spiders live in my house.

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    • SkullsNRoses

      I leave the daddy long legs alone because they’re too skinny to bother with, those giant house spiders, however, can leave my house or die at my hand.

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      • https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=eBzXsY1W-XA

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        • SkullsNRoses

          Nice try formalin, toy spiders spark no fear in me.

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          • https://youtu.be/phmDe9WikHY

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            • SkullsNRoses

              Absolutely repulsive, well done.

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