BS: Phobias

Subject: BS: Phobias
From: Senoufou
Date: 10 Oct 22 - 03:58 AM

I have had ridiculous arachnophobia for most of my life. Even a photograph of a big hairy spider gives me the willies. Recently, a business has opened up near this village, in a road called Nowhere Lane (!!). They have hundreds of 'creepy-crawlies' in glass enclosures, and we (visiting husband and myself) decided to go and have a look.
The first room displayed living scorpions, with very interesting information about their countries of origin and so on. They were kept warm by infrared lights above their cages.
The next room was the Spider Room. Clutching my husband's hand tightly, I tottered in, and there sat the biggest hairiest spiders imaginable in their individual enclosures. Strangely enough, I looked carefully at each one and read the information. (Many African specimens!) I began to feel rather sorry for the poor creatures in their little prisons, and the phobia started to abate.
Then a lady with two small children spoke to us and pointed to the corner of the room. There sat a massive hairy spider - it had evidently escaped from its cage. Luckily, the lady had informed the staff, and a woman in uniform arrived with a paper bag and gently popped the naughty spider in.
The place is called 'BugzUK' and they offer another room where one can hold and touch the creatures. Sadly (??) it was fully booked, so we couldn't try that.
The point of this rambling post is that perhaps phobias can be overcome with knowledge, exposure, pity and scientific interest. Or simply 'getting a grip'?

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Donuel
Date: 10 Oct 22 - 06:08 AM

Tears and fears
Broken gears
Cogs that slipped
that spiders tripped
Nothing is real
and all I feel
Is a monster
on the wall


Head's just not right
with 8 eyed sight
I hope it dies
I understand why
Still there's pain
And tears like rain
when I was 3 feet tall
and the spiders on the wall

What to say
When this is the day
But at such cost
All alone and lost
I will never forget
where spiders sit
If they were my friend
My agony would end

Noah Body

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Senoufou
Date: 10 Oct 22 - 08:02 AM

Oh what a lovely poem Donuel! I've copied it from your post into an exercise book I keep for quotable quotes and beautiful poems etc.
My husband never kills spiders, he gently cups his hands around them and pops them outside. I might now be able to do the same, or at least use a glass over the top with a paper underneath to transport them into the garden.
Any other arachnophobics here?

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 10 Oct 22 - 09:22 AM

Think I mentioned before the Field Studies Council guide to house and garden spiders (three quid on Amazon as I recall). It's a laminated fold-out guide that tells you about the structure of spiders, their habitats, their different kinds of webs and about their distinguishing features. The whole of one side contains the most beautiful illustrations by one of my favourite wildlife artists, Richard Lewington (his butterfly book is unalloyed joy).

Spiders don't care much for the idea of being caught in your hands, I've found. They usually manage to scuttle away and then you can't find them again, not really the outcome you desire if you want it gone. The container-and-cardboard method is more reliable. House spiders are far more likely to survive if you let them stay in the house (I always pretend that I've thrown them outside...). A certain way of killing a spider is to wash it down the plug hole. If there's one in the bath, it fell in and did not crawl up the waste pipe.

They are useful in the house, and only a few British ones can give you what is a harmless nip, and only then if you make them panic. My policy is to leave them be. I've even been known to chat to them.

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Donuel
Date: 10 Oct 22 - 11:40 AM

The poem is as frivolous as our fear of spiders.
As a hypnotist, surprisingly the most frequent phobia was that of impending risky surgery. For example, face surgury could easily leave one side permanently droopy. Requiring physician approval my experience can not reflect the frequency of popular phobias such as https://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-05-01/ten-of-the-most-common-phobias/6439210

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Doug Chadwick
Date: 10 Oct 22 - 01:03 PM

....... the most frequent phobia was that of impending risky surgery

A phobia is the irrational fear of something. I would suggest that there is nothing irrational in worrying about impending risky surgery.

DC

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 10 Oct 22 - 01:17 PM

As there are such things as dangerous spiders, I don't think that fear of them is necessarily either frivolous or irrational. They can be very very still indeed then suddenly charge around like billy-o in a scary and unpredictable manner. The best way to relax about spiders in Britain is to become more familiar with them and recognise that even the biggest of 'em can do you far less damage than a wasp, horsefly or mosquito. Of course, if you live in a place where bad-guy spiders exist, you can get to recognise them. When I was in Oz I found one of those redback jobbies under a toilet seat. It didn't seem very interested in me, can't think why not.

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Senoufou
Date: 10 Oct 22 - 01:19 PM

I agree about the rational/irrational description. For example, I have a rational fear of rather vicious, aggressive dogs (hasn't everyone?) but I do love friendly dogs. My fear of UK spiders was very irrational, as they aren't venomous.
The strange thing is, I saw quite a few dodgy snakes in Senegal, but didn't fear them, I just made sure I kept away. They were rather beautiful actually. Ditto scorpions, I saw many of those there too, but didn't screech or run!
I've always been ashamed of my arachnophobia. My naughty pupils used to put a big plastic spider in my register drawer, and I'd screech the place down, much to their great amusement.
I do hope I'm now 'cured' after our visit to BugzUK in Nowhere Lane.

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: robomatic
Date: 10 Oct 22 - 01:21 PM

Item One - someone else's spider:
Story from a mountaineer in the Himalayas. He and his young co-climbers were settling down in a stone and mud hut prior to hitting the ice. They didn't have enough cots for all, so they drew straws for the floor. The writer 'won'. Prior to turning out the lights they noticed a large spider on the wall, apparently motionless for the duration. "He's waiting for you," the others joshed. They turned in and the writer, unable to sleep, crept to his feet, and snapped on the light.

The spider was halfway down the wall. "With a sandal I made him a permanent fixture."

Item Two - my spider:


A spider in an airplane is a whole lot better than flies.

I was flying a small airplane from Alaska to the Lower 48. Somewhere early in the multi-day trip I noticed a hitchhiker, a skinny but long legged spider that hid out in the corner between the right side of the windshield and the wing root. In the heat of the morning it would creep out and build enough web to remain in the early sun. I treated it as a bit of nature shedding its favor and hopefully wisdom on my endeavor. The plane was older than me. I was 'on the cheap' not being unsafe, but using as much automobile fuel as possible. But if I was at a large enough airport I might have to use avgas which then called for a lineboy, which at some time resulted in someone opening the door and cleaning out my little friend.

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Mrrzy
Date: 10 Oct 22 - 05:56 PM

Boris the Spider. Creepy, crawly...

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 10 Oct 22 - 06:04 PM

I don't have a spider phobia but a good friend has.

Oz has lots of very dangerous spiders & snakes, & I'm almost never in places where they are.

But here as in probably every city in the world, we have smaller spiders who spin their webs inside. My bath is across my window sill which contains several plants & one morning I was trying to encourage a very tiny money spider to leave the bath & get back where it belonged by using a leaf to gently move it & accidentally killed it. oops, I didn't shed a tear, but felt sad.

turning this into a music thread - Redback on the toilet seat - An Australian classic, no. 3 in the Top40 in 1972

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Mr Red
Date: 11 Oct 22 - 02:51 AM

I have had ridiculous arachnophobia for most of my life.

How did you react to Saddam Hussein? Oh sorry - that would be Iraqnophobia.................

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Senoufou
Date: 11 Oct 22 - 02:52 AM

Once when visiting Senegal alone, and lodging in a 'campement' in Abene (small shacks with a central restaurant) I became interested in their goats, which a lad had charge of, and he put them away each night under the water tower. I offered to do this for him one evening (if not locked away, it was possible someone in the village would steal them!)
I gaily led the two goats into the small shed, and gaaaaaagh! a giant hairy spider was on the wall right beside me! I screeched and ran, and Erica the owner came zooming across to find out what was the matter. She laughed like a drain and so did Léon the goatherd. I wonder to this day if that spider was venomous or harmless. But I fled nonetheless!
Yet random snakes in the yard, and scorpions in the sandy earth of the goat's field never bothered me one bit. The two Senegalese (Wolofs) used to sum all this weird behaviour up with "Toubabe!" (ie, daft white person) which always made me giggle.

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Senoufou
Date: 11 Oct 22 - 02:55 AM

Hee hee Mr Red! I also have Racknophobia when trying to hang my newly-washed bedding on the drying racks in the utility room without tipping them over.
And I hope I don't develop Blacknophobia or I might become scared to death of my dear husband!

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Mr Red
Date: 11 Oct 22 - 02:56 AM

According to Stephen Fry, on QI, who never tells a lie..........

House spiders don't like the outside, if you catch them and take them outside they will attempt to return.

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Senoufou
Date: 13 Oct 22 - 03:53 AM

They do indeed Mr Red. This is the time of year I think when they all try to creep into houses for protection against the cold weather.
But my hospitality does not extend to arachnids! The thing I still fear is finding one sitting menacingly on my pillow early in the morning, right next to my nose. (This happened a few years ago. I think my screams were audible down in London! Fortunately, husband dealt with the thing gently and popped it outside again. My hero!

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Donuel
Date: 13 Oct 22 - 10:36 AM

“Imagination is bigger than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination is as huge as a spider on your nose.”

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: leeneia
Date: 13 Oct 22 - 12:42 PM

I have fear of heights. Even a picture of a person on a dangerous height can a nasty sensation in my chest or the pains which shoot up the backs of the legs. This happened once when the picture was a black and white line drawing of a little guy on a makeshift scaffold in a cathedral under construction.


Since I knew he was merely 3/4 inch tall and made of ink, I call such fear irrational. And since Senoufou feels fear at a picture of a spider, I call that a phobia too.

Any YouTube that pops up and involves somebody falling gets the "Don't Recommend Channel" treatment from me. Ditto airplane crashes.

I have a friend who was bitten by a rattlesnake at the age of four. She needed hospitalization then, and one year later there was a resurgence of the symptoms. She will not go near any grassy or woodsy area, and she can't bear to look at a picture of any snake. Is that a phobia or not, I wonder?

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Senoufou
Date: 14 Oct 22 - 01:33 AM

I think I read somewhere that all anthropoids have an innate fear of spiders. Even chimpanzees, gorillas etc in zoos go 'apeshit' (sorry, couldn't resist that pun, hee hee!) if shown a plastic, or a real spider. So I conclude that fear of heights, claustrophobia and so on are there to keep us safe. Maybe in early times, many spiders were actually venomous and it behoved us to fear them and run away.
Fear is quite a useful state. I'm afraid to walk alone down a street in the dark. (Nowadays, one could be attacked).

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: JennieG
Date: 14 Oct 22 - 02:26 AM

Sandra - that little gem of Ozzie culture ws recorded here in my home town. Really put the place on the map, I'm sure.

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Mrrzy
Date: 17 Oct 22 - 08:36 AM

The term I recall is "prepared phobias" - unreasonable fears of things it was entirely reasonable of our ancestors to fear.

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Donuel
Date: 17 Oct 22 - 02:15 PM

About 10 years ago we had a year of the spider. All spiders had ideal weather and webs were everywhere. A simple wolf spider had grown to two inches and while I was studying him he jumped 3 or four feet sending me falling backward. Turns out I am not immune to arachnophobia.

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Senoufou
Date: 17 Oct 22 - 02:24 PM

Oh crumbs Donuel! I'd have wet myself!

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Donuel
Date: 17 Oct 22 - 02:25 PM

Paleontologists working in South Korea found ancient spider fossils with still-glittering eyes.

Spider fossils are rare, the researchers wrote in a paper published online Jan. 28 in the Journal of Systematic Paleontology. Their bodies are so soft that they typically decay entirely soon after death, leaving no trace unless they happen to end up trapped in amber. But 11 spiders from the Cretaceous period have turned up preserved in shale on the Korean Peninsula. And two of the fossils included the still-shiny traces of sparkling eyes.

Those glittering bits are mirror structures in the eyes called tapetums that bounce light from the back of the eye back through the retina. Animals use them to improve their night vision, usually at the expense of some overall blurriness. Wolf Spiders have large mirrors in their eyes.

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Donuel
Date: 17 Oct 22 - 02:40 PM

Eight arms aren't scary. Octopi have eight unjointed legs but are smarter than dogs and form fond bonds. https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/octopus-chronicles/how-octopus-arms-regenerate-with-ease/
I only wish they had a long lifespan.

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: Joe_F
Date: 22 Oct 22 - 05:34 PM

Flanders & Swann have a comic song about a spider in the bath ("What a dreadful-looking beast! Nearly half an inch, at least." etc.) It seems not to have made it here.

Subject: RE: BS: Phobias
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 23 Oct 22 - 07:00 AM

Halfway down the thread Songs of Flanders and Swann, there's the results of Jim Dixon's search for F&S titles, including:

The Spider

Hope that helps. Oh, and thanks for finding me something to sing tomorrow evening :-) .