How many of you used to have arachnophobia?

[PK952]

Lol...I have never had a fear of spiders (grasshoppers are another story entirely tho)...I can vaguely remember sitting in the basement, letting daddy-long-leg spiders race across my hand, what, at maybe 5, 6 years old? lol...I was also endlessly fascinated with the wolf spiders down there, but no way was I picking THAT one up! Same thing with snakes and other reptiles, never once do I recall thinking they were bad, evil, slimy, scary. Would try to catch gartersnakes in the back yard and remember being upset that if they happened to strike because "I just wanted to hold it!" Oh, makes me chuckle, because I still cannot resist the urge to catch, hold and photograph any snake, lizard, toad, etc that I happen to come across! I enjoy showing my unconventional pets to others and helping them to understand that these creatures are not evil, scary and out to get them as many believe!

 

[Anubis77]

I actually used to have a severe phobia of anything with a exo-skeleton... But since I've always loved reptiles, I decided to try and get over it as I wanted to get a gecko... Eventually I ended up with a lot of spiders too, which is probably my favorite animals now.

I took a similar path. I had a fear of spiders as a kid, which makes no sense in retrospect because I lived in Michigan. It was inconvenient to be scared of every spider I came across, so I decided to get a tarantula to get over the fear. Unfortunately, the pet store clerk steered me, and more significantly, my parents, away from tarantulas because of the urticating hairs, and I ended up with a fat-tail gecko instead.

For 5 years that was the only exotic pet I had, but when I ended up moving to Arizona, things changed drastically. I caught a Centruroides sculpturatus soon after moving and asked to get a Grammostola pulchripes at a reptile show. Just one. That didn't last once I found forums. I'm over 80 tarantulas right now. The fear turned into a fascination.

 

[jturek123]

Ive always been fasinated by anything with more than four legs, when I was a kid I had a pet black widow without my parents knowledge. Ended up being gravid and let loose hundreds of the little buggers all over my parents house lol. Oooohhh were they mad...

 

[BlackCat]

I almost overcame the fear once when I was about 7 or 8, my parents caught a little spider in a jar and gave it to me and it was my pet for about a week until one of the boys in the neighborhood poured the jar out on the ground and stomped on the spider. I even remember its name, Spike lol.

After that I was afraid of them again until I randomly bought my hubby a G. rosea as a B-day present... it was all downhill from there! lol

 

[Terry D]

Long-legged trues bothered me worse than any, although none do now

 

[jeff1962]

Wow ! Very interesting result ! I am surprised by the number of people in this hobby that were afraid of spiders. I think this hobby is definantly a healthy way of working through a phobia. Just goes to show you how addictive it can be, its a shame more people won't give it a chance.

 

[insanejuggalo66]

i used to be the same way and i remember how scared you were about them and since you got into the trade you got me hooked as well and im staying far away from that okerti if you get it tommarrow

 

[skar]

Yup. I started with A. versi sling went from there.

 

[PitViper]

I had arachnophobia 2.5 years ago then I got my first Tarantula and now I have 33 Ts, 25 scorps, 1 pede, 1 tailless whip scorp, 1 vinegaroon and a fishing spider, lol

 

[CFleming]

I went from fear, to intrigued, to doing research, to getting one, to totally addicted. I got an A versi sling as my first and a few months later I have 24 ts. Including a couple OBTs, H lividum, a few pokies, and a couple of P irminia. And I want more!

 

[Rabid538]

It's funny but I've never been afraid of Ts , but little true spiders absolutely creep me out . I can't stand them . I won't kill them when I find them in my house but they definitely have to take a trip outside .

That used to be the same for me. I was never afraid of Ts but I was scared of spiders when I was little. Once I got a couple tarantulas, I started to love true spiders as well.

 

[JC50]

I used to have a fear of spiders from a bad experience with a wolf spider as a kid.I bought my first B.smithi sling over three years ago to try and get over my fear of them and it must have worked because i now own over 125 spiders and scorpions.

 

[Lopez]

No, I've never been afraid of spiders.

 

[baboonfan]

just out of curiosity,

I userd to be very arachnophobic, to get over my fear I studied a lot about spiders to understand them more and get over it.

from fear, to intrest, to fascination, to obsession. and look where I am now 9 T's later and on arachnoboards everyday

anyone else used to be arachnophobic?

Me too. As a teenager if I just saw a picture of one I could feel hundreds of them crawling all over me. If I saw one up close I would instantly go to a place where I could take my clothes off and check to see that they werent inside of my shirt or up my pant legs.

There were times when I started stripping in public because I was too panicked to make it to a restroom.

I got tired of living like that and decided to buy a tarantula. Within a few weeks I noticed that seeing one didnt make me think I had hundreds all over me. Within 3 months I could do transfers with no trouble at all. I have owned dozens of them at this point in my life. All I want now are more Ts.

 

[synyster]

Yes like alot of others I used to be scared to death when I would just come across a house spider or daddy long legs

Now 17 years after getting my first G.rosea at the age of 11, i'm still obsessed...

 

[baboonfan]

Like you I brain wash people who are arachnophobic when I go to shows. there is this one jamaican lady who was very very scared of Ts and I made her hold one lol "the irony of arachnophobia lol"

Not a good idea. As a former extreme phobic I will say that she was likely to freak out and startle the T into doing something unpleasant. I just bought one and went at my own pace. I never handled any as general cage care and rehousing is plenty of practice getting over the fear in a gradual and safe manner.

A teacher once tried to get me into a program that forced people to handle spiders to beat the phobia. I never went because it would have been too much too soon and would have only made my phobia worse. I found out years later that other people who had gone to such sessions came out worse than they were.

The only way to get over a phobia is at ones own pace free of pressure or coaching. Anyone who really wants to beat it will make continuous effort on their own.

 

[hassman789]

I used to be afraid of spiders, not majorly. Even now, if there was a big one crawling on me without my permission, i might get a LITTLE scared...

 

[LirvA]

I got over arachnophobia by getting into Ts and learning about them, and also by catching moths outside during the summer time and tossing them into spiders' webs and watching them catch and eat them.

Now I'm not afraid of spiders. Now spiders are awesome

 

[compnerd7]

just out of curiosity,

I userd to be very arachnophobic, to get over my fear I studied a lot about spiders to understand them more and get over it.

from fear, to intrest, to fascination, to obsession. and look where I am now 9 T's later and on arachnoboards everyday

anyone else used to be arachnophobic?

Exact same chain of events led me here where I am today ( with Scorpions and Spiders ). I think it had more to do with gaining knowledge of the creature which then let me shed all bad fear, and fear it now with respect.... and obsession haha

 

[brad and chell]

My husband was arachnophobic and we now have around 100 T's. We are addicted to them.