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ARACHNOPHOBIA

Arachnophobia is the extreme, debilitating, and persistent fear of spiders. It is not the rational fear of spider bites, not the sensible caution of avoiding old wood piles where the brown recluse like to lurk, not the refusal to handle a pet tarantula, but the panic attack brought on by the thought of spiders, the heart palpitations and trouble breathing experienced when a spider is in the room…an anxiety level that may require treatment in order to function without debilitating obsessive/compulsive spider clearing or avoidance rituals.

Arachnophobia is actually the most common of all specific phobias. As we said before, almost half of women and 10 percent of men share this fear.
There is a possible cultural basis for the high prevalence of arachnophobia in those of us of European descent. It seems that spiders were erroneously associated with the Black Plague after the tenth century. “In other words, arachnophobia began as misplaced fear during the plague (having historical basis), then was passed down through European families adding a cultural basis.”
Some cultures revere the spider as part of their creation myths or consider them good omens or symbols of prosperity. Others just eat them. Yes, in some countries, spiders are part of their culinary tastes!
This phobia can often be triggered by the thought of or sometimes even a picture of a spider. A serious case of arachnophobia is much different than someone who doesn’t like spiders. Many people who are afraid of spiders have feelings of panic entering into a situation where spiders may be present.
This fear of spiders can dictate where someone chooses to live, go on vacation, work or what sports or hobbies are enjoyed.
Often this fear is caused by an incident earlier in life which was frightening. People sometimes have the misconception that such a frightening event would have to be a long-lasting or memorable ordeal. Many people don’t even remember the events which led to their phobia. The mind can create a phobia based on an instant of panic.

The fear of spiders actually has its roots deep in Greek mythology. “Arachnophobia” comes from the Greek words, “arachne”, meaning “spider”, and “phobos”, meaning “a fear”.
Arachne was a beautiful Greek maiden. She studied weaving under Athena, and had extraordinary skill. When her skills were later recognized, she denied any training given by Athena. Athena turned herself into a bitter, old lady.
She approached Arachne, and tricked her into a weaving contest. Arachne wove portraits of the gods performing evil deeds. Athena and Arachne finished their weaving in an extremely short amount of time, but Arachne’s work was much finer than Athena’s.
Athena was furious that a mere mortal had beaten her in a weaving contest and had portrayed the gods in a disrespectful way. Overcome with rage, she beat Arachne to the ground. Arachne was so upset, she hanged herself.
Athena realized what she had done, regretted her actions, and sprinkled a magic liquid onto Arachne, turning her into a spider, so she could keep her weaving skills.

Arachnophobia actually has historical and cultural causes. In most of Europe during the Middle Ages spiders were considered a source of contamination that absorbed poisons in their environment (e.g. from plants). Any food which had come into contact with a spider was considered infected. Similarly, if a spider fell into water, that water was then held to be poisoned.
Spiders were believed to be messengers of the Black Plague and death. Europeans believed spiders were “poisonous”, meaning their bites caused many diseases. Although their bites caused discomfort, in reality, they were not a deadly threat. Fear of the plague clouded their perception, and their fear and disgust of spiders made it easy to believe that spiders were the cause of the plague.

In fact, most of these diseases were caused by completely different sources than spiders. Spiders were found in great numbers in the same areas of the house where rats lived. The fleas on these rats were actually the carriers of the plague. Non-European cultures believe spiders were symbols of good luck or wisdom.
Recent studies of arachnophobia indicate that fear of spiders is closely associated with the disease-avoidance response of disgust. It is not immediately clear how spiders might have become associated with this response, although examination of the relevant historical literature does indicate a close association between spiders and illness in European cultures from tenth century onward.

The development of this association between spiders and illness appears to be closely linked to the many devastating and, at the time, inexplicable epidemics that crossed Europe from the Middle Ages onwards. In many areas of Europe, the spider appears to have been a suitable target for the displaced anxieties caused by these constant epidemics; in other cases, its proximity to the real causes of the epidemics may have fostered opportunistic associations between spiders and disease.”
The tendency of Europeans and their descendants to be fearful of spiders does not seem to be shared by people in many non-European cultures, and this is not consistent with those evolutionary accounts of spider fear which suggest that spider fear should be a common feature of the human gene pool regardless of culture.
So why is this phobia so common? No one knows exactly why phobias develop, especially to spiders. There are, after all, plenty of small dark wriggly insects which don’t bother most people. What is it about a spider that instills such terrible fear?
It used to be said that a pregnant woman would induce a fear of spiders in her unborn child if she reacted when she saw one. It certainly seems to begin in childhood, but it’s far more likely that a fear of spiders is a cultural thing.
Throughout childhood we come across dozens of unexpected things which can shock or frighten us. We have to learn what we should or shouldn’t be frightened of. Our society accepts it as ‘normal’ for a child to dislike spiders, whereas if a child cried at the sight of a cuddly teddy bear it would be told not to be so silly.
In a similar way a fear of beetles is all right, while if you paint it red with black spots you’re then expected to see it as a sweet and harmless ladybird. Most children grow out of their fear because they learn to act rationally, but sometimes it persists into adulthood.
But there are plenty of other theories. Some people describe spiders as having particularly scary features – the way they silently creep, move about or simply look. And there does seem to be something odd about spiders – they seem to be aware of us, unlike other insects which seem oblivious to our presence.
Perhaps eons ago, while man was evolving in the heart of Africa, venomous spiders were a real threat. Those people who were inherently fearful of spiders had an evolutionary advantage because they were less likely to get bitten and more likely to survive.
However the fear of spiders evolved, just as with many phobias, will never be completely resolved. To those who hold this fear, however, know that it can grip them in a firm hold and not let them go.