Phobias

[AutumnFox]

Re: Phobias

If you are really keen, get a clicker for dog training and clicker-train yourself. It makes counter-conditioning a little bit easier and will form a bridge so that if you see a bug while you don't have candy on you, you can still click and get the psychological benefit. Start off sitting down with a little bag of candy and click+treat, click+treat, click+treat. That click is your ticket to something pleasant and becomes part of the reinforcement process. They actually do use clicker training in people, though I don't know if they specifically use it in treating phobias. It's possible that they also call it something else... because it's weird to think that you can train humans the same way you train dogs lol.

I actually have nothing against being trained like a dog if it will help me get over this phobia. All of your info is actually really useful and I will be referring back to it when we start the process. I am planning to start small so hopefully I won't freak out too bad. I'll be taking baby steps. Although, there is no reward that outweighs my fear at the moment. It's that bad. I will go hungry (if it is standing between me and food), wet my pants (if its in the bathroom and i end up with alternative), get in a car wreck (if im driving, holy crap, i will die), whatever, if there is a bug. So, I'll have to work my way up to it. It's going to take a while, I imagine.

[Shahaku]

Re: Phobias

Another step along the way? Plastic bugs

[Rowanwood]

Re: Phobias

It may sound weird, but get a pet bug. Something nice and safe and not harmful and via caring for it, it may help you towards dealing with it.

If you are calm and want suggestions, I would be happy to offer some, but I don't want to talk specifics or give links until you think you won't be triggered.

I have had issues with panic attacks in the past and just facing my fears is how I got past it. I think it can work.

[thalassa]

Re: Phobias

What about kids books? Not the kind for little boys and bug lovers, which are more like "look how eeeeeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwwwwwwwww this is!!!!!!!!!!", but the old fashioned Ant and the Grasshopper sort?

Or A Bugs Life...its cute!

[AutumnFox]

Re: Phobias

Another step along the way? Plastic bugs

That is a great idea actually! But later on. Maybe before I get to the real ones.

It may sound weird, but get a pet bug. Something nice and safe and not harmful and via caring for it, it may help you towards dealing with it.

I am not getting a pet bug. I just can't do it. Besides the space limitations of my apartment and my 2 cats, it's not happening. Sorry. I mostly want to just get to a point where I can be more functional and stop having panic attacks. I don't need to love bugs. Ew.

What about kids books? Not the kind for little boys and bug lovers, which are more like "look how eeeeeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwwwwwwwww this is!!!!!!!!!!", but the old fashioned Ant and the Grasshopper sort?

Or A Bugs Life...its cute!

While that is actually a great idea, I don't think I ever got far enough into the phobia for those to be an issue. Or maybe they look so unlike their living counterparts that I am able to dissociate them. I love A Bug's Life. It's adorable. But maybe that will be step 0. Watching A Bug's Life.

[nbdy]

Re: Phobias

I vote for starting with representations before graduating to the real things: pictures, figurines, stuffed critters. Then maybe visit them outside of your home in a controlled environment, like a zoo where they are all caged up and an expert is present so that you feel more safe. For what it's worth.

[anubisa]

Re: Phobias

What I find strange, well I guess, is that as kids we are practically afraid of nothing. Like when I was a little girl I used to be able to pick up grand daddy long legs and now I just can't look at them. We used to live in a house near a cliff and my sister and I would go to it sometimes when we were kids alone. It just seems strange to me that you can be so brave when you're little and get fears when your older.

[Amadi]

Re: Phobias

I vote for starting with representations before graduating to the real things: pictures, figurines, stuffed critters. Then maybe visit them outside of your home in a controlled environment, like a zoo where they are all caged up and an expert is present so that you feel more safe. For what it's worth.

Ditto for this, did a topic on phobias for a course I'm on and if you start with representation gradually working up to more stressful situations it can work wonders (look up Systematic Desensitization), I'd recommend this one over the couple of other methods we've learned (drugs, big bang effect, etc.)

Start with say, sticking pictures of a nice bugs stuck around in your living space (nowhere were it can be 'watching' you, so at the front door so you see it when you come in but that's it) when you feel comfortable with that move on to nastier bugs in the pictures, once you can handle those watch videos, then look at them in a controlled environment, then try to regularly imagine yourself in a situation with a bug that would cause the stress and see how you feel, throughout all of these stages try to control your anxiety, when you aren't freaked out -so you can act and react 'normally' to the situation- move on to the next step, finishing with holding a bug or some other reenactment of one of these scenarios.
DO NOT imagine 'horror situations', they MUST be life like, nothing from Harry Potter or some other horror film with giant bugs or cannibalistic armies of ants or something, just imagine simple situations like holding a bug or seeing one on your wall and imagine what you'd act like (putting the bug down, putting it in a jar and chucking it outside)
*There are many techniques to control anxiety effects and what your doing but one of the better ones is focusing on your breathing or uttering a short chant (can be anything), the idea is being able to control any effects of the anxiety whenever you see the cause as these effects can, also do not speculate about whatever is causing the anxiety, no dramatic stories or anything like that (might not always be the cause)

Note* one last thing that's just an interesting fact and probably wont apply most humans doen't like bugs, even in they don't have phobias because of their angular appearance, ie: spider with horrible pointy legs is far worse than nice pretty non-leggy butterfly

hope this helps =3

[AutumnFox]

Re: Phobias

Amadi, that was super helpful! Another post I'll be referring back to once this gets started. I'm waiting til my summer class ends so it won't interfere. Hopefully I can make some progress before school starts up again in August cuz I won't be able to deal with the stress I'm afraid it will cause while I'm in school.
Normally, my anxiety solution (or at least it helps a little in the situation) is if there is a bug in my apartment and I can't get anyone over to take care of it for me, I call my best friend and she talks to me while I deal with it. It has been working to keep me from going into a panic attack. And now I can dispose of ones that are already dead. I just put some toilet paper over it and pick it up with the reachy grabby thing my boyfriend bought me for such things.

[Gleb]

Re: Phobias

Amadi has given a very good advice. Start from something small and continue to something bigger.