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What is Arachnophobia?

Arachnophobia, often known as spider phobia, is an extreme fear of spiders. Like other phobias, it can be enervating and interfere with your daily life. People with arachnophobia are likely to suffer dread and anxiety when encountering spiders or thinking about them. Arachnophobia can also prohibit you from engaging in particular events or situations as your mind continuously tells you that spiders are a threat.

Why are People Afraid of Spiders?

Arachnophobia, like other phobias, can develop in a person due to witnessing other people’s reactions to spiders. It is a learned response influenced by one’s family or culture. When people at an early age observe a family member fleeing the house at the sight of a cobweb or crying in panic, these reactions often stick in their minds, ultimately leading to arachnophobia.

According to some psychologists, people who had distressing experiences with spiders, such as a spider bite, are more vulnerable to developing arachnophobia. This school of thought is known as the “conditioning perspective” on arachnophobia.

Studies indicate that another cause of arachnophobia is an emotion known as revulsion. This feeling can be triggered in humans by fear-relevant animals or insects, particularly spiders, and it is naturally evolved to prevent sickness and illness.

Various researches also suggest that arachnophobia, or a fear of spiders in general, is an innate survival technique of the human race.

How to Overcome Fear of Spiders?

There is no way to avoid the development of a phobia, and they are unlikely to go away in adults without therapy. If a person chooses to address their arachnophobia, they should consult a doctor, who may recommend one or more of the following treatments:

Exposure Therapy

Gradually exposing individuals to their phobias so that they can devise specific methods to overcome their fears is known as exposure therapy. Researchers are constantly studying the benefits of this approach for arachnophobia.

According to one research, watching videos or documentaries related to spiders can help people recover from arachnophobia.

Some researchers are also suggesting virtual reality to be an effective treatment for arachnophobia. However, further research is needed to determine the potential advantages of this technique.

Another study has revealed that letting people decide the time of exposure to spiders can result in faster recovery rather than not providing them any control.

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is one of the most effective treatments for phobias like arachnophobia. It can be done once a week, in a group, or one-on-one. In CBT, the therapists share various techniques with the sufferers that help them understand their phobias and the situations that trigger them. People then apply these practices in their daily lives to overcome their fears and recover from phobias. CBT involves the following techniques:

Cognitive Reframing: Cognitive reframing enables you to change your perspective about phobias, and you no longer perceive them as perilous or worrying.

Systematic Desensitization: This method involves using relaxation techniques before confronting your fears and easing through the period of distress caused by them.

Hypnotherapy: According to some anecdotal data, hypnotism is another method that can help people overcome arachnophobia. However, there isn’t enough scientific data to back this up. Hypnotherapy employs relaxation techniques to help people achieve a state of focused concentration. After that, the therapist will use strategies like guided visualization to help you overcome your fear.

How to Get Rid of Spiders?

Whether you are terrified of spiders or not, most people would agree that they do not belong in your house. Consider the following remedies to keep them out of your living space:

In order to avoid spiders, try to keep your home's moisture level as low as possible.

Remove clutter from your home to make it harder for spiders to hide in empty spaces or crevices.

Make sure you don't have any other infestation. Spiders are attracted to food sources; therefore, you may also have a pest problem if you are encountering spiders.

Seal any gaps, fractures, or holes on the outside of your house to prevent spiders from getting inside.

Install door sweeps on external doors and repair broken glass on doors and windows.

Final Thoughts

The Interesting Nuptial Flight

You will often see an ant carrying what looks like food and pushing it into a nest. This is a worker ant and in any given colony there may be over 5000 of them. These workers are all female. They work to feed their queen whose sole purpose is to lay eggs and make new family members. A worker will only live for about a month while a queen can live for up to 10 years.

At an appropriate time, usually on a clear day after rains, a flying ant or several will be seen. In such a swarm you will find new queens and males. They fly in what is known as the ‘nuptial flight’. The queens are slightly bigger than the males. The new queens and flying males mate during flight.

The new queens then lose their wings and start crawling in an attempt to find new nesting ground. The males only live for a maximum of two days after the nuptial flight. The queens will then make an underground nest where they lay eggs which creates workers. The workers provide food for the queen and when the time is right, new queens and males will be created and the cycle continues.

When Will You See These Insects?

While there is no specific day when this may happen, there are some favorable conditions needed. Bright sunlight, high humidity, and low wind are some of the desired conditions. This is why summer and spring are the most likely reasons for the nuptial flight.

It is rare to see a single flying ant. You will most probably be faced by a large swarm. This has been associated with increasing the chances of copulation. The good thing is that the flights last for a day or a few. The high number of insects coming out to mate over a short period of time is such a spectacle. In the UK, there are so many ants seen in a day that they have what is loosely called the ‘Flying Ant Day’ every year.

The flying ant is not a dangerous insect. The only thing on its head is mating and stinging is the last thing they want to do. However, if their crawling counterparts bite or sting, the alates will do the same if threatened. Also, the flying ant day attracts birds like seagulls that like to snack on these insects. These are the top reasons why you may want to get rid of the flying ant.

How to Get Rid of Flying Ants

There are several methods that you may use to get rid of these insects from your home including:

Vacuuming: Use a vacuum cleaner to suck up the insects and then replace the vacuum bag immediately.

Using Sticky Tape: Place sticky tape that is normally used to catch flying insects in a strategic place. Every ant that comes around will be stuck to the tape and can be later disposed of.

Spray Them with Dishwashing Soap: Dishwashing soap will dehydrate a flying ant and make it immobile. Mix a small amount of dishwashing soap with water and spray the insects as they fly around. You may add a few drops of peppermint oil to this spray which suffocates and kills the insects.

Borax Sprays: Any insecticide spray that contains borax is ideal in getting rid of ant colonies. This insecticide will not kill the ant on the spot. Instead, the ant will carry it back to its nest and spread to others which may help eradicate an entire colony.

Seal Cracks & Keep Openings Closed: The flying only lasts a few days at most. Keeping doors and windows closed during this time will ensure that the insects do not fly into your home. Cracks should be sealed so as to avoid these and other insects from coming in.

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