Research has shown that phobia sufferers constitute the largest group of chronic anxiety sufferers. According to Herbalblend, in the United States alone, there are more than 23 million Americans who suffer from anxiety disorders so severe their ability to function has been impaired. Eighty percent of them are women.
Arachnophobia is an irrational fear for spiders and arthropods in general, such as scorpions, ticks and mites. According to scientists, there are a number of reasons which may have led someone to this irrational obsession, which ,if not treated, could also lead to fear of other animals.
Reasons that may cause arachnophobia
- Patients may have had an unfortunate incident as children, i.e. they may have been bitten by a spider
- They may have seen someone close to them been bitten by a spider
- Patients may have received repeated parental warnings, as children, which may have conditioned them to this faulty thinking
Methods of curing arachnophobia
Today, this and other fears can be cured in many different ways. Virtual reality is a widely-used method. Patients wear stereoscopic glasses and with the help of a VR-glove, they are encouraged to move a three-dimensional arm, across a PC screen, where more three-dimensional spiders can be seen moving. Before and after the treatment, patients are exposed to live spiders, so that doctors can measure whether and how much their fear has receded. In many cases, patients are cured or have their fears controlled or significantly minimized.
Another way to cure fears is by means of aversion therapy (or direct shock therapy.) Patients are persuaded to approach spiders step by step, stopping when they feel their fear culminate. By staying in the same position for some time, their fear begins to recede and patients are encouraged to approach the feared animal even more closely. Finally, patients succeed in touching the spider and even in letting it walk on them, as they realize that there is really nothing to be afraid of.
Hypnosis is yet another method that can be applied to victims who suffer from phobias.
Types of dangerous spiders
Most dangerous spiders live in Africa and other tropical places. Nevertheless, one spider, which can be lethal to young children and old people, is the black widow, which is most commonly encountered in the southern parts of Europe. Also, the bite of the water spider and the brown recluse, in Europe, can be harmful and should be avoided. In the United States, there are again only two real threats, theblack widow and the brown recluse. All other spiders use poison to kill their prey but their venom is harmless to humans.
Natali Lekka - Natali is the Owner and Founder of Worlds of Words for professional and reliable translation services - www.worldsofwords.com
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