How to Stop Being Afraid of Spiders

The fear of spiders, also known as arachnophobia, is one of the most common phobias in the United States. According to CNN, 25 percent of all American men and 50 percent of all American women fear spiders. When you experience fear, your body's alertness increases and chemicals are released that prepare you to either run away or engage in combat. Your heart beats faster, you can start sweating or shaking and you can have a full blown panic attack. To avoid these symptoms and improve the quality of your life, learn techniques to control your fear.

Instructions

• 1

  Avoid letting negative thoughts take over because this makes your phobia worse; think positive. When confronted with a spider in your home, remind yourself that it is not out to get you and that it lives in his own world. If you constantly tell yourself that a spider is going to attack you it only emphasizes your fear.

• 2

  Practice breathing techniques so you can calm yourself down when you have an encounter with a spider. Sit down on a chair and place your tongue on the ridges at the top of your mouth, behind your front teeth. Exhale through your mouth, removing all the air from your lungs. Listen to the sound of your breath leaving your body. Inhale through your nose while slowly counting to four. Hold your breath for seven seconds and release it through your mouth while counting to eight. Hold your tongue on the top ridges of your mouth during the entire exercise. Repeat this breathing technique four times.

• 3

  Submit yourself to exposure therapy. During exposure therapy a therapist gradually helps you overcome your fear by exposing you to it. You can start by drawing a spider and reading about spiders. Once you feel comfortable, you can progress to looking at a photo of a spider and watching a video of a spider. Once conquered, you can observe a spider in his enclosure from a distance and gradually come closer. Eventually your goal is to comfortably be in the same room as a spider or even to hold the spider in your hand.

• 4

  Undergo hypnosis to eliminate your fear of spiders. Hypnotherapy allows you to control your emotions when confronted with a spider. The therapist addresses your subconscious mind while you are under hypnosis. Instead of having a panic attack, the hypnosis can be drawn upon to help you remain calm.

• 5

  Take anti-anxiety medications if your fear is debilitating and forms an obstacle in your life. Tranquilizers work quickly when you are having a panic attack. They relax you and calm you down. They can have negative side effects, such as drowsiness, depression and slurred speech, and should therefore only be a temporary solution. Anti-anxiety medications can be taken in combination with therapy.