A Question For The Ladies

[1ADAM12]

When you stay overnight in a lean-to or are just hiking in the woods, do you get freaked out over insect, bugs, arachnids, or whatever

I have a daughter who is 5 almost 6 and when we are hiking or even if she sees a bug in the house she "FREAKS" out. I was just curious of how I can help her overcome her fear I know the younger the child the more they will be afraid of bugs. Heck my wife HATES spiders hahahahhahahaha

Thanks,
Adam

 

[rhihn]

When you stay overnight in a lean-to or are just hiking in the woods, do you get freaked out over insect, bugs, arachnids, or whatever

I have a daughter who is 5 almost 6 and when we are hiking or even if she sees a bug in the house she "FREAKS" out. I was just curious of how I can help her overcome her fear I know the younger the child the more they will be afraid of bugs. Heck my wife HATES spiders hahahahhahahaha

Thanks,
Adam

So...why is this a "question for the Ladies"???

 

[1ADAM12]

So...why is this a "question for the Ladies"???

Well Dick if bugs freak you out go ahead and answer

 

[WinterWarlock]

Adam - you can confess. We know there is no wife or daughter, and that it's you that's afraid of the bugs. It's OK, we won't hold it against you. Much.

 

[1ADAM12]

WOW I did not think I would get herassed this much.....it is a serious question I swear

 

[wardsgirl]

If I am at a shelter with others, I don't worry about bugs at all. If I have a shelter to myself though, I have always slept in a bivy with a mosquito netting. Perhaps it has something to do with other people being around to kill the big hairy spider before I see it.

If you are with your daughter in a shelter, assure her that you will kill the big hairy spider!

 

[Neil]

If your daughter is that afraid of insects then it must be because you as a father are a failure. No other possibilities. You should consider Dad therapy. Months and months of it.

 

[1ADAM12]

If your daughter is that afraid of insects then it must be because you as a father are a failure. No other possibilities. You should consider Dad therapy. Months and months of it.

I would not expect anything less from you Neil! Thanks. hahahahahaha

 

[rhihn]

WOW I did not think I would get herassed this much.....it is a serious question I swear

Adam, here you go...

http://www.phobiascured.com/arachnophobia.htm
http://www.earthlife.net/chelicerata/arachnophobia.html
http://www.wikihow.com/Overcome-the-Fear-of-Spiders
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arachnophobia

Of course, this is for your...(ahem) daugher...

 

[TrishandAlex]

I think the fact that your wife is afraid of spiders perhaps has something to do with it.

Neither my husband nor myself are afraid of bugs -- and fear of insects has NOTHING(!!!) to do with gender. It's a social thing.

We do not kill bugs in our house. Someone gently traps the intruder and puts it outside.

Alex gleefully (and carefully, with respect) handles bugs and spiders. Her little sister (4) watches us handle bugs and is therefore not afraid of them. She has yet to handle one herself, though. I suspect she will this spring/summer.

 

[1ADAM12]

I think the fact that your wife is afraid of spiders perhaps has something to do with it.

Niether my husband nor myself are afraid of bugs -- and fear of insects has NOTHING(!!!) to do with gender. It's a social thing.

We do not kill bugs in our house. Someone gently traps the intruder and puts it outside.

Alex gleefully (and carefully, with respect) handles bugs and spiders. Her little sister (4) watches us handle bugs and is therefore not afraid of them. She has yet to handle one herself, though. I suspect she will this spring/summer.

Thanks for the insight! It is funny though Kate will play with a worm all day until it is dry and dead before she will touch a bug To me worms are gross compared to a spider

 

[BorealChickadee]

Adam,
I hate mice. I hate mice. I hate mice. And I don't want them running across my feet in the car or my face in a lean-to.
Insects are fine. I put spiders outdoors without harming them even though one put me in the hospital years ago. Yeah, I had a few years of fear where even an argiope sp. got to me.
But did I tell you I hate mice? Rats even more. I am plain old freaked out by rats. I think it had soemthing to do with my brother growing up. Neil probably has some diagnosis on that.

 

[Mad Townie]

Alex gleefully (and carefully, with respect) handles bugs and spiders. Her little sister (4) watches us handle bugs and is therefore not afraid of them.

I think Trish has the key. If you show a young kid that you're not afraid of insects, etc., that in fact you find them pretty interesting, the kid will get over her initial fear. What I tried to do was make those things interesting for my kids. "Huh, look at that cool little red mark on this spider. Looks kinda like an hourglass."

But seriously, example is a great teacher.

 

[woodsxc]

I think Trish has the key. If you show a young kid that you're not afraid of insects, etc., that in fact you find them pretty interesting, the kid will get over her initial fear. What I tried to do was make those things interesting for my kids. "Huh, look at that cool little red mark on this spider. Looks kinda like an hourglass."

But seriously, example is a great teacher.

Did you know that spiders with the pretty red hourglass are...TICKLEISH!!!!? Yeah, you can tickle them and they really like it.

 

[hikes-with-him]

I HATE bugs...hubby always takes care of the nasties for me

However...both my younger kidos (11 and 8) LOVE bugs...they're cool! Maybe getting a book of bugs in the NE...with big, colorful pictures could help. See how pretty eek...let's read about them...get to know them...this way, when they see these nasty thingies on the trail they won't be so freaked out "Hey, I remember reading about that one..." oh how charming!

 

[Neil]

I always thought bugs were part of the great web of life. They help decompose road kill and they feed the birds. They also vector diseases but hey, no one's perfect.

I desensitized my offspring by bringing insects to the dining room table. My favorites were dragon flies. You get the crunch of the wings and plenty of gooey stuff from the abdomen running down your chin.

 

[Trainwreck]

I'm with Trish
This method worked with my eldest daughter, who doesnt even think about insects, worms and rodent vermin.
We must have dropped the ball with my younger daughter, though. When we camp I have to inspect outhouses because she will not use one if there is even a baby spider in there! No other insect or animal bothers her! BTW I do not kill spiders, I relocate them. Spiders trap and eat bugs. That is a good thing.
Sandy

 

[Viewseeker]

Adam, my daughter is the same way...bugs like stunn her....i try to hold the bug in my hand and show her how they will not hurt her, works sometimes, others she like What the heck dad your nuts... Last wee we saw a minnow land locked in water that receded and i picked it up to break the ice and put into the river..20 ft and the little bugger was in, did a few circles and twiches and BLAMMMMMMM!!!! He was dead...counldnt believe it...we looked at each other and both thought the same thing...here we tried to save him and killed him...although he would have died anyway when the water evapped....and again as others have stated...just open up to ask questions...dont use your family as smoke and mirrors for your short comings!!!LMAO

 

[Stan]

Live and let live ... except perhaps for mosquitos, blackflies, greenheads, etc.

Despite the fact that they all have a role in the cycles of life, we do take sides, especially with arachnids which we treat with great respect and appreciation ... though we do stick them outside in winter ...

Dragon flies also eat harmful insects so I hope Neil switches his diet ... June bugs might offer a treat if you can find much meat once you clean them, but ... they eat harmful insects, too.

Lady bugs eat the wooly adelgid, amongst other plant pests. The wooly aldegid has been defoliating hemlock trees and are slowly working their way north.

I heard the Dali Lama describe his relationship to mosquitos. The first one he'll ignore, the second one he'll brush away, the third one ... that one starts to test his faith.

I once used the mousetraps found at one of the Baxter Park cabins as kindling ... all in the spirit of their "no trapping" regulations as well as Percival's intentions.

Some people are fearful of bats, another ally in the fight against biting insects.

Learn to live with nature by keeping it in perspective, and be grateful there are no scorpions or tarantulas in the shelters.

 

[woodsxc]

Dragonflies (order Odonata) is, without a doubt, the best group of insects on earth! They are the bomb! They spend their larval stage eating everything that gets near them in streams and ponds. Mostly, that's mosquito wrigglers. Then when they turn into adults, they fly around eating everything they can fit into their mouths. Once again, that's lots of mosquitos and annoying bugs. What's not to love!? They even look cool!