After 38 years I seemed to have conquered my fear of spiders!

I was about to say I wish my daughter would overcome her fear of spiders too, after reading the title. But after reading the post, I'll side with AugustusMasonicus: Nope!

It's cool you overcame your fear tho. Bravo! to that.

One thing's for sure, you'll never catch me sleeping next to (object of my fear (can't find a fear I could sleep next to, meh!)).

no thank you

Your son is such a cutie,adorable Yes spiders can be very beautiful.I love those garden spiders that look like painted beads,cobalt tarantulas,golden orb weavers and most of all Jumpies.Ohh those cute little faces and quirky hairstyles There's always some in my room.They like to be on my nightstand because the lamp draws buggies.I was Very po'd with my youngest gal the other day,one came out of her handbag and she screamed like it was a Peruvian bird eater.Poor thing was scampering under her bed,she lifted up the bed and demanded i kill it.I refused and she threatened to scream till i did,and then began screaming.Holy hell that girl sounds like a factory siren So i had to kill it just to make the piercing screaming stop

a reply to: mblahnikluver
Congratulations on getting over your fear of spiders.

I had a friend who owned a pet store and somehow he talked me into buying one of his tarantulas, not something I was looking for or had ever thought about getting, but he looked a lot like the one crawling on your son. I was never too scared of that, but I am a little wary of spiders that have more deadly venom like black widows, which I've found some where I live.

Anyway there was a children's educational show made in the UK saying "spiders are very, very small and can't hurt you", which is more or less OK to say in the UK because most spiders in the UK aren't deadly. However when the show aired in Australia there was an uproar from viewers there because Australia has some extremely deadly spiders, so the show was thought to be totally inappropriate for viewers in Australia and was banned there.

So, my take from hearing about that was, maybe we SHOULD be afraid of some of the deadly Australian spiders! The more harmless species in the UK, not so much. And maybe black widows deserve some healthy respect too:

Australia Banned A TV Episode Because It Said Spiders Weren't Scary

As hilarious as this is, and as much as it plays into the usual perception of Australia as a death trap full of things that will kill you, it also illustrates how common warnings do have to be tailored for audiences. Growing up in California, for example, the message I encountered was "All spiders except for black widows are not to be feared." This was followed by lessons in how to identify the black widow.

a reply to: Arbitrageur

HA yea everything in Australia is deadly! LOL

Yea we have black widows and brown recluse here. I see them a lot, they get smashed though. I had to explain to my son why those get killed. I had to bust out very dramatic pics of what happens when one bites you so he knows NOT to touch them. They are mostly on the porch or out front. The Wolf spider we have is not poisonous, it has venom but it won't hurt you, just irritate you. I mean he isn't holding that one so I"m not worried.

The tarantula we held is the Chaco Golden Knee Tarantula. It is pretty docile and everyone says it's perfect for a beginner. The place we went doesn't usually get adults only babies. I asked them if they can get an adult when we are ready because a baby isn't a good idea for a newbie! The one we held was friendly and just chill. When the guy took it out it didn't even move, it walked towards him! My son hasn't stopped talking about that spider since we left the pet store. He wakes up every morning asking to go back there and tries to bribe me! He will say you can watch your show if we go! LOL he is too funny!

originally posted by: NowanKenubi
I was about to say I wish my daughter would overcome her fear of spiders too, after reading the title. But after reading the post, I'll side with AugustusMasonicus: Nope!

It's cool you overcame your fear tho. Bravo! to that.

One thing's for sure, you'll never catch me sleeping next to (object of my fear (can't find a fear I could sleep next to, meh!)).

Haha yea i see my facebook posts from last year and one is of me FLIPPING out over this same kind of spider on my wall! I was crying, no joke. NOW I have one I caught in a cage. My son has changed my mind for sure! I didn't want him to be afraid of them because I was. I use to kill them and he got upset. He befriended the little spiders in the garden first. He feeds them bugs he finds around the porch lol. They are just tiny crab spiders and some green garden spider that makes webs like it's drunk!

Yea I am surprised in myself honestly! I watch Wolfy when he is out. He isn't so scary but his LEG SPAN IS! He is fast too when he crawls around and that creeps me out but he is contained and not in my shower or on my wall so I"m good! The tarantula was actually kind of cool. It felt prickly as it walked. I so didn't think I would hold it but when my son jumped I was concerned for it and reached out for it. LOL