Caterpillar phobia is a fear of caterpillars. Whether it is real or not can be a paradox actually. Those who don’t fear caterpillars will term it as an irrational or unsubstantiated fear. It would be declared a condition that doesn’t have any reason or sound basis. But those who have the caterpillar phobia would think that it is very real.
Caterpillar Phobia Expained
The truth is that caterpillar phobia is as real as the fear of spiders or arachnophobia. There are many kinds of rational and irrational fears that humans have. From fear of closed spaces to acrophobia which is fear of heights, from the fear of popsicle sticks to fear of social relations which is known as anthropophobia, all fears are classified as rational or irrational. In that sense, caterpillar phobia can be classified as rational because there is an object, a very well defined cause of the fear. The cause doesn’t have to be substantiated. However, there is little evidence or illustration to define or explain why caterpillars would scare someone, especially when they have no ability to harm humans. Some spiders can be venomous and so can some snakes which make fears of spiders and snakes quite rational. There are also enough data and studies to delve into the details of such fears. But caterpillar phobia has not been explored that much and there is very little data to shed light on it.
Caterpillar phobia can be regarded as a part of entomophobia which is also known as insectophobia, the fear of insects. It can also be regarded as herpetophobia, which is the fear of reptiles. Although caterpillars are not reptiles, they do crawl and the crawling nature of lizards and snakes are often the images that are nerve-wracking for most people with caterpillar phobia.
Cause and Symptoms
The cause of caterpillar can be due to the way they look, the manner in which they crawl or move around and how they secrete. The general feeling of those with the caterpillar phobia is that they consider the sight or the insect itself to be gross. The reactions can be mild discomfort or walking away from the caterpillar. Some reactions can be a little more severe and people may step on the insect or smash them intentionally and often repeatedly to ensure that the insect is dead. Some very severe reactions can range from rendering a person incapable to react consciously. In such cases, people with caterpillar phobia tend to cry, run away or shiver in fear. Anxiety and panic go hand in hand with caterpillar phobia.