Entomophobia; sometimes known as insectophobia, is the fear of insects, as well as feelings of fear or disgust around insects The first thing that comes to mind when I think about my biggest fear is bugs. Although this is a boring and common fear experienced by many I think it is valid considering my past experiences and trauma from insects. I have not always been extremely scared of bugs and remember playing with "roly polies" and ladybugs throughout my youth. Even going as far as playing with them on my hands and making them mini ecosystems out of things I would find around my school playground or neighborhood. However, the mere thought of touching a bug now makes my skin crawl.
One of the many traumatic experiences that sprouted my phobia was when I stepped in an ant pile on a camping trip and there were ants crawling all over my leg. This happened around the age of 12 which, in my opinion, is a prime year for creating fears and phobias from experiences. I vividly remember there being ants crawling in and out of my tennis shoes and me screaming trying to take them off. My foot got extremely itchy over time and slightly swollen to the point where I had to wear slides the rest of the camping trip and it hurt to walk. This is only one of the many experiences that shaped my fear of bugs and is an excellent example of how a phobia is formed. I can not even spray an insect with repellent, let alone pick it up when its dead. I fear that if I live alone in the future, I will have a very hard time dealing with insects. Entomophobia is a real thing, and I unfortunately experience it firsthand.
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