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Thread: Rabies fear: How to deal with it?

  1. #1
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    Rabies fear: How to deal with it?

    I've had this phobia of bats and rabies for a few years now. Most of the time I was able to rationalize and get over it, but this summer it's been getting really bad....

    The reason why it's been so bad this past summer was because in June, three bats in the county I live in tested positive for rabies. None of them were in my town per se, but it did hit pretty close to home....And ever since then I've been faced with this horrific scenario that a bat somehow brushed up against me or bit me without my knowledge and gave me rabies or that a bat bit me in my sleep and escaped my house without me knowing...

    Every single time I feel some kind of symptom, I freak out....I've been drinking a lot of extra fluids simply to test if I can still swallow water, I'm always checking my temperature to find out if I'm running a fever...I just always feel like any little sniffle could be the beginning prodromal symptoms of rabies.

    For the past few days, my main symptom is that tonsils have felt a little swollen and some tonsilloths (tonsil stones) came out when I prodded them with a toothbrush.


    Anyway, I really need some help in debunking this fear I have...I really would love to hear from some bat experts, if there are any on this forum...or just people that have gone through similar things that I have.

  2. #2
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    Re: Rabies fear: How to deal with it?

    Take a look at some of the other rabies threads currently on the boards. They should help you realize the irrationality of contracting it.

    Positive thoughts
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  3. #3
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    Re: Rabies fear: How to deal with it?

    I really do wish there was just a way to get over this easier....

  4. #4
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    Re: Rabies fear: How to deal with it?

    Quote Originally Posted by NervousSubject View Post
    I really do wish there was just a way to get over this easier....
    Perhaps try this...

    Answer the question: Is the sky green? The answer is the answer to your fear.

    You're speaking of a scenario and fearing things that are literally impossible. There's just no wiggle room or what ifs here. This is all in your imagination and doesn't exist outside of your mind.

    Positive thoughts
    __________________
    "Eat. Drink. Enjoy the work you do. Be thankful for the blessings God gives you in this life. Live, love and seek out the things that bring your heart joy. The rest is meaningless... Like chasing the wind." King Solomon

    The best help is the help you give yourself! http://cbt4panic.org/

  5. #5
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    Jun 2017
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    110

    Re: Rabies fear: How to deal with it?

    I've had fear of rabies a few times in my struggle with HA, so I know well how the mind can convince you that you have symptoms. One of the things that helps me is thinking about how exceedingly rare it is. There are usually only a handful of cases of rabies in humans in the United States each year. And almost all of them have known contact with an animal--often contact with a stray dog in a country where dogs are the primary vector. And even before we had vaccines for rabies and more people spent time working outside (so greater potential for contact with animals), people weren't dying from it on the regular--it was still a really rare disease in humans. The only time you need to even think about rabies is if you were bitten by an animal or somehow got saliva into an open wound. In the case of bats, it's not unreasonable to call the health department for evaluation if you know there was a bat in your house and couldn't catch it for examination. But unless you know bats are getting into your house (in which case you should address that problem) there's absolutely no reason to think one bit you.

  6. #6
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    Re: Rabies fear: How to deal with it?

    What really gets me worked up is when I'm seeing the prodromal symptoms being described as "mild". It makes me think that any slight discomfort can be an initial symptoms of rabies. Now I'm feeling bad itching on a spot on my left leg and these medical sites say that itching at the site of exposure is one of the first symptoms....I'm so terrified that it's starting now...please help me.

  7. #7
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    Re: Rabies fear: How to deal with it?

    I have had rabies panics before, thanks to some flipping raccoons that used to live under our deck (have finally moved on once we had deck replaced).

    Anyhoo, just like you, my rabies panics all started with a NON-EXPOSURE. NO raccoon ever came near me, but they were in my environment, drinking out of a cat bowl we left for a stray, and one time one got in my car (long story). I fantasized that the saliva was somehow left behind and, given what you are describing, is incredibly more reasonable than your story of not ever seeing a bat. THis is your imagination RUN WILD, as was my case.

    HOw do you get over this? Well, for starters, you need to stop checking yourself. You have a ludicrous rabies fantasy playing in your mind and the self-checking is actually giving it credibility. This is not a quick fix at all but, everytime you go to check, tell yourself, "I'm not falling for this" and set your mind very deliberately to something else. It will take a lot of effort but, little by little, your brain will stop going to the rabies fear because it knows you are fighting back and not giving it the stimulation (i.e. indulging the rabies fantasy) it wants. Logic won't get you out of this, reassurance won't get you out of this. Fighting back against your fear might, although it's work and a hard thing to do.

    When I was in the grips of mine, I could see the humor in it as well. Like, who dies because a rabid raccoon left rabid saliva in a trail on their car upholstery. I mean, NOBODY!!!!!! I got to the point where I just had to say, if I go out that way, good for you rabies, as that would be VERY IMPRESSIVE. Find ways to laugh at it, and let your brain know we don't have to indulge these fears. Little by little, it helps retrain your "natural" reaction to whatever triggers the panic.

  8. #8
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    Re: Rabies fear: How to deal with it?

    I believe Rabies has been eradicated in most parts of Western Europe and the UK. Im very surprised...through so many posts on the forum... that its still prevailent in the US?

    Ok, we don't have racoons and such like, but we do have bats and we never get any public health warnings about them. And because we no longer see dogs roaming freely because the law prevents it now, we tend not to see too many of them foaming at the mouth. It must be really scary to know that you still have rabies in some of your states. How bad is it?

    Cath S.
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  9. #9
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    Re: Rabies fear: How to deal with it?

    Quote Originally Posted by Catherine S View Post
    I believe Rabies has been eradicated in most parts of Western Europe and the UK. Im very surprised...through so many posts on the forum... that its still prevailent in the US?

    Ok, we don't have racoons and such like, but we do have bats and we never get any public health warnings about them. And because we no longer see dogs roaming freely because the law prevents it now, we tend not to see too many of them foaming at the mouth. It must be really scary to know that you still have rabies in some of your states. How bad is it?

    Cath S.
    I think we USA-based hypochondriacs are giving you the wrong impression. Per google, there are only 1-3 human cases reported annually, and some of those cases were contracted by people traveling abroad. I cannot speak to how many people get the vaccines after exposure, as that saves just about all of the people who would otherwise have died- I have to imagine that # is also low.

    We don't worry about the dog and cat population in the US since all pets (well, obviously depends on compliance by owners) are vaxed for rabies- the law says every 3 years. The cases of rabies come from wildlife. Bats, raccoons, foxes, and a few other critters are known as disease vectors.

    A stray cat killed a bat and left it in my garage one night, and I actually had it tested. The officials there told me only about 1% of the tested bat population has rabies.

    Wild animals with rabies are not present in every state. I believe its worse on the east coast of the US. IN my state (midwestern), only 11 animals were confirmed to have rabies in 2017 so far (so maybe 20 total). There have been no cases of rabies in my county, but there has been wildlife testing pos for rabies in counties that surround mine. Because of that, the counties on the periphery of those counties where there are documented cases have eradication efforts, and they leave vaccines out in the open where wild animals feed, so there is some vaccination of wild animals in my state and I am sure many others.

    All of this information comes to you courtesy of countless hours spent learning about rabies. Googling is bad, yes, because it fuels the fear. But, I get genuinely interested in this stuff from an intellectual standpoint once I really get going. LOng story short, rabies is not much of a risk in the US but is not totally eradicated.

  10. #10
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    Re: Rabies fear: How to deal with it?

    Quote Originally Posted by NervUs View Post
    I have had rabies panics before, thanks to some flipping raccoons that used to live under our deck (have finally moved on once we had deck replaced).

    Anyhoo, just like you, my rabies panics all started with a NON-EXPOSURE. NO raccoon ever came near me, but they were in my environment, drinking out of a cat bowl we left for a stray, and one time one got in my car (long story). I fantasized that the saliva was somehow left behind and, given what you are describing, is incredibly more reasonable than your story of not ever seeing a bat. THis is your imagination RUN WILD, as was my case.

    HOw do you get over this? Well, for starters, you need to stop checking yourself. You have a ludicrous rabies fantasy playing in your mind and the self-checking is actually giving it credibility. This is not a quick fix at all but, everytime you go to check, tell yourself, "I'm not falling for this" and set your mind very deliberately to something else. It will take a lot of effort but, little by little, your brain will stop going to the rabies fear because it knows you are fighting back and not giving it the stimulation (i.e. indulging the rabies fantasy) it wants. Logic won't get you out of this, reassurance won't get you out of this. Fighting back against your fear might, although it's work and a hard thing to do.

    When I was in the grips of mine, I could see the humor in it as well. Like, who dies because a rabid raccoon left rabid saliva in a trail on their car upholstery. I mean, NOBODY!!!!!! I got to the point where I just had to say, if I go out that way, good for you rabies, as that would be VERY IMPRESSIVE. Find ways to laugh at it, and let your brain know we don't have to indulge these fears. Little by little, it helps retrain your "natural" reaction to whatever triggers the panic.
    Were they like the ones in the film The Great Outdoors?

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