Bat fluttering near me!!

[Nile]

Okay, so I’ve been working on a bat/rabies-phobia (I call it a bat-phobia because I’m not scared of other animals that transmit rabies) since last summer. It was so bad about a half a year ago that I couldn’t go outside at night without looking at the sky and over my shoulder in a panic every few minutes. Now, I’ve been spending more time outside at night without too much trouble. I still get worried occasionally, but I’ve been able to get over the anxiety within a few hours.

I’ve been having mild anxiety for a little over a day now, which is why I decided to hop on the forum for some help.

Basically, two nights ago I was walking in a Chicago suburb—carrying a bag of takeout—and I heard a fluttering sound to my right. I stopped and looked, but didn’t see a bat or feel one make contact with me. I kept walking, got in the car, and went home. Around an hour later, I started feeling worried that I had somehow “missed” the bat and it had bitten my finger without me noticing, since I wasn’t concerned at the time. (I hate this—my brain tries to convince me that if I’m not worried, I’m not being vigilant enough.)

I looked at my finger and found two incredibly tiny dots—no blood or redness—on the underside. In all honesty, the dots are so small and so unnoticeable that I had to really work to search them out, which makes me think they were probably just part of my skin.

Anyway, I guess I just want someone to add another voice of reason to combat my anxiety, since my voice is rather weak right now. There’s no way a bat could bite the underside of my hand without me noticing, correct?

Anyone else in the same boat with bat/rabies-phobias?

[Scass]

You’re right. There’s no way a bat bit your finger. Why would it? It probably wasn’t even a bat.

Well done on doing so well recently, this is just a tiny blip.

[Double_Rainbow]

Okay, so I’ve been working on a bat/rabies-phobia (I call it a bat-phobia because I’m not scared of other animals that transmit rabies) since last summer. It was so bad about a half a year ago that I couldn’t go outside at night without looking at the sky and over my shoulder in a panic every few minutes. Now, I’ve been spending more time outside at night without too much trouble. I still get worried occasionally, but I’ve been able to get over the anxiety within a few hours.

I’ve been having mild anxiety for a little over a day now, which is why I decided to hop on the forum for some help.

Basically, two nights ago I was walking in a Chicago suburb—carrying a bag of takeout—and I heard a fluttering sound to my right. I stopped and looked, but didn’t see a bat or feel one make contact with me. I kept walking, got in the car, and went home. Around an hour later, I started feeling worried that I had somehow “missed” the bat and it had bitten my finger without me noticing, since I wasn’t concerned at the time. (I hate this—my brain tries to convince me that if I’m not worried, I’m not being vigilant enough.)

I looked at my finger and found two incredibly tiny dots—no blood or redness—on the underside. In all honesty, the dots are so small and so unnoticeable that I had to really work to search them out, which makes me think they were probably just part of my skin.

Anyway, I guess I just want someone to add another voice of reason to combat my anxiety, since my voice is rather weak right now. There’s no way a bat could bite the underside of my hand without me noticing, correct?

Anyone else in the same boat with bat/rabies-phobias?

As far as I know, bats don't make fluttering sounds. And the dots on your finger are probably just the remnants of some old scratch or nothing at all. Your story is very much in line with what the anxiety tells us, a bunch of impossible events faintly covered with a thin layer of supposedly logical arguments. I am honestly not sure how to deal with this, because no matter what we say, your anxiety will find a way around it. What helped me is accepting that yes, there is a 0.0000001% chance that someone's pet dog which licked my had could have rabies, and yes, I may die if his saliva somehow got into my blood (I bite my nails). It was very scary in the beginning but as soon as I made peace with this thought, my rabies anxiety dissipated. Perhaps this would also work for you. Good luck!

[Darksky]

I don't know what you heard but it wasn't a bat.

i have bats living in the eaves of my house. Fortunately I love them. At night when they come out, I will often go out to watch them. They don't flutter or make any noise at all as they swoop past. In all the years I've been out with them I've heard nothing but silence.

also you would have felt a bite. To compare, I was bitten by a tiny, tiny baby shrew once. They are less then half the size of a bat and boy did I feel it. It was the thanks I got for saving it from a cat..