The above words accurately describe what I do whenever I come into contact with a yellow jacket. Or a wasp. Or are the two interchangeable? In my mind for the most part they are, so I'm not going to waste time squabbling over minor differences.
I've had a developing fear of bees for quite a few years now. Not sure where it stemmed from seeing as how I grew up in the country and bees of all kinds just came with the territory. My dad grew alfalfa for awhile so we raised alkali bees, then of course we had honey bees and bumble bees that were always buzzing around, but lately it seems like the "nice" bees have been outnumbered and we are left with the awful, horrible, aggressive yellow jackets. They build nests all over the place then take over the backyard (and the pool) making the terrain an all out war zone, a battle to the death, and for me, a panic induced situation.
Don't ask me where my fear of bees came from because I can't tell you. I've been stung numerous times growing up by both honey bees and yellow jackets so it's not like a bee sting is new territory for me. Honestly, I dread hearing the buzzing sound they make more than I dread a sting. How crazy is that? No, pain isn't the motivator behind my fear, but the fear is there, and lately it has gotten out of hand. My family makes fun of me and frankly gets annoyed with me at times because of the way I freak out when bees are in my close vicinity. They give the same old song and dance about how if you just hold still and don't bother them they won't bother you. Uh huh. A likely story that I don't buy for a second. I don't trust these flying demons and I'm sure as hell not going to hold still and let them invade my territory while I just stand there and take their vicious harassment. Not to mention the fact that I can't stand still when a bee is close to me. My flight response kicks in and all I can think to do is run away and as fast as I can.
I'm not trying to be funny nor am I over exaggerating when I say that I am terrified of bees. Last week I had our screen door open and a huge yellow jacket flew in the house. Knowing of course that I couldn't just let the damn thing fly around while I hid in a closet, I grabbed the fly swatter and prepared to demolish the Satan-spawned agitator. I had to wait him out a little bit until he finally landed on the window and I had a clear, open shot. With shaking hands I inched closer and clobbered him to bits. Then I hit him a few more times, you know, just to make sure. Satisfied that he was dead I dropped the fly swatter and felt waves of nausea rolling through me. I was short of breath, literally, almost gasping, and my hands were still shaking. I went into my room and sat on the floor, trying to calm myself down. My face felt hot and when I tried to stand up a couple minutes later I had a hard time keeping my knees from buckling.
You guys, I'm not exaggerating. These are truly the symptoms I was exhibiting.
In the office where I work we don't have covers over our light fixtures, just cut out squares with the inside exposed where the bulbs hook up. Now, either because I work in a building that used to be a cattle barn, or because there is a vent on the outside of the building directly by my office window, for some reason we get a large number of flies and other strange insects that make their way in through this outside vent, and enter our office via the open light fixtures. Oh, you know what else make its way into our office? You guessed it, yellow jackets. I've killed about five already this week and it's only Tuesday. I've gotten to the point where I just have to leave the room when I see one because I can't sit at my desk for fear it will dive bomb me from the ceiling.
Again, not joking. I've asked before if we can please get light fixtures with covers to prevent flying insects from entering our workspace, but to no avail. Is this something I just have to put up with? Yellow jackets flying around my office, landing on my desk, staring at me from the light fixtures with a look in their eyes that says, "I'm coming for you. Escape is futile." I have a crick in my neck from staring up at the ceiling every two minutes and surveying the area to make sure no bees have infiltrated. I couldn't even bring myself to Google "yellow jackets" when searching for a photo for this post. That's how bad things have become.
I don't really know where I go from here. But I've gotten to the point where full-on panic is what I experience whenever I encounter bees. If this is something I can control I obviously don't know how. I'm starting to have concerns for my mental well-being and I need to find a way to combat this phobia before things get much more out of hand.
But all things aside, I should NOT have to deal with yellow jackets in my office. Outside is one thing, but I refuse to put up with them indoors. And if they won't get me new light fixtures I guess I'll just have to take matters into my own hands.
But seriously, what do I do about my phobia? Any tips or suggestions? I've read about exposure techniques but I'm not sure that will work in my case. I see that potentially driving me over the edge.....even more so than I already am. HELP!
You guys, I'm not exaggerating. These are truly the symptoms I was exhibiting.
In the office where I work we don't have covers over our light fixtures, just cut out squares with the inside exposed where the bulbs hook up. Now, either because I work in a building that used to be a cattle barn, or because there is a vent on the outside of the building directly by my office window, for some reason we get a large number of flies and other strange insects that make their way in through this outside vent, and enter our office via the open light fixtures. Oh, you know what else make its way into our office? You guessed it, yellow jackets. I've killed about five already this week and it's only Tuesday. I've gotten to the point where I just have to leave the room when I see one because I can't sit at my desk for fear it will dive bomb me from the ceiling.
Again, not joking. I've asked before if we can please get light fixtures with covers to prevent flying insects from entering our workspace, but to no avail. Is this something I just have to put up with? Yellow jackets flying around my office, landing on my desk, staring at me from the light fixtures with a look in their eyes that says, "I'm coming for you. Escape is futile." I have a crick in my neck from staring up at the ceiling every two minutes and surveying the area to make sure no bees have infiltrated. I couldn't even bring myself to Google "yellow jackets" when searching for a photo for this post. That's how bad things have become.
I don't really know where I go from here. But I've gotten to the point where full-on panic is what I experience whenever I encounter bees. If this is something I can control I obviously don't know how. I'm starting to have concerns for my mental well-being and I need to find a way to combat this phobia before things get much more out of hand.
But all things aside, I should NOT have to deal with yellow jackets in my office. Outside is one thing, but I refuse to put up with them indoors. And if they won't get me new light fixtures I guess I'll just have to take matters into my own hands.
But seriously, what do I do about my phobia? Any tips or suggestions? I've read about exposure techniques but I'm not sure that will work in my case. I see that potentially driving me over the edge.....even more so than I already am. HELP!
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