IHateButterflies.com is in the NY Times!
WARNING TO MEMBERS, LINK CONTAINS PHOTOS
The NY Times article by Ralph Blumenthal
Due to a recent infestation in southern Texas of butterflies, up to half a million, Ralph Blumenthal contacted me about anyone that was afraid of butterflies. Although we were unable to contact our Texan members on such short notice, we did earn a link, and 1 interview. Later I did find out that the interview of one of our members was cut out for length, but we did get a mention and a link!
As a reminder, please fill out your profiles with location so we can contact you if any news pops up in your area!
August 4th, 2006 at 5:00 am
I have a terrible phobia of butterflies and moths. Pl. let me know whether any author has written any literary text, a novel or a short story concerning butterfly phobia.
Thanks
September 13th, 2006 at 1:08 pm
i am very afraid to moth…especialy after hear a species of moth who suck blood …calyptra eustrigata..the vampire moth….
October 2nd, 2006 at 12:07 am
Hi there, specially to Niroshini – from your name I gather you’re Sri Lankan. well so am I. and I am SO thrilled to see that there is another person in this country full of butterflies/moths who actually shares my fear. I have to this date met no one here who even understands how I feel. People think Im pretending or simply crazy.
I would actually love to know what is behind this phobia. Why do I feel this way. And most importantly what can be done to get over it. I have suffered since childhood and am totally sick of being this way.
any ideas anyone?
October 2nd, 2006 at 5:02 pm
I was in Central park weekend of last when low and behold a viscious butterfly flew directly at the bosom of my darling. Would I not be am man if I stood aside while a butterfly savagely flew about my love. When next I looked to my sweetheart she was convulsing with laughter at the sight of my starled run for safety.
October 25th, 2006 at 3:45 am
FINALLY! People who agree with me. My proof that butterflies are evil: They start off as caterpillars, then morph. MORPH! Shapeshifters morph and shapeshifters = evil. *nods* I told my friend I was going to destroy the butterflies as part of my personal duty to the world to rid it of evil, and she wrote up a petition to stop me. Even my damn science teacher signed it! But that doesn’t matter, because she’s actually a demon. THE demon. She has sulfur! SULFUR!!
~Miranda~
-Ridding the world of evil since 1992-
October 25th, 2006 at 6:27 pm
OMG!!! I thought it was just me!! i never knew other people were afraid of them too!!! They scare me so much and wen they come near me i start to cry and scream and run like a manaic, my friends think im just making it up and pretending just to be funny but NOO!!! I mean come on they are butterflys! and moths omggg moths! ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
October 30th, 2006 at 9:26 pm
I just had a horrifying experience in my bathroom, a huge speckled brown moth kept flitting in my face while I was screaming maniacally for my daughter to come and save me. The disgusting horrid gross thing touched my FACE AND MOUTH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I hate moths I hate moths. My family thinks I make it up too, but I am absoulutlyfriggin terrified of those damn things. Why do they come at you repeatedly with their gross furry antennae flicking around??? Why do they keep flying in my face. My throat is raw from the terror scream I let out!!!!!!!
October 31st, 2006 at 4:57 pm
Wow…I guess I’m not alone. I have been terribly afraid of moths and butterflies ever since I was really young, BUT…this past summer I went to the Niagara Falls butterfly emporium to finally face my fear of almost 20 years. I still ran and swatted like a crazy person when one would fly too close to me, but you have no idea how much it helpled. I could’ve never been that close to so many damn butterflies at once. It also helpled that my boyfriend walked me through it. So, my suggestion is to bite the bullet, grab a good friend and TRY to walk through one of these exibits. I KNOW it’s really hard and terryfying, but, by the time you walk out the exit, you will feel like you took a step towards conquering your phobia.
November 3rd, 2006 at 4:52 am
wow lauren you are crazy. i can’t even think of doing that. but good for you
November 9th, 2006 at 11:52 pm
so i’m not alone, thaz great!! i’m so scared of moth i cant bear the thought of going near them.. even if their dead!! just to list a few of the things that make MOTH my No1 fear. ps.. don’t know if this is the case in other countries, but Australian moth are HUGE
1. Their body are fat and hairy and u don’t want to kill it by squashing it
2. They fly irratically, the next second u look, they r comin rite for your face
3. Their covered in gross moth dust
anything else i’v missed plz feel free to add ot the list
November 11th, 2006 at 4:52 pm
I HATE BUTTERLIES and moths. They just f***ing flutter around and they come at you. I swear, if they know your scared. they will f*** with you. I have been deathly afraid of them sincei was like 5. ONE FLEW INTO MY MOUTH WHILE I WAS SCREAMING. I thought of a name for this phobia though.
Flutterphobia.
November 14th, 2006 at 12:23 am
Wow, I can’t believe other people have the same problem as me! Butterflies gross me out and I hate them, but I am PETRIFIED of moths!! That disgusting moth dust… ICK! I have known since I was little that I “hated” moths, but over the summer I was in a situation where I was surrounded by several moths and I became completely hysterical: screaming and flailing uncontrollably. It was than that I realized it was not just a hatred, but a phobia, and a REAL PROBLEM. I am so relieved to know I am not alone in this. As irrational as such a fear may be, it is still valid.
November 17th, 2006 at 10:10 pm
ewwwwwww. i have been DEATHLY afraid of butterflies and moths since i was young. everyone teases me about it too!!!
November 18th, 2006 at 2:41 pm
Wahey I’m not alone!
I’ve been scared senseless of moths and butterflies from as far back as I can remember. I swear to all that’s holy that those beastly little b*st*rds can sense your fear, and then they dive bomb you in the face! I remember a few months ago I was drinking a cup of coffee and I very nearly swallowed a fluffy fat moth which had drowned inside it. I was sick to my stomach. xP
November 26th, 2006 at 11:56 pm
Hey, I do not agree with you guys. Butterflies are beautiful creatures of the earth. And it wasn’t hard to get people to sign that petition, Miranda, they were just like, “Okay.” Much more people like butterflies than hate them.
November 28th, 2006 at 10:36 pm
i hate butterflies.
i can not stand them.
my friends think im crazy,
but its realy the butterflies that are crazy.
and they creap me out to non-belief
today i got attacked by a butterfly,
in the confort of my own home.
they are evil creatures i tell you.
ahh.
December 5th, 2006 at 11:00 am
I am absolutely terrified of giant moths. I tried to conquer my fear by going to a butterfly enclosure… 2, 3 butterflies here & there, it’s a walk in the park for me. Come a huge bundle of butterflies flutting in the air a few feet in front of me. Gee, I can’t take no more.
And it is absolutely disgusting to have to walk past them. Especially when they can sense your fear & kamikaze themselves right in your face! I wonder if it’s fear they sense that prompted their attacks, or that people without moth phobia do not complain about these because they could care less & are not bothered about flying moths in their face.
Imagine you going home only to be greeted by a giant moth ON the front door of your house. Totally disgusting! My friend encountered it before. Sigh.
I find it amazing how some people do not fear giant moths.
December 8th, 2006 at 9:14 am
Tamil,Sri-Lankan and Scared of butterflies/moths aswell. They must be alien…..
December 11th, 2006 at 12:28 pm
Butterflies are EVIL i tell you PURE EVIL. They are going to take over the world. The biggest butterfly is high up in the clouds and all the small ones we see in the summer are just spying on us and gathering information. Like when they lay flat on a tree trunk or sumthing and flap their wings very slowly now that is horrible..see they are actually planning their next move! In the end all the small butterflies are going to gang up on the humans and swarms of them are going to lift us up into the sky and take us to the huge butterfly in the sky! and thats when the huge butterfly will eat us. Ah feels much better now ive shared my story! but i hope u now dont all sufffer the nightmare ive been having for the past yr.
December 11th, 2006 at 11:36 pm
I cannot believe that i am not the only one who is deathly afraid of these NASTY bugs!
i am 16 and have been scared of them since i was a little girl.i am so afraid of these things that it’s not even funny…
i have been known to faint and hypervenalate just looking at pictures of them. which is very badd.
i cannot go outside during the summer because i am so scared of them they are just so creepy! i live on a farm so it is immpossible to avoid them!
i wan to get over this fear so i can once again enjoy it sunshine during the summer! and i have no idea how i have seen many people about this and they have all brought me to a consevatory and this has all ended badly including a trip to the hospital..
if anyone has ant site i could go to please let me know!
thank you!
December 16th, 2006 at 8:06 pm
oh god..
i never know there was an actual name for my fear of moths and butterflie.
when i would tell people that i was afraid of butterflies and moths, they would laught at me..
it’s nice to know im not alone.
December 17th, 2006 at 4:06 am
Well…I just had a panic attack from reading this. I’ve calmed down now though…my chest is a little tight still.
I’ve always been petrified of anything flying. Especially moths. It’s the movement that does it for me. I just don’t want them to touch me (that part of the explanation my boyfriend laughs at) and you never know which way they are about to fly.
It runs in my family. My 21 year old 6’4″ brother is scared of butterflies.
Even thinking about them and I’m panicking. Must get off this site.
December 19th, 2006 at 1:16 am
i hate them they absolutely terrify me since about a month ago i have horrible dreams not dreams nightmares about them and people dying and pictures its crazy! I just hate them they drive me crazy i wish i was just dead when I see them Iwish they would just dissapear
I HATE THEM!!!!!!!
HAD ANOTHER DREAM YESTERDAY ON MY B-DAY IT SCARES ME I THINK SOMETHING BAD IS GOING TO HAPPEN TO ME OR SOMEONE I KNOW
YOSHIRA 13 BAKERSFIELD CAL.
DEC 18, 2006
9:12P.M.
December 19th, 2006 at 1:18 am
AGAIN THEY TERRIFY ME! I THINK I UNDERSTAND HOW YOU BUTTERFLY AND MOTH HATERS FEEL:)
December 24th, 2006 at 12:01 am
I’m 15 and I’m afraid of butterflies and moths.. when I was little my sister and brother use to pull off their wings and put them all over me, in my face and in my hair.. and they used to lock me in a closet with butterflies fluttering around everywhere. I try to not show my fear to other people because they dont understand how a “beautiful” thing can cause me so much fear.
December 28th, 2006 at 5:05 pm
Oh my heck! This is hilarious to my family. they think I am crazy because I like bees, and love when they land on me becuase they are cute and fuzzy; spiders do not freak me out; but if a moth comes near me I freak out and once hid under the covers screaming and crying real tears until my son killed the moth that was stalking me. He was hysterically laughing but I was REALLY freaking out. Once when I was carrying bundles into my house at night, a moth, attracted to the porch light, kept dive bombing me and flew down my blouse. I nearly had a coronary arrest. I can’t believe there are others out there like me. Phew.
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:43 am
I was in a butterfly house (of all the places to be) when I figured out I was deathly afraid of butterflies. This huge blue one couldn’t fly and started climbing up my leg, I was freaking out and my family was chuckling at me while I’m throwing my leg around violently yelling “GET IT OFF GET IT OFF GET IT OFF”.. it wasn’t very fun at all. And their violent random flight paths are so untrustable and freaky.
January 2nd, 2007 at 6:13 am
I still hate butterflies and am glad to know that there are so many like me. Everybody thinks it’s just silly beaviour but you really have to fear these flying creatures to know what people like us are suffering from. Does anyone know how to get rid of this ohobia? I think of a futurein a wheel chair in a house where a moth (it doesnt even have to be a big one0 ENTERS…
January 2nd, 2007 at 6:19 am
Hi Yamille,
I haven’t replied to you since your reply to me. I don’t know myself how to get rid of this phobia, and believe me, I close all windows in my house by 5.30 p.m. before switching on lights fearing that a creature will fly in. I hate to go to Kandalama, the fearful, uly place with moths flying into the restaurant and HUGE black ones with eyes settled on walls. I’d die rather than going there again. How about you?
January 2nd, 2007 at 9:06 am
Hey everyone, just remember that these are just comments to a news post, and if you haven’t already, you can talk to hundreds of mottephobes on our Forums. Just go to Our Forums and sign up! It takes a little bit for me to approve you and make sure you’re not a spammer trying to sign up (we get lots of those!), so be patient and meet the many people here on the site.
January 4th, 2007 at 1:23 am
Wow…I didn’t think there were so many people that hated moths and butterflies like I do. Often, people say that something tramatic must happen to you to make you have a fear of something.
Well, I was being innocent, just sitting on by bed reading like any other good little girl when out of know were, this gigantic, titanic, GI-NORMUS moth that was all black, landed on my forehead and was beating it’s wings real fast. I screamed and my book went flying and I started swinging my pillow around like mace trying to hit this thing. I was so crazed by this that I actually broke my lamp in the malae.
Well, to get to it, I’ve moved to Maine, where there seems to be an abudance of the little gits.
Further more, I’m made fun of too. And like the rest of you, I’m sure you all feel pretty silly about it.
What would you think if you saw a full grown woman that’s 5’11 and weighs 250 running for all she’s f***ing worth away from a butterfly while holding tightly onto a weed wacker!?
January 4th, 2007 at 1:34 am
Just to add to the ending, I actually ditched by clogs so I could run faster.
My baby sister, who was 13 at the time, mentioned it to me later that she saw me running away from the butterfly.
January 4th, 2007 at 7:26 am
just found this site when i was looking up a cure for this phobia.
ive been terrified since i was a baby. i dont know where this fear came from but all i know is i go into a blind hysterical panic when i see butterflies or moths. i nearly got myself killed as a child…a butterfly landed on my hand when i was playing in the garden and i ran out in front of a car.
im nearly 22 and the phobia is just as bad. i HATE the summer. youre not safe from butterflies during the day, and not safe at night from moths. I HATE THEM!
i have at least one nightmare a week about being covering in butterflies. its horrible
January 9th, 2007 at 9:26 pm
I am so happy to have found this site! My hatred of butterflies goes back a long way, and during that time I found out some things that help me cope. Butterflies taste with their feet – that’s why the evil little bastards like to land on things they shouldn’t, LIKE US. If they like the way you taste, they will stay! One of their favorite tastes is certain perfumes and their very favorite is Calvin Klein’s Obsession. I used to think I was paranoid that they were coming for me, but NO, they were coming for me because that is my signature scent. So now I don’t wear perfume in the summer (May to October in Connecticut), and I don’t use scented deodorant, fabric softener or floral shampoos. Hope this helps.
January 9th, 2007 at 9:30 pm
UZ R ALL WEIRDOS FAIR ENUF BEIN A WEE BIT SCARED BUT UZ R JUST WEIRD HYPERVENTALATING LOL
January 11th, 2007 at 1:12 am
Haha, i thought i was a freak for being scared of moths, but my friend showed me this website… i’m not alone!!
January 12th, 2007 at 9:34 pm
whoa..yea so i wasn’t the only one you all are on the list too?!! they’re after us…all of them…i hear them in the night….their fluttering wings of death…here’s my story
it was 9 years ago when i was seven my shoe came untied so i kneeled down to tie it and this yellow butterfly comes out of nowhere and lands on my knee and i thought kool a butterfly i think i’m a princess or some crazy thing like that and while i was indulging in it’s beauty the thing bit me!!! u say what?! they can’t bite….but thats what i thought..and thats what they want you to think..
January 13th, 2007 at 3:43 pm
OMG! I knew that there were people out there afraid of moths and butterflies but I didn’t realize that so many people felt the same way I do! What a relief! The powdery wings, that thumping sound they make when they hit the light, ewwwwwww…my toes are curling just thinking about it! All my friends think I’m insane, in the summer I won’t go anywhere near a light when its dark outside…I even have to do a double take in the winter, hey, you never know! So glad to have found this site! thanks!
January 15th, 2007 at 5:06 pm
i am so scared of moths that i wont even sleep in my room if i know that ones in there!! i never realised that there was actually other people scared of them too!!! i thought it was just me being stupid……really tho what is the point of them all they do is flutter around the light and then bang into your face like there trying to freak you out on purpose! errr im scared now p.s does anybody else think that moths are going to fly in your ears and get stuck!? coz i do!
January 17th, 2007 at 3:57 am
this is too funy! I have no fear of butterflies infact I love them but I swear that a moth bit me once and evrybody says that they dont bite but I’m glad I came across this page because I knew thay did bite.
Validation feels good
January 24th, 2007 at 9:13 am
OMFGGGG.
i hateeee butterflies.
my family+friends think im crazy.
but shitm, if those fuckers come near me,
i hit the hill
scream
cry
run
i don’t care.
they scare the shit out of me,
they’re so mysterious
DEATH TO THE BUTTERFLIES.
January 24th, 2007 at 11:58 pm
Hi, the same as Keira…as soon as saw a butterfly or a moth is flying near me I hide where I can, I run, I scream, I do whatever to avoid being near them. it doesn’t matter if people look at me as I was a crazy girl who is afraid of that “innocent insect” I CAN’T STAND THEM….here in my country (Peru) I can find anybody who share this fear…
I FEEL INTIMIDATED ABOUT THEIR WINGS….
waaaaaaaaaaaaaaa I JUST HATE THEM!!!!!
January 28th, 2007 at 5:04 pm
i am deathly afraid of butterflies and moths. their little fluttery wings are so ahhworthyim glad there’s other ppl scared of these things too:)
February 3rd, 2007 at 10:12 pm
Wow. I got scared just reading all of your stories. Yes, I also get made fun of by friends and family. People talk about me. I’m in 10th grade and people I don’t even know come up to me in the hallway and say “aren’t you afraid of butterflies.” Yes, I am!
One time, I was in Tennessee in the Smokies and there was a HUGE pile of butterflies, i still dont know what they were doing. But i was looking at them coz it was pretty werid. Then my dad came up to me and pushed me into them and i fell on them and stepped on them and everything and they all flew everywhere. it was a NIGHTMARE.
and ever since, i just couldnt stand the thought of butterflies.
have any of you ever seen the episode of spongebob square pants where they babysit Sandy’s pet catipillar named wormy and he changes into a butterfly over night and spongebob and patrick think hes a monster. Then they like zoom in and show a big face of a butterfly??
ITS SO SCARY!!
February 4th, 2007 at 9:46 pm
oh my gosh I get made fun of all the time for being extremely scared of butterflies. I can’t belive you all do too.
February 5th, 2007 at 2:46 pm
I hate moths and butterflies! ESPECIALLY THOSE HUGE MOTHS THAT LIE FLAT ON YOUR BEDROOM WALL AND WONT BUDGE UNTIL YOU HAVE TO GET YOUR DAD TO SHOO THEM AWAY!! And when they fly in your face! Once, a butterfly landed on my washbag and i didnt notice and picked it up!!! I touched the butterfly and it went mad flapping everywhere! we need to kill them!
February 8th, 2007 at 2:02 am
my fear began when i was 5. i visited a butterfly conservatory……. its hard to believe i used to LIKE butterflies…..now they creep me out. especially the straw-shaped mouth…and their eyes…..uhhh its making me shudder. last summer a monarch butterfly started to dart towards my head in the garden…. i screamed so loud and ran back inside, swatting it away with a garden glove. never again am i mowing the lawn in the summer.
February 8th, 2007 at 5:01 pm
Eugh, I know loads of people that find moths a bit creepy but I’ve never come across anyone else who’s afraid of butterflies too. I’ve always hated them but the worst thing that ever happened to me was on a school trip to France. We were staying in these lttle chalets that have huuuge shuttered windows with no curtains. It was really hot so the window was open and this GIANT f**ker of a moth flew in and landed straight on my leg. It as black with red markings and about the size of a bat!!!!!!!! I couldn’t even move I was so petrified, I just sat there staring at it not even breathing. It only stayed there for a couple of seconds (which felt like hours) before flying around the light then back out of the window. As soon as it had gone I started screaming and nearly hyperventilating then all the teachers came rushing in thinking we were being murdered and I got into trouble for making a scene! How f**king rude. The last thing you need during a bloody panic attack is someone yelling at you. I can’t even stand those tiny weeny little moths, they make my skin crawl. bleugh. Thankfully my boyfriend is so weird that he likes bugs and doesn’t mind getting them out of the house for me…but he catches them in his HANDS!!!!!! It’s so disgusting, I have to make him scrub them with soap and hot water before he comes near me. I’m near enough terrified of every kind of insect except spiders which is a bit weird. Phew rant over, I feel all icky now just typing this.
February 13th, 2007 at 9:27 am
im fine with just about every incect, even moths until they reach a size of over about one inch long, then they just freak the hell out, they always seem to fly in my direction and try to land on my face. its hard to hide this ”phobia” from my friends when were outside having a few drinks at night, i know there harmless but i just cant help it, what the hell??
February 13th, 2007 at 9:29 am
**then they just freak me the hell out,**
February 17th, 2007 at 1:48 am
I am soooooooooo happy to find some people who share the same problem as me. My friends always make fun of me and say that there cute and harmless, but they really don’t know what there talking about. I don’t know, somehing about them never really… well it’s hard to explain. I just hate them all. They look so scary!
February 20th, 2007 at 4:51 pm
Everyone seems to have there stories so I’ll give you mine. I had no idea how terrified I was of these creatures until I was about 7 years old. My brother had gotten some cocoons of Monarch butterflies in a jar. He put them in his room and when they opened up he called me in to show me how pretty they were. Well, not to me. I screamed and went hysterical. My dad thought he was going to have to take me to the hospital. Ever since then I cannot be around a moth or butterfly. I almost slept in my car one night when there was one in the house that we couldn’t get out. And I agree that they will chase you. It is like they know you are afraid of them.
February 22nd, 2007 at 11:16 pm
I would just like to say:
I can’t believe you all are afriad of a little insect that is about 1/100 of you body mass. they do nothing but good things for the earth, pollinating plants providing the earth with beautiful colors,and they provide youth with carefree, colorful, playful, artistic visions. They mind their own business and if they occasionally fly to where you are, they never scratch your eye out or even harm you in any way…can you think of anyone who has ever been seriously hurt by a butterfly or moth?? All they want to do is live and reproduce in peace and we should let them.
I think you should all learn to cope with these wonderful creations of God and not smite them
February 23rd, 2007 at 2:06 am
Definition of a phobia: irrational fear. Irrational, meaning no one here has to explain it. People are afraid of many things, and don’t need to justify it to anyone, including you.
February 23rd, 2007 at 7:53 pm
I’m just trying to help the good people. If they listen to my argument then maybe they will realize their phobia is not a phobia at all just a myth that has plagued them up to this point. Maybe, just maybe, they will change their mind about how butterflies really are good creatures and everyone, including themselves and butterflies, will be better off.
February 24th, 2007 at 11:43 am
You’re helping them by having them believe they are in denial, and they don’t have a fear. That’s not rational of you to believe that. If you’ve ever dealt with anyone that has a fear of any creature, be it mice, bugs, spiders, butterflies, anything, you’d clearly understand it’s no myth.
If you read the stories in the forums, you’d see them try to understand, seek help, and obtain information on why they feel this way, and you’d see it’s just like any fear. There is no good vs bad creature. Is it more justified to fear a shark vs a butterfly, just because butterflies are pretty and nice and smaller? You’d probably say yes because a shark will attack you. A fear is not that simple always, people are afraid of balloons too, and I don’t tell them their fear is a myth.
These people don’t believe they will be killed by butterflies. It’s other aspects: the randomness, the colors, the ‘ugliness’ they may see in macro photography, and yes, perhaps it went in their eye when they were young and that scarred them. You’re not providing a justifiable argument at all. You just show the lack of real understanding of any phobia by declaring it to be false because you don’t like it in comparison to other more typical phobias, and therein is where the real problem lies.
February 25th, 2007 at 11:04 pm
dear Mr./Ms, ihb,
I looked at the stories in the forum you recommended and while I did see some stories about people trying to understand, I also saw a story titled ‘near death experience’. So although you say “These people don’t believe they will be killed by butterflies” I cannot accept that statement fully. I just believe that if these people actually had a butterfly fly up to them when they were not aware, nothing would happen, and they would live their lives. By this principle, I think they should be able to adapt to a butterfly’s beauty and grace and not be harmed at all.
February 25th, 2007 at 11:41 pm
True, you can’t take it completely seriously, but that doesn’t mean their fear is a myth. What you are trying to say is condescending and insulting to anyone with a fear or phobia. Guess what, balloons aren’t dangerous, most spiders aren’t, most other things people are afraid of may not hurt them either. However, you’re speaking as someone who doesn’t have that particular phobia, or been around someone with this phobia or another that is paralyzing.
I could think spiders are cool, but it is not my place to tell someone with a real fear that they just don’t get it, and should love them because they are part of nature and make incredible webs. It’s really that you just have no understanding of this fear it seems (or any for that matter), and you think it’s a no-brainer to get passed it. If it were that easy with any phobia, wouldn’t common sense tell you people would do it? I’ve tried for years to help someone with this fear, have you?
You’re no different than the people that have teased our members on the message boards during their lives for having this fear, or any of their other fears, but instead of using harsh words and demeaning tones, you’re casting their feelings aside, acting ‘helpful’, and saying, well,if you just looked, you’d see you’re wrong. Try being around someone with a fear, and talk this way, and see how long they stick around. Get over it, they don’t like butterflies, and you’re not going to change that just by showing them a pretty butterfly.
February 26th, 2007 at 9:51 pm
To IHB: Your mature and tolerant tone with Mr. Monarch is admirable, however, I believe you are wasting your time. Mr. Monarch simply should not be allowed to post. He is condescending, compassionless, and quite possibly, stupid. There are probably a thousand web sites butterlfly lovers can go to and only one for us, so why is he here? And no one else has posted in three days since his holier-than-thou lecture series started. Anyone besides me completely turned off?
February 26th, 2007 at 11:08 pm
No, I know. I have full control over what posts can make it and which can’t, but I wanted people to see another example of people that just don’t seem to get it. As I pointed out, there are people that are just mean and cruel, and those that think they are ‘helping’. In any case Meghan, thank you for your post, and although I don’t know all the usernames, I hope you’re a member of our boards, if not sign up!
February 27th, 2007 at 11:11 am
I appreciate your desire to share information, but we already know about all the chuckleheads who don’t get it! One of the largest problems with having a phobia is dealing with the people around us who either do not or cannot understand. If I may make a suggestion, refer him to healthyminds.org/multimedia/phobias. Then he can get the nature of all phobias, not just this one (American Psychiatric Association page, so very cite-worthy.) Or he can just search phobias on whatever search engine he likes and sort through the five million hits that will come up and get himself a halfway decent education on something he clearly does not understand. I maintain my position that he does not belong HERE. And I did sign up, thank you for inviting me.
Back to my fellow phobes: Am I the only one who had a completely visceral reaction to Mr. Monarch?
March 8th, 2007 at 9:35 pm
Funny for years I thought it was only me.
I blame my parents;
My Mother: When I was a small child she wanted me to catch Butterflies with a net for her I was so terrified of them I didn’t leave my house for days and made her get rid of the whole collecting kit.
My Father: Had a bug light he would turn on at night so we could sit in the yard without beetles and mosquitos flying around us. All the damn thing did was kill huge moths who would get zapped, sizzle then burn to death.
March 11th, 2007 at 2:05 am
i hate butterflies. with a passion. my friends all think it’s crazy. i know it’s highly irrational but i can’t help it!!! much like all the rest of you!!! once i was hanging out the washing in my backyard and i turned around to see 2 hideous monarchs fluttering about around each other – i freaked out so much that i ran back around the side of the house and hid inside until they went away. and sometimes my cats catch them, – i feel as though i must keep myself captive inside my bed room until she eats it up. then i congratulate her on a job well done. argh i get shivers just thinking about it!!!!
March 26th, 2007 at 4:59 am
wow im not the only one in this world who is afraid of butterflies most of my friends think im crazy…. one day a monarch landed on my arm during school i froze for 30 minuets untill my friend shooed it away….
March 26th, 2007 at 1:37 pm
OMG!!! Ive been afriad of butterlfies and moths since I was a baby. I dont remember why. My earliest memory is when I was 2 years old and my aunt was pushing me on a swing. i looked down and saw a dead butterlfy on the ground and immediatly thought it was the scariest looking thing ever. I hate the way their wings look and the flutter uncontrolably at your face. If one comes around me i run so fast the other direction……ive actually heard nicole kidman was afraid of butterflies as well!
March 27th, 2007 at 4:35 pm
Wow since I was a little girl i being terrified of moth, once I was ready to go bed I heard one flying very close scream to grandma she didnt pay atention, that thing star flying on my face and also walk on my arm I still feel the sensation ahhhhh .
March 28th, 2007 at 10:32 am
I am so happy that i found this website.I always thought that my phobia of moths is silly because all of my friends make jokes about it and they don’t understand.once one of them brought one so close to my face and i was so terrified and ungry that i started crying.I can’t understand how moths sense your fear and always come near YOU and not anyone else.Your site sure helped though!!!!!!
April 6th, 2007 at 7:42 pm
OMG i am actually TERRIFIED of butterflies they freak me out soo much! and i dont know anyone else whos scared of them either. all my friends think im really weird and think how can i be scared of butterflies coz they r pretty? but they are uglyy! i hate them ewww and i dont even know what i get freaked out by them. my friend tries to scare me by saying “WATCH OUT BUTTERFLY BEHIND YOU!” “YOU HAVE A BUTTERFLY IN YOUR MOUTH” bless me
April 9th, 2007 at 4:58 am
Hi everybody. I think people who oke about butterflies, like having a butterfly just behind you, etc are sick people. They don’t even know what a phobia is. This site is heavenly as it makes you meet people who have same tastes or at least same fears.
April 10th, 2007 at 9:05 am
Hi, Im Absouletly S**t Scered Ob Butterflys And Moths! I Have Been For As Long As I can Remeber. All My Friends Say It Strange And Im The Only Persn to “Ever” To Be Afraid Of Them, Well This Website Is Proof!!!! They ARE Evil!!!!! So, People Say That EveryBody Has A Reason Fir Their Phobia, Well I Dont, I Dont No Why Im Scered, But I Will Not GO Into Fields In The Summer, Or Most Places Where There Is Grass Or Lots Of Flowers, Luckily I Live Near A Beach, So i Can Go There In The Summer =]
:(
Why Do They Flutter So Crazily!! Why Do They Always Seem To Fly Towards me, And My Mouth :’( Omg!! Is There A Name For This Phobia, Or A Cure.. Please Help
April 12th, 2007 at 1:25 pm
omg.. thank you to the rest of the peopl who are scared of them to i thought i was by miself. sum of mi friends say”i know all flying bugs scare me too” But im not scared of all flying bugs JUST BUTTERFLIES.
April 12th, 2007 at 1:29 pm
i am so glad that i hav found other people with the same feelings as me. I 16 and for bout 2 or 3 years i hav developed a very intense fear of moths a butterflies. I’ve had a lot of scary moments such as a moth goin on my mouth and the worse one a massive moth that i thought was a horrible white butterflie chargin towards me repeatedly. I ended up cowerin on the floor, screamin, cryin, shakin, hyperventaliatin, sweatin, felt sick, and my heart was beatin really fast.
It was night so i woke my famiy up – they weren’t impressed but i cudnt help it. Worst of all the moth started to follow me, i swear they can sense fear, it was the scarest moment of my life. But probably the most upsettin thing is that my younger bro keeps tryin to make them come in and go near me and my parents say that im bein silly cos thay can’t hurt and i know that but i just hate them for some reason, i dnt even know wen i became scared it just appeared, it like i neva noticed them and as soon as i did i developed a phobia which has now moved 2 butterflies which i liked wen i was younger. Anyway my phobia gettin worse each year and now wen it boiloin on a night i wont open my window and keep my door closed incase they come in, it like a sauna, no kiddin! it just so good 2 know that i not the only 1 cos i was startin 2 feel like i was bein pathetic, might go c some1 bout it so they can try cure my mottephobia (moths) or i suppose it cud b Lepidopterophobia (the group of animals moths and butterflies r) aswell. Hope some of u get over ur phobia! btw if any1 knows anythin 2 help it wud b a great help. p.s. sorry for writtin so much i get carried away wen i can let it all out cos most ppl can’t b botherd 2 listen 2 me talk bout my phobia cos they can’t understand it and think i silly. bye ppl 
April 14th, 2007 at 9:34 am
Boy am i glad i found you guys! I am 33 and for all my life i have been plagued with my butterfly phobia ( and moths to a slightly lesser extent). I was even giving a backy on my bike to my best mate when we were 10 down through an alleyway of flowers when i hurtled us both off it at full power as a cabbage white came an dive bombed my head!oh yes… and i have run out into the road to avoid the shitty little things and nearly got run over! dont know bout you but they get worse in degree for me such as…small cabbage white = bearable, large cabbage white = frightening, red admiral or monarch = bloody petrifying and hysteria consumes me! .. as for moths.. how can anyone like anything that thinks a 60 watt lightbulb resembles the moon! BAFFLING. I just kow one last thing.. i need hypno and fast cos i am in britain and summer is approaching so a life of running and screaming beckons whilst everyone watches my hysterics! GREAT ;-(
April 14th, 2007 at 9:36 am
Oh yea and did i mention that the rest of my family and friends find it hysterical and bemusing!! talk about feeling like a freak eh!
April 15th, 2007 at 10:39 am
Actually i will retract the bearable remarks on my other comments as i had forgotton all winter just how bad my phobia is! so the simpler equation is – butterflies = hysteria and misery!
April 15th, 2007 at 4:56 pm
BREAK THROUGH
i think its the wings. Its even made me terrified of ladybirds, i used to have a thing about wasps too but that has totally been replaced by the butterfly phobia, when we were younger my sister used to collect them in nets…- meanwhile i RAN inside the house!
Im so glad everyone here feels the same!
April 15th, 2007 at 6:20 pm
I did not know there was a word for being frightend of Moths and Butterflies. can’t remember how it started but even the kids in school bullied me about it by catching a butterfly and letting it loose in the classroom so i couldn’t stop screaming the teacher took me out of the class room and called me a silly cow. wish he could read this. that was when i was about 9. I can’t go out in the garden in the late summer because of the three budliea tress that are in my next door neighbours gardens, both sides. they fly between them when they are mating miilions of cabbage butterflies, peacocks and red admirals. Moths are bad two I am chronic asthmatic and in the summer have to sleep with all the windows closed in case they get in. encounters with moths that my parents have acidently let in the house have led to hospitalisation, due to panic attacks setting off my asthma. even walking past a case of dead butterlies and moths in a museum i have to run past them incase they flutter. yet i am able to name most of them and have learnt as much about them as i possibly can, but it makes it worse. kmowing that the biggest moth in the world has a wingspan of a meter is not good for a phobic! I will sit with the doors closed in the boiling heat so the butterfiles can’r come in. I have had to call my partner from work and somtimes my dad to rid me of these pests. I have only the fear of the moths and butterflies fluttering, nothing else like birds or bats set me off. infact bats are ace as they eat moths. the cat is scary at the moment as she catches them and brings them to me i think she is trying to show how much she loves me but bringing me a large dead moth is not the most appealing gift. It’s nice to knoe that other people feel that sense of panic in the bottom of your stomach when they flutter near you head. had one in the car and had to stop it and opened all the doors till it flew away, the policeman tried really hard to get rid of it as he thought i had broken down and stopped to help in the end it flew out it’s self. I have to go and get somone to get rid of them, i was teaching and there was one in my teaching room i had to go and get the woman i rent it off to dispose of it even though it was dead, same when i was running a shop one of the customer had to get rid of it for me, another time i hid in the toilent till the manager caught the butterfly that had got in. my dad or partner constantly have to de-moth my bedroom, shaking the curtains and checking the walls and lightshades, if the window has been opened and it’s gotten dark. my friends think it’s halarious but my family know that it can result in me in hospital if it sets my asthma off, infact i was in hospital and you can’t close the windows and one got in to my room the cleaner in the end had to get rid of it and the nurses couldn’t understand why it was making my asthma worse as i was weezing and pointing at the ceeling and screaming. so it’s great others feel the same i know my auntie has the moth phobia but i hate both of them and i agree with an earlier comment they are evil. but don’t worry the cat is killing them off for us!
one more thing when i was little and naughty my parents would stop my behaviour by threating to take me to a butterfly house- it worked
April 21st, 2007 at 5:02 pm
omg… i thought i was the only one who was scared of these things. I am 16 and i have a phobia of both butterfly’s and moth’s and i have no idea why.
I don’t think i have always been scared of them but i have since i was about 9 or so.
I don’t feel scared thinking about them and most pictures don’t bother me but when they are there i can’t control it, i just freak out. Even with the tiniest moths, but i can just swat them away and normally cope with them.
I feel worse when i am inside with a butterfly than outside because i can’t get away. I was in a lesson at school once and their was a butterfly inside and i couldn’t do anything about it so i was just freaking out and started crying (i was about 13) and people totally didn’t understand why i was crying but i couldn’t explain it to my teacher either because i was crying too much. For day’s afterwards people kept saying ‘are you really scared of butterfly’s?’ it was so embarrassing.
Something similar happened to me in a restaurant too, but thats a different story, it involved falling off a chair and publicly embarrassing myself.
i am glad i’m not alone though but i thought i was because i have never met anyone with this phobia before.
April 23rd, 2007 at 7:29 pm
Butterflies actually make me feel sick, everytime i look at them i have a fear that they are coming to get me.
They fly in all directions and don’t care where they go, i hate it in summer when they are in their prime, i just want to cry. Even when i see them in the car i still feel fear.
Thanks
April 25th, 2007 at 7:36 am
This is like an awakening, a word and a community to go with my fear. I never knew that other people had this phobia until today. I always get ridiculed when I tell people that moths and butterflies freak me out, but not other insects/flying thingys/animals! It’s such a relieve to know there are others out there.
How it started: About 7-8 yrs…Horror soap drama (Singaporean) about evil butterflies/moths that suck the life out of you… + the first time those paper wings touched me…i’m crawling just thinking about it..
Worse Experience: Asleep in closed off air-conditioned room and woke up to find a GIANT (wing span was about 2 palms long) brown/grey moth on my neck…the terror of waking up to something flapping and seeing the thing so close up that I could see the hairs on the front.*SCREAM*. Yelling for help and when my parents arrive, the thing was no where to be found and the doors/windows were not open. My parents tried to reassure me that it was just my aunt (who passed away that night) who came back to visit me (Yup! Chinese believe they come back as moths to visit! GROSS) ..I’m sure my aunt who loves me will know not to torture me with this…So that thing is definitely a creation of evil.
Stupid things I have done: Jumped onto a busy road from the street pavement because I saw a butterfly fly towards me from the bushes on the side.
Threw a tantrum/panic freak (read, screaming, crying, yelling, kicking, throwing self onto floor) out when my dad tried to bring me into a butterfly farm to “treat my phobia”
April 28th, 2007 at 4:05 pm
I feel SOOOO much better now knowing that I am not the only one. I can’t even handle seeing a picture of a butterfly or moth! Everybody makes fun of me so bad, but they don’t understand how bad it really is. They all think I am making it up!!! We have this exhibit at the Milwaukee museum that is a room with all butterflies flying around and they land on your and stuff… EWWW! OMG! I would seriously rather put a gun to my head than go in there…people have tried to push me in there and I cry so bad. I love that it is getting warm outside, but I hate summer because I know that they are all going to come out soon and the thought of that makes me wanna puke…
Wendy…if that would have happened to me I would have either had a heart attack and dies, or shit my pants lol
May 2nd, 2007 at 8:33 pm
im scared too
May 3rd, 2007 at 12:09 am
Wow uhm Okay. So I have an unhealthy fear of butterflies and moths. So, not knowing this when my parents took us to canada they thought it’d be fun to go to the butterfly conservatory! There were atleas 30 different kinds of butterflys with about 20 of the same species of butterfly flying around. I almost had a heart attack. People were laughing at me. I twas rediculous.
May 8th, 2007 at 5:33 pm
Omg “jodie+” I Found that out to… its the wings!!!!! :O
im also scered of maths, flys, ladybird.. its shokin!!!!
May 9th, 2007 at 7:21 am
i have been scared of butterflies all my life, really dont know why. if one comes near me i flap and scream like a girl and run away, and i just feel so stupid!!
everyones always saying how beautiful they are and how can you be scared, buts its definately the wings especially when they have those big eyes on them!!!!
i can just about cope with small plain moths as long as there not bomb diving me! but last night i went to the toilet and there was the biggest moth ever, it was grey with a huge fury body and it was the size of a small bat, i was absolutely petrified and couldnt go back in the bathroom for ages even though my grandad had removed it.
i`m glad to hear i`m not on my own though! x
May 13th, 2007 at 8:43 pm
Just listen to Angelo Badalamenti’s “The Butterfly” and imagine just enjoying looking at some butterflies. Maybe thatll help get over your fears.
-I just randomly did this, ill prolly never come back tot his site. do feel free to send me an email?message on myspace tho. good day
May 29th, 2007 at 5:46 pm
Yes i also have a phobia of butterflies they scare the hell out of me everytime i see them i run. if one lands on me i would probably cry and i dont even know why im so terrified of butterflies
June 5th, 2007 at 8:12 am
while i got up one morning i noticed i had a strange taste in my mouth and my throught felt very dry, after going to the bathroom i took a drink of water and had to swallow this huge lump in my throught it tasted horrible and i noticed the moth on my beadroom wall from the night before was no longer there. ever since ive had a phoebia of them, if it happened again i would go crazy
June 1st, 2008 at 9:16 pm
[...] and dropping to the ground whenever one danced by. Someone once told me there is a condition called flutterphobia – a fear of winged creatures. I never bothered to confirm it, but adopted the moniker as my [...]