Re: Irrational fear of birds

I, too, am familiar with an irrational fear of birds, particularly pigeons. I would get creeped out by them, the way people get creeped out by spiders or rats. I'd cross the street to avoid walking past them, and had to avoid sidewalk cafes or eating anyplace where they might get too close. I've also had a couple embarrassing freak-out incidents.

I loved birds, in general, but only at a distance (as birdwatching in nature, not as pets--too close for comfort). The problem with pigeons was that they're so bold and get so damn close to you. And I was never too happy when people would let a caged bird loose inside But pigeons were the worst.

The only thing I could trace this fear to was learning about "the Holy Ghost" in Catholic school. Ghosts are scary creatures, whether holy or not, and of course, "the Holy Spirit," as he/she is now renamed, is represented by a dove, which pretty much looks like a white pigeon. When I was little, I thought the Holy Ghost was trapped in my curtains and would get pretty panicky.

Anyway, I pretty much got over this fear about 2 years ago when I was given a cockatiel and asked to take care of it (long story). I reluctantly agreed. At first I was really grossed out by the bird, but over the next several months, I got used to him, and even began to like him. (I'm a dog person and generally like animals.) The bird's owner became a drug addict and gave up "parental rights." The bird became my property.

The only room Homer could be in, logically, was my home office. He shrieked too loudly in the morning to be a bedroom bird, disturbed our evening TV watching, and I felt it wasn't sanitary to have Homer in the kitchen. For the longest time I wanted to give him back to my "friend," but gradually, over time, he seemed less like a weird, frightening creature, and more like my pet. Like my dogs, he responded to me, and needed me to take care of him. I felt empathy for him, especially since his owner didn't take the greatest care of him.

About a year after I had him, I noticed I was walking around in Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade and wasn't afraid of the pigeons at my feet. They reminded me of Homer, just looking for food, not really vermin, just animals. I've had this pigeon fear for 40 years, but somehow having a fat, pigeon-like bird in the same room with me, every day, as I worked, helped me overcome my fear of pigeons. I'd never even touched a bird until I touched Homer.

So, I'm writing this today to tell you that perhaps phobia therapy is the best way to go. I'm talking about the kind of phobia therapy that gradually introduces you to your fears and gets you used to them. (ie., you look at pictures of birds first, then feathers, etc.)

I wanted to write something encouraging to you. Good luck!

Laurel