Phobias are a bitch to live with...

talked about a scorpion that lives in certain desert areas of Iran. It's sting is fatal in 20-30 seconds, and along with a few rare snakes is considered the most poisonous animal on earth. They did point out that 99% of scorpion bites, like a huge majority of snake bites, are not fatal.

Got stung on the butt.
It wasn't that bad.

Oh...you said scorpion.

Good opportunity to teach him about creepy crawlies. Some can hurt you, some are just scary looking, most have a purpose.

For the deadliest scorpion in the US (and the only one that can be labeled "deadly," to healthy people) there hasn't been a death in 40 years. Basically, if you get stung by a scorpion in the US, you aren't going to die.

The deadliest scorpion is in Africa, with a sting that can kill people (but death isn't certain with this sting either). They're certainly no snake in terms of poisoning. We have rattlesnakes here, and I would be much more scared of them than scorpions (which are not here).

that were in dark closets. My stepfather was stung when he put on his shoes. Ever since, I would always shake out my shoes before stepping into them

I pulled down my pants and looked for the offender. Nothing. My leg started to feel slightly numb around the bite.
About an hour later, while eating breakfast at a diner, my girlfriend said "Hold still." And then reached over and brushed the scorpion off my shoulder and stepped on it. Leg felt a bit numb for a day and that was it.

Hi TROF!!

People fear them far too much. Now if you are going to be travelling in Australia or the Amazon it certainly pays to study up a bit and know which spiders ARE dangerous but so long as you follow a few safety precautions you will be fine. Most of the spiders people fear the most, tarantulas, are relatively harmless. Tarantula bites are supposed to hurt like hell but many can't deliver much more venom than a large bee or wasp.

Of course if you are allergic to the stings and bites that's a different story.

and scorpions are a way of life. I see them all the time but they never bother me.
When my husband and I went on a second honeymoon in Hawaii in Sept 2001,
2 things happened that shocked me forever....one was 9/11 and the other was
while we were sitting watching the news coverage of the tragedy I was stung by a scorpion
on my foot. It burned a little and I had a small red mark that looked like a bee sting.

I have a friend who grew up in Hawaii and stated that there are NO scorpions in Hawaii
I gave my husband the look and he brought out the photos I had taken of the scorpion.
Not only did it sting me.....but I captured it and released it on the day we left for home.

I hope that the trauma dissipated quickly. Fearing creepy crawlies is not fun.