So apparently a fun side effect of PTSD when there's an ongoing threat is completely random spontaneous panic attacks, like I'll be thinking about cheesecake or whatever and suddenly BOOM - panic attack out of nowhere, just the physical symptoms

It's like my subconscious feels the need to rev up the fight-or-flight engine multiple times a day to ensure it's in perfect condition for when I need it. Annoying but manageable.

So what I do is shut myself in a bedroom and take 5-10 minutes to remind myself that I'm as physically safe as it's currently possible to be on this planet atm, and most of the time the symptoms subside pretty rapidly

So anyway I was in the kitchen eating jaffa cakes when I got a random surge of adrenaline, so took myself off to my bedroom, sat on my bed and started thinking calm positive thoughts etc

Looking around my room at familiar objects to ground myself, like, I'm sitting on my bed, and that's the book I was reading last night, and that's my son's fourth-favourite fire truck sticking out from under the duvet, and that's HOLY CRAP WHAT'S THAT

This has been an unnecessarily lengthy and self-centred way of warning you all that giant spider season is back, and this year they want to snuggle with us in our actual beds