BUTLER COUNTY, Ohio — You don't have to go far to hear them Butler County or to start getting that creepy, crawling feeling when you see the millions of cicadas coming out of their dead skin and flying around everywhere. 

What You Need To Know

  • Cicadas are coming out for the first time in 17 years and it may be causing some stress

  • Health professionals call it "cicada anxiety"

  • Counselor Patty Banks said there are some things you can do to combat the fear

Turns out, there’s a name for that feeling.

“Entomophobia, which is a fear of bugs,” said Counselor Patty Banks.

She’s a counselor at Tri-Health in Blue Ash helping with phobias and ‘cicada anxiety.’

“We’re hearing a lot of that anxiety," said Banks. "The 'I don’t wanna go outside', it’s very difficult and challenging, and outright fear.”

The bugs themselves are harmless, but she said it’s something else causing that anxiety.

“They don’t bite. They don’t sting. They don’t do anything. Literally I think the real issue is just that they fly, and you don’t know exactly what they’re going to do, and there are so many of them, and they’re bigger than what we’re used to,” said Banks. 

But she said you have to go up against the fear to get rid of your cicada anxiety, and there are some "do’s and don’ts."

She said don’t avoid going outside. 

“The avoidance does exactly the opposite of what you want it to do. Yes they are avoiding it, but it intensifies the fear,” said Banks. 

She said what you should do is come up with a plan.

“I think what’s helpful is to map it out a little bit, if it’s something you’re really anxious about, where can you park when you go to work that’s gonna be primarily not next to the trees,” said Banks. 

She also suggests wearing a hat or anything to make you feel more comfortable if you live in the middle of the swarm.