She Thought It Was Just a School Photo—Until the Close-Up Made Her Scream

As shocking as the rattlesnake encounter was, it wasn’t the first time Brooke had faced danger from a snake. Her history with the creatures stretched back to when she was just a little girl, long before that frightening first-day photo was ever taken.

When she was very young, Brooke had actually been bitten by a snake. Though she survived, the experience left her with a deep fear that never went away. Snakes became her worst nightmare, and that past trauma likely explains the way she reacted when faced with one again.