Phobia advice coming from a scaredy-cat. Read at your leisure!
5 thoughts on “Astraphobia: The Fear of Thunder and Lightning (Thunderstorms)”
I thought it was funny that you used the comparison that humans are too big to tuck under places :). I also had no idea that medication was able to be provided for animals this is something new to me. Could this phobia cause permanent damage for anyone, long-term?
That’s so interesting how few fears there are shared between humans and other animals (though it makes sense we’d be more afraid of things like heights than for example a cat), and I like how you explain how astraphobia works for dogs, since thunderstorms can be a very stressful time for a lot of pet owners (and parents of young children who haven’t coped with this fear yet). I never realized how much of an impact the barometric pressure would have on dogs’ ability to sense the thunderstorm, or how that could factor into their fear of thunder and lightning!
I have never considered that animals can have phobias, just like humans! But of course I knew that many dogs are scared of thunder. Although it is easy as humans to think these dogs are just being silly, their heightened sense of hearing certainly explains why they are so affected. Sadly, I have a friend who is blind that experiences similar sensations. Like dogs, she has a heightened sense of hearing. So, she experiences storms more intensely than I do. Therefore, she certainly fears and anticipates storms and other loud events much more than you or I.
It’s so interesting to me that this phobia also impacts animals. Even more interesting is that it only affects 15% to 30% of dogs. With the amount of dogs I’ve personally seen be scared of thunder, I’d expect the number to be higher.
Up here in New England, especially Connecticut, we can get REALLY bad thunderstorms because of the Atlantic and Long Island Sound just nearby. I remember as a child I was terrified of them but now as I’ve grown older, I find them cool and almost relaxing. Nature truly is beautiful and terrifying all at the same time; all the more reason for us to respect it.
I thought it was funny that you used the comparison that humans are too big to tuck under places :). I also had no idea that medication was able to be provided for animals this is something new to me. Could this phobia cause permanent damage for anyone, long-term?
That’s so interesting how few fears there are shared between humans and other animals (though it makes sense we’d be more afraid of things like heights than for example a cat), and I like how you explain how astraphobia works for dogs, since thunderstorms can be a very stressful time for a lot of pet owners (and parents of young children who haven’t coped with this fear yet). I never realized how much of an impact the barometric pressure would have on dogs’ ability to sense the thunderstorm, or how that could factor into their fear of thunder and lightning!
I have never considered that animals can have phobias, just like humans! But of course I knew that many dogs are scared of thunder. Although it is easy as humans to think these dogs are just being silly, their heightened sense of hearing certainly explains why they are so affected. Sadly, I have a friend who is blind that experiences similar sensations. Like dogs, she has a heightened sense of hearing. So, she experiences storms more intensely than I do. Therefore, she certainly fears and anticipates storms and other loud events much more than you or I.
It’s so interesting to me that this phobia also impacts animals. Even more interesting is that it only affects 15% to 30% of dogs. With the amount of dogs I’ve personally seen be scared of thunder, I’d expect the number to be higher.
Up here in New England, especially Connecticut, we can get REALLY bad thunderstorms because of the Atlantic and Long Island Sound just nearby. I remember as a child I was terrified of them but now as I’ve grown older, I find them cool and almost relaxing. Nature truly is beautiful and terrifying all at the same time; all the more reason for us to respect it.