Pluviofobia In Children: Symptoms, Causes And Treatment
Pluviophobia, also known as ombrophobia, is a specific type of phobia that is characterized by experiencing a persistent, intense and irrational fear of everything that has to do with rain.
This is a disorder that few people have, but those who suffer from it have a really bad time, since meteorological phenomena cannot be controlled and, therefore, exposure to this type of situation cannot be avoided in any way. Do you want to know more about this strange phobia, what are its symptoms and what is the possible treatment? Pay attention to what we explain below.
What is pluviofobia?
The term pluviofobia etymologically comes from the word “pluvial”, which comes from the Latin pluvialis and can be translated as ‘relative to rain’, and from the word “phobia”, which comes from phobos and which in Greek means ‘fear’, ‘panic’, ‘terror’. Therefore, pluviofobia can be defined as the fear of everything related to rain.
This type of phobia can occur along with other phobias, such as the following:
- Astraphobia : fear of lightning or electrical storms.
- Homiclophobia : fear of fog or cloudiness.
- Antlophobia : fear of floods.
- Hydrophobia : fear of water.
The symptoms related to pluviophobia are usually detected when children are young and, from that moment, it is important to treat the problem, so that they can lead a normal life as soon as possible, without having to feel afraid every time there is a day rainy.
Symptoms in children
Children with pluviophobia feel an excessive, constant and irrational fear of the rain. The symptoms related to this disorder can appear in heavy rains (with storms and high wind gusts) or in light rain or drizzle, depending on the severity of the case.
Some of the most common symptoms that children with pluviophobia show when they have to deal with a rainy day are the following:
- Need to shelter from the rain.
- Inability to go outside when it rains.
- High levels of anxiety.
- Tremors
- Sweating.
- Dry mouth
- Gastrointestinal disorders.
- Sickness.
- Dizziness
- Decreased body temperature.
- Obsession for objects that protect from the rain, such as umbrellas, raincoats and awnings.
- Excessive tantrums, yelling, and crying.
It should be borne in mind that these symptoms, as well as their intensity, can vary from one child to another.
Possible treatment
Children who have the symptoms described above should start appropriate treatment as soon as possible, to avoid major complications. For this, it is recommended to seek professional help and contact a psychologist specialized in the treatment of childhood phobias.
Typically, these professionals carry out individual and personalized psychotherapy interventions, using techniques such as the following:
- Gradual live exposure.
- Systematic desensitization.
- Modeling.
- Positive reinforcement.
- Relaxation
In addition, mothers and fathers of children with this phobia must be actively involved in the treatment, follow the advice of the psychologist, and act as a source of support and understanding throughout the entire process.
In this way, thanks to professional and family help, children with pluviofobia can successfully overcome the fear they feel towards everything related to rain.
The importance of treating pluviofobia in childhood
It should be noted that fear is an emotion that, over the years, has allowed human beings to survive and get away from high-risk situations. Therefore, it is an evolutionary and adaptive emotion that is normal for children to feel frequently during childhood, since they are still exploring and getting to know the world around them.
However, when fear occurs in an extreme, disabling and irrational way, as in the case of pluviophobia, it can be a very serious problem, both in the short and long term.
In fact, it is known that without proper treatment, fear of rain can last into adulthood, significantly and negatively limiting the lives of those who suffer from it and their close environment.
And you, do you think your child can present this type of phobia? If so, put yourself in the hands of a specialist and get rid of the problem as soon as possible.
