Comments on: Helping Children Overcome Fear of Storms

By: Allison

Allison — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 17:26:03 +0000

We have a designated place in the basement for taking shelter during storms. When storms are approaching, I let my youngest build a fort with pillows, blankets, and sleeping bags. Then we gather flashlights, toys, and stacks of books to read. He gets so engrossed in playing that he forgets about the weather.

By: Christie

Christie — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 13:54:33 +0000

As the mother of five children, strategy is always key! If one child gets upset, it is easy for all the others to follow suit. We tried to help our kids prepare for storms by talking about them when we saw the national news or in books we’d read about weather and storms. Often, you hear about severe storms in other areas and see pictures. We’d talk about what we were seeing, how that affects people, and things people do to protect themselves in a storm. Then when a storm would come to us, it helped to focus on what other people did and turn the attention off of the kids’ own fears.

By: Jenny

Jenny — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 16:23:09 +0000

My 8 year old twin boys have always been very interested in the weather. They still have vivid memories of hurricane Charley and consider themselves “experts” when it comes to preparing for a storm. Even so, they become very anxious when there is an approaching storm. In addition to letting them help with preparations such as buying supplies, and securing property, we make sure they have their own flashlights with extra batteries and let them have access to the news channels. They like to keep track of the storms and keep their older brothers and sisters and their classmates and teacher abreast of all developments.

By: Amy Moon

Amy Moon — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 14:22:56 +0000

I have 4 year-old twins. They both knew big storms were coming, as we had the television channeled to the news stations. At one point I remember one of them expressing anxiety and saying “I’m scared of the big storm.” But I took them outside, we looked up at the sky and talked about the clouds, rain, etc. I said that it was going to be windy and rainy but how fun! Get our flashlights out! They were actually very good about the whole experience. It helped, too, that at school they talked about the weather. Now, with other storms forming far away, they aren’t showing much interest.