I don’t know much about thunderstorms. But I know, I don’t like driving in one. The claps of thunder, fiery lightning, and often torrential rains are menacing on the road.
Some people have a fear of things they don’t understand. And when fear becomes overwhelming and unmanageable, the fear may develop into a phobia.
Merriam Webster says a phobia is an unexplainable and illogical fear of something.
I’m fearful and respectful of Mother Nature’s scoldings, thunder and lightning. Mother Nature packs a wallop when the conditions are primed. And there’s no hiding when she gets worked up and cracks her whip of lightning.
A phobia of lightning is called astraphobia. Another name for astraphobia is astrapophobia, or brontophobia, or keraunophobia, or tonitrophobia.
These long-name phobias not only look serious, they are serious. Astraphobia is among the top five phobias in the US.
There is a lot of scientific information about thunder and lightning, but who really understands this part of Mother Nature?
Having a phobia about lighting isn’t fun or something to laugh about.
People with astraphobia may exhibit one or more of the following signs; trembling, crying, anxiety, panic, and other reactions during thunderstorms. These storms can be terrifying, especially for children who have astraphobia.
Having a phobia of thunder and lightning suggests an extreme and out of sync response in spite of the merest threat of being struck.
The probability of getting struck by lightning is slim.
Even though a person with astraphobia may be indoors during a thunderstorm, this doesn’t lessen their anxiety and dread about lightning. It isn’t uncommon for lightning to travel through pipes and house wirings. But knowing that the odds of being struck by lightning is 1 in 3,000 is also no relief or comfort.
The phobia supersedes the merest threat.