Being fearful of thunderstorms is not unusual in children, particularly in the UK where they are not that frequent.
Here are 5 ways to help your child go from fearful to fearless of thunderstorms.
1) Stay calm yourself
This can be hard if you are really fearful, but it is important as your child will be looking to you for reassurance. So put your brave pants on and show them that there is nothing to worry about.
2) Validate their feelings
Don't tell them that are being silly or to calm down. Instead, let them know that you understand and give them lots of cuddles and reassurance. You are your child's safe place and they need to feel secure.
3) Prepare your child
The anticipation of a storm, can make children really anxious. They may have heard things on the radio or TV and if they have yet to experience a storm, they won't know what to expect. Explain about the rain becoming very heavy and loud or that sometimes there might be a power cut and what that means.
Standing with your child, in a safe place to watch the storm may help. They may find counting between the lightning and thunder fun and they can see that there is nothing to be worried about
Finding age appropriate books or programmes to watch that are about extreme weather and storms is also useful.
4) Build a den
All children love a den. If there is a thunderstorm happening during the daytime, they may feel it is a 'safe' space to go to. Make sure there are some fun activities, such as games to play in there too.
5) Have a sleepover
If you have more than one child and you know there will be storms at night, let them have a sleepover together. Often, having each other close by can help ease anxiety levels.
For further advice or help, you can contact me here to book in a consultation.
When my boys were little, we would always say well in advance that we might get thunder - "If we are lucky." and sound excited. Once the storm started, we'd go to the window to watch the lightning and count to the thunder. They loved it and were never scared.