Son terrified of balloons

[Scaredofballoons]

My little boy who is 3 is absolutely terrified of balloons. We were at a party once and lots of big kids were popping them and this triggered his fear. Ever since, if he sees a balloon he is petrified. Poor thing can’t be in the same room as them.

it’s really ruining parties for him and whilst some parents are really sympathetic and move them out the room, I appreciate sometimes parents have spent a lot of money on them and don’t want to do that.

had anyone had experience of this and what did you do? Wait until they grow out of it? Should I get some balloons in the house and try and get him used to them?

I hate balloons, always did since I was a kid, and someone had them all on the floor at a party, and they had a popping game. I just get away from the area or avoid them if I can. Since working from home, this has been a lot easier. People used to like bringing them into the office for birthdays etc.
I'm better with them if nobody does anything with them or plays with them - stuck up for decoration I will just try to ignore them. But if someone plays or tries blowing them up, I'm outta there.

My son was terrified too as a result of a party where they were popping constantly - he still doesn’t love them, but we had a party at home for his younger brother with those helium ones which are harder to pop (and higher up) and that stopped him from being crazy scared and now just generally wary of them - don’t make a big deal of it but maybe try and introduce them safely at home if opportunity arises

@Scaredofballoons Should I get some balloons in the house and try and get him used to them?

Yep. You know your boy and how far to push it on each occasion. But, yes, balloons are a massive part of children's parties and so he does need to get used to them! Perhaps let him choose some 'special ones' in the shop...

Some posters no doubt will suggest or remotely diagnose him having issues relating to sensitivity to 'loud noises' generally. Well, perhaps. But the treatment would be the same - exposure and a bit of gentle 'mum' psychology.

As I said, you know your boy.

I hate the noise they make when kids mess about with them ,it's like nails down a blackboard to me.

I'm frightened of balloons. Being exposed to them didn't help me in the least. My fear is of the loud bang as it hurts my ears, genuine pain, and the heart jumping sensation of the sudden shock is awful. No amount of exposure will reassure me this won't happen as they do burst, especially in the hands of children. No amount of exposure gets me used to the shock and ear pain. My mother attempts to get me 'over it' were hell tbh. As an adult I avoid.

A typical room is 40 dB, a washing machine is 75dB and a chainsaw runs at about 110 dB.

If you switch to specifically one off noises and measure impulse noise at peak pressure, firearms are generally around 140 dBP. That's high enough to cause pain and permanent hearing damage from one discharge (and is why you see people at firing ranges wearing full ear protection).

A balloon popping reaches 160 dBP. So it's louder than somebody firing a twelve bore over his head - and they did it repeatedly around him when he'd be closer to the balloons and therefore having an even louder sound than they did.

To give you an idea of what it feels like, imagine a needle being fired into your eardrum repeatedly, to be replaced by a high pitched whistling tone as the pain starts to subside, only to have another needle fired in again.

Concentrate upon keeping him away from the damn things, not forcing him to be in the same room. And whilst you're at it, maybe look into getting his hearing checked, as he could have tinnitus as a result of being stuck in a room for this painful and clearly traumatic event for him.

One of my child's services suggested controlled exposure to noises and items he is scared of.

We use YouTube videos of lawn mowers, sound very low to begin with and gradually increase it as he becomes comfortable with it being around him. Same for insects, but for these we also use educational videos so he has an understanding of what they are.

Maybe you could find some balloon videos, modelling balloons might be fun to watch, and work up to having a balloon in the room, touching it, watching you play with it, eventually possibly playing with it himself.

I'm late 30s and still terrified of balloons thanks to an experience like this as a kid. I don't mind being in the room as long as no one is touching them, it's pure anxiety waiting for them to go bang.

I'm terrified of balloons too and have been all my life.
If they pop i jump a mile in the air and I spend the whole time worrying they are going to burst.
I honestly dont see how you can get your DS used to them .ive been in the same room as many balloons during my life time and ive never lost the awful anticipation of them bursting.

My sister is 70 and has been frightened of balloons since she was a child. She’s never grown out of it. She removes herself away from balloons as much as she can from
any occasion.

Dd had a different phobia and CAMHs said the way to cure a phobia is to gradually and gently expose them to it. So you could start off saying the name. You could make a silly rhyme with it. Next look at cartoon pictures of them. Then photos online. Then a real non blown up one and so on. When he learns to cope with each stage a little treat.

They also said if you avoid the thing it reinforces to the child that there is something to be scared of.

Having spent my entire life terrified of balloons and being told I was the weird one, I feel so much better for reading this thread!

I can't advise you OP, the idea of exposure therapy gives me palpitations. But I also wouldn't want anyone to grow up with this fear, it's surprising how often it becomes a problem - I've missed so many parties both as a child and as an adult, had to run out of wedding receptions, shops, friends houses, restaurants etc. When they pop, it takes me ages to settle again, and if there are more balloons I just can't stay around them.

I used to be the same with fireworks, but exposure therapy has helped with that, although I still feel anxious. But balloons? I'm resigned to being afraid forever

As someone who has been left incredibly traumatized through a similar situation as a young child and now a mature adult, not all children "grow out" of these difficulties. Your son will need lots of support, encouragement, nurturing and validation of his feelings so that he feels understood. I would seek guidance and ideas from a trained therapist specialising in early childhood phobias to ensure that you are on the right path to not cause any further trauma for life long issues. This phobia brings with it not only fear, but judgement, shame and misunderstanding, and growing up as a child with this can be very difficult socially. As an adult, I am going through a very slow recovery process with a well trained therapist, but due to the depth of how the phobia has embedded, the issues are well beyond just a phobia now (PTSD / protector parts etc). Support, nurture and be curious to your son's feelings, but try not to hide him or remove him from situations that he can feel he can manage and tolerate in small doses, but let him lead the way if he has the capacity at his age.

I had a similar experience aged about 4 and was crying at a Christmas social club party when other kids were popping balloons. I remember it decades later, because I was really scared. However, I got over it - I mean I still don't love balloons popping or any loud noises tbh but I can blow them up and be around them no problem.

He will almost certainly grow out of being terrified, kids of 3 often forget and completely move on from all sorts of experiences and behaviours. Is it likely he will be around balloons a lot in the next few months? If he is not likely to be around balloons for the next 6 months maybe just do not talk about it around him at all and see how he goes next time.

Labelling it as a phobia at such a young age is probably not necessary.

My ds was the same and he did grow out of it. I didn't do anything special - just didn't make a big deal about it. Balloons became less common at parties as he got older. He didn't like hand dryers either but again, he grew out of it. He's now in a punk band so he's definitely got over his fear of noise 😁

For example, my son was terrified of drains, all sorts of drains, he would not sit in a bath near the drain, would not swim in a pool near the drain. He got a bit older and forgot all about it. It was not a phobia, just something had bothered and upset him and over time as he matured it stopped bothering him.

It's really normal to not like loud noises, I still hate it when balloons pop near me, but its not a phobia, at least not for me.

i used to be terrified of balloons, also things like food mixers and road drills. I grew out of it and I don’t think my mum did anything in particular apart from support me when I was scared and reassure me I was safe. I’m not saying it’s the same for everyone but some children do grow out of these things. DD was terrified of hand dryers but isn’t now.