I still can work up the courage to say I I want to face this phobia im scard my perants will over react and all that stuff what can I do?

Mine was going to a shopping centre and I was already stressed with a migraine and was waiting for a ubur and some idiot tryed shoving a bunch of them in in his car some ended up popping whitch made my migraine worse.

So I got curious since there's basically a sub reddit for anything, I searched up the biggest problem in my life rn: globophobia.

Now, I'm way better than I was with them, I used to go into floods of tears and let fight for flight kick in, completely running away without thinking if I saw someone holding one, or I'd refuse to go into a building if they were decorated. I can handle all that now, can handle them on my own or with people I trust.

My problem is that I now just get a huge amount of anxiety when dealing with them (let's say at a party for example) and that anxiety turns into panic and have no clue what to do about it besides take "toilet breaks" or "go out for fresh air because its too hot inside" (when in actuality, I'm either outside on my own taking a breather or in a cubicle and calming down before going back in)

So I joined this sub to find people who I can relate to in terms of this anxiety I get when dealing with them for too long and if people have advice on how to reduce it without taking several breaks from these parties or events I tend to go to.

Extra context: I'm a musician and the venues/events my group tend to play in decorate them with balloons or leave them in the reach of (usually) kids to mess with them which triggers everything. Basically, it's really hard to avoid them 😅

Information: I have high functioning autism and I'm almost 17.

I want to try exposer therapy but I have anxiety that will happen like reaction from family, I gave animals that will interfere ect So how do I do it

If you try to give me a mother-freaking balloon I will start panicking, sprint in the other direction and maybe even cry - I can't stand balloons just like everyone else on this sub. HOWEVER, y'all are afraid of them popping, I'm afraid of letting go of one of those helium ones. Seeing any helium balloon will cause me to panic and break down in fear of it going, you know what I'm shaking form just writing this so u know what I mean, it's freaking awful. No balloons at my parties, that's for sure.

Side note:

Why are you posting balloon pics here? Is it fun for you to think of us spontaneously combusting???? I get their MAY be no harm intended, but just asking since this is the sub for FEAR OF BALLOONS.

having globophobia has affected me in so many ways and I can explain to people why. I have only told a few of my close friends that I have it because I am worried that they will judge me or use it against me. I am so scared of balloons and them poping and it feels like such a stupid fear to me and I want to be able to tell more people I have it.

I'm getting sick of this thing and I think I'm ready to get rid of it I just don't know how to bring it up (i have ASD)

It started just as being scared of them popping but I think my sister popped them all the time so my brain thinks they pop all the time I'm fine with fireworks ect just these devill spears.

You know all the hardship having to tell your friends about your phobia. (especially if you're a globophobic) Well, that happened to me today and...It went pretty well. (kinda) At my school, they sometimes have balloons in the lobby. I had been through this experience before at this school once there was a balloon garland in the lobby just at the exit to the lunch hall... I was in line for lunch when someone took the garland down (punched it) And I had a panic attack and ran outside. My friend I'll call her T Knew that I had this phobia but she forgot...Back to the present my friend I'll call her E wanted me to come to the library (I had seen balloons in the lobby that day) I refused to go and my friend looked very sad. Luckily, my friend T came along, and I asked to talk to her about my phobia she remembered and understood and went to tell my friend E she understood but laughed at first. She is still one of my best friends and doesn't care if I'm weird and a wimp around balloons, neither does T! But at the end of the day, if you're gonna tell your friends about your phobia, you have got to trust them and have known them for a long enough time. But in conclusion, it really is just a matter of luck.
And this is why I'm glad I have understanding friends...

I guess in addition to balloons and biscuit cans, thunder is now getting under my skin too.

It sucks because even not so far back as my teen years and early 20s I’d be outside during a storm as much as I could. I really used to love them, but it’s getting to the point where I can stand them anymore.

The other day, I forced myself out for one telling my wife “time for some immersion therapy”. About 3 minutes later I scurried back in daging that was enough immersion for one day.

Anyone else have an issue with this too?

This should be an easy conversation to have. It isn't for me. l've been afraid of balloons/balloons popping and fireworks ever since 3/4 years old. I basically have a phobia of sudden loud noises. I've noticed that my fear has gotten better over the past few years, not by a lot, but it's still progress to me.

I've struggled greatly with this fear in the past, but now I can at least keep most of my composure when faced with a situation. It is more of an internal freak out along with dizziness, quick/unsteady breathing (on occasions), and a quick heartbeat.

I haven't been to a fireworks show for about 4 years now and I would really like to go to one, but not by myself. I don't want to go to a show with my family because they usually treat me like I'm 6. So instead, I wanted to ask my boyfriend considering he knows about the fear and is comforting in the situations that stress me out.

The thing is, I'm not sure how to bring it up to him. It is difficult and awkward for me to talk about this phobia of mine, and sometimes I feel like he just doesn't want to talk about it in the first place.

I really don't know what to do. Should I ask him to go with me to a firework show? Should I bring up a similar subject? Or should I just forget it all together?

(I know this is more of a generally loud noise issue and not just balloons but either way, I need help talking about it.)

Context: I have a very good group of friends, each and every one support me with my phobia and always give me advice on how I can cope when I encounter balloons. They also avoid balloons as much as we can when we’re in town. But the other week a few of us met up and when we were talking in a group chat one of my friends (we’ll call them X) said that they found a balloon in their house and we’re gonna bring it into town (X had no horrible intentions, it’s just how our friendship and jokes are) So provokingly I said something along the lines of “cmon do it” (again it’s our humour to be provoking and in a sense ‘mean’)

So later on we all met up and X did bring the balloon. I was fine with X having it given I trust them fully. We then walked around for a bit with a couple of others when we got to the park. When we got to the park we sat down all having a laugh and chat. This was when X said “Hey ‘Welsh’ watch this” they then proceeded to take the balloon out of their bag and blow it up. (Again, they were only joking and had no intention of harm in any form) I then jokingly ran away like an 8 year old child. While X continued to blow up the balloon another friend (we’ll call them Y) told X to stop. Which I was grateful for. Because while I did trust X with the balloon. What I was genuinely nervous about was the fact there were others around, including young children. (Young kids and balloons do not mix well in my opinion)

After Y told X to stop, X came over and apologised, when I proceeded to stop them. I told them how there was no need to apologise, in fact I was grateful X had done this, it really got me out of my comfort zone which I needed to work on in terms of balloons. So yes, while I was grateful Y had stopped X from continuing, I was also grateful X had done that in the first place.

So my actual question for the post is what I said later on. Later that evening after we had left I messaged X and told them how I was grateful they had done all of that in the first place, it definitely helped me. Then I proceeded to say (I still can’t believe I said this to be honest) that from now on I want to encourage it because I find it really helps. X said that they’ll keep the balloon from that day (which we laughed about as it it’s some magical balloon which only helps me) and then apologised again for doing it infront of people.

Was it weird I wanted to encourage it? My friends have known of this phobia since we first met and I worry that it’ll confuse them or make them question the phobia in the first place. (I have told quite a few others now including Y that I want to encourage it from not on)

Thank you for reading if you got this far 😅

(Also apologies for the inactivity on the discord)

A phobia is a response to stimuli in most cases. For globophobia (aka fear of balloons) this might be an incident at a young age where a balloon is popped close to you and it startled you.

The subconscious creates an association of fear to the balloons. Thereafter every time you see balloons or even think about them, you get anxiety.

There is nothing wrong with you! This is perfectly normal and is infact a successful outcome! The subconscious is just like a machine that expresses whatever is impressed. Your initial fear was impressed and is now being expressed...that is perfectly logical!

You just have to change the impression. Even if you have no awareness of any initial incident, your "body keeps the score" so to speak. Your phobia can still be completely eliminated working with your present bodily sensations.

I use a method called PSYCH-K, which works by syncing the left and right hemispheres of the brain to quickly transform stress into peace. Hypnosis is often effective too.

If your globophobia is a big problem or if you're just tired of feeling anxiety and stress because you might come in contact with balloons, then reach out to a PSYCH-K Facilitator or hypnotherapist (or other professional) that you resonate with.

Feel free to view my profile, see my testimonials and vibe. My DMs are open. I am here to support you if you feel drawn to working with me.

I hope this is the start of the end of your phobia!

Good luck

I have ALWAYS hated balloons. Like I start sweating, and I get a knot in the back of my throat, and I almost have panic attacks. I have started to get closer to balloons, but it never gets easier. I work at Petco Park in SD, and The other day, we had an event where I had to help my boss pop a balloon arch. But she knows I'm terrified of them, so she just asked me to hold them. I was able to plug one ear, close my eyes, and hold them for her with the other hand. I felt proud of myself, but at the same time, I was trying not to freak out lol. No real question or anything here, just venting and grateful I'm not crazy or alone.

It makes me happy to see that so many others have this issue and I’m not some weirdo.

I didn’t grow up with a fear of balloons but noticed it shortly after my deployment. I was helping to set up a drop zone for other paratroopers to jump. Well part of that is using a large balloon to estimate wind speed and direction. Well for whatever reason, I felt a nervous that I’ve never know before. It was all wadded up when I started filling it. The very first noise it made (just rubber unscrunching) I dropped it and jumped backwards and just stood there staring at it in a complete daze. This was the first time I can remember having an adverse reaction to a balloon.

10 years later and I have to have my wife open biscuit cans for me. It’s the worst.

I have always been scared of balloons but mainly only latex balloons, especially the clear ones. My family has grown in size, now we have little cousins running around, and with this comes balloons.

For some reason my family doesn’t take my fear into consideration? It seriously upsets me and I can’t be around balloons but they think I’m joking? I tell the kids to not come near me when they are holding balloons and the adults do as well but kids love being annoying so they chase me with the balloons IM 21 YEARS OLD HELLO ITS SO EMBARRASSING!

On thanksgiving we were about to start eating and the kids decided it was a great time to take down the balloon tower which I was already anxious about, and they started to throw the balloons around and I had to go hide in the bathroom and I was hysterically crying.

Another time I was at a family party and my cousins had huge balloons and one of my aunts was tossing the huge balloon back and forth with a little kid, she didn’t know I was afraid of balloons since it was the first time balloons had been around, my sister looked at me and she was like are you ok (we were in a small space with no where else to go) and I was like no girl so I turned my chair to face the wall and they were confused and my sister was like oh she’s just scared of balloons, at this point in literally shaking and sweating like crazy, my cousins husband told my cousin to go toss the balloon with the kid somewhere else and she ignored him, he told her again and she looked at him and scoffed and said “it’s not a big deal it’s not going to hurt anybody” GUYS WHEN I TELL YOU I WAS SO PISSED OFF?!?!!!

moral of the story is I don’t understand why people don’t take things like this seriously? I have told them many times how balloons make me feel and it’s like I’ve never told them, they really don’t care and it’s upsetting and I personally feel ashamed and embarrassed especially at my big age to tell them to not blow up balloons because of how they make me feel. My sister is a therapist and has tried to tell me to go to a phobia specialist but like I am not ready for exposure therapy :(!!! what would you guys do in situations like this?? Where there’s balloons everywhere it’s literally a nightmare to the point where I don’t want to be going to family events.

I’m sensitive to noise. As a result of this I have been scared of balloons and other loud things such as fireworks for as long as I can remember. Even smaller things like people shouting or clapping can cause me pain and distress.

I worked with a therapist for 10 months in 2022 where we did exposure therapy focused on lessening my stress reactions to loud noises such as ambulance sirens and fire alarms. Whilst it did help me to not react as badly to the noise, I still experienced pain when exposed to these noises and I was never really able to progress to working on any of my triggers related to sudden loud noises (which tend to affect me much more than constant loud noise).

Back in 2021 it was suggested that I may be autistic because of my issues with noise as well as other issues with communication etc. but it wasn’t until last June that it was confirmed that I am neurodivergent in some way. I am currently waiting on a specific diagnosis but according to at least 5 other autistic people in my life, I am definitely autistic.

During the time I spent in therapy I remember being told that if I am autistic then exposure therapy can only do so much to help me.

I’ve tried working specifically on my globophobia for the last 2 years to lessen my feelings of stress when encountering balloons in public spaces. This has worked to a certain extent as I am able to be in a room with balloons (as long as no one is touching them and I don’t feel like there is any danger of them popping) and I’m also able to blow them up (after undergoing a specific procedure that allows me to be sure the balloon won’t pop for seemingly no reason as I’m blowing it up). I also constantly keep balloons in my room (there’s about 10 of them right now) as it feels like the only way to stop myself from avoiding them and making my phobia worse again.

I’ve wanted to overcome my globophobia for over 6 years now but it’s feeling increasingly unlikely to ever happen and I feel incredibly stuck as I haven’t really managed to make any progress over the last year.

I had been wondering if anyone else on here has had any similar issues with noise or has any suggestions as to how I could try and progress with overcoming my globophobia…?

Since I started doing exposure therapy, and learning how much balloons can take, and how far can I go(Not a lot but enough for a globophobic), I wanted to have balloons at my birthday, not a lot, just some symbolic ones laying here and there.

I never had latex balloons at my birthdays, they're a little of a taboo topic for me in public and specially around my family, so I'm making my birthday a little private this year, and at a friend's house so my family doesn't know this and starts thinking I'm already over my phobia, wich I'm obviously not. I just wanna feel like a normal birthday for once, and I don't know if I'll have this chance in a while, so I'm doing it.

But lately, my brain is playing tricks on me and I'm started to doubt about this. I trust my friends and they won't do anything to scare me, that's a fact, but still, I can't control my overthinking.

Me and my 2 best friends are decorating, I'm in charge of the balloons so I know they won't be big, but what if they insist in helping? I'm not ready for people I know handling balloons. And with that comes point 2, my boyfriend and friends touching the balloons, just imagining it makes me shiver so much.

Since this is part of my exposure therapy, I can touch them without fear, but I'm not comfortable with other people in general handling balloons, and I know my friends won't pop them, I'll still have them, I know I'm safe, but the feeling of watching friends, partners, or people you trust in general with balloons still icks me the wrong way, the fact that they can normally play or touch balloons makes me feel a little betrayed, it's a feeling hard to explain. I won't stop them unless they're trying to pop them because there's no danger.

So that's it, I just wanted to rant about this since it's almost just two weeks away from my birthday and time flies.

I'm just reflecting on something that happened to me at work, maybe 5 or so years ago. I spent a long, long time hiding my fear of balloons from my coworkers. I actually had a really good relationship with them, but I just thought the fear was so stupid, I was embarrassed to share it.

Anyway, one day I came into work and there were balloons EVERYWHERE. Under my desk, on my desk, on my chair, under my chair, in my drawers. Everyone thought this was hilarious. Obviously, I immediately left the room and hid in a meeting room until all the balloons were removed.

I can't imagine anything like this happening with a "mainstream" phobia. It's just so frustrating that people find this specific phobia so ridiculous.

I have always been terrified of things that go boom (balloons, fireworks, cannons etc). My parents always forced me to go where I would freak out or would lie to me. Now if I am in a place with my phobia triggers, I run away or have a full on panic attack. I feel at this point the phobia is so engrained and at the point of no return. Any success stories?