This article was originally published in the Dolphin Talk Newspaper out of Seadrift, Texas in March of 2012.
I’m not really too sure of exactly when I became phobic of severe weather, but I do know that it is something that has shaped my life deeply over the last two years. Imagine watching weather reports days in advance, letting the weather severely impact your daily activities and also being embarrassed that you hold this overwhelming fear of something that most people would find silly.
While the truth is that the problem is one that affects a far larger number of people than is reported; there are ways to fight it as well. Besides trying to raise awareness of the problem online and starting a support group, I have found that one of the best ways to fight the phobia is to learn as much as I can about severe weather and what causes it.
It was with that in mind that over the last year or so I endeavored to become a Skywarn spotter for the National Weather Service. I figured it was a chance to get information on severe weather as well as to help others impacted by severe weather events. I wanted to know even more about what I was looking for in the skies and on the radar, I wanted to be able to trust myself as a source for when the weather got too dangerous.
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