Overcoming fear?

[anonymous]

So I've got a real phobia of balloons, and I find it gets in the way of fully enjoying myself with balloons. I can't blow them up very big, but I get more excited the bigger they get. So I generally need someone else to blow up the balloon for me to get excited… and that can be a problem.

My question is: Has anybody else suffered intense fears about balloons, and if so, how did you get over it? I want to be able to blow them up really big, even though I'm scared. Any ideas?

Also, is there some way to tell when a balloon might pop? I'm pretty sure I give up too early because "it might pop any second" but it never does and I'm sure it's not even close. Is there some way to be confident that it won't pop while I'm blowing it up? Any input helps. Thanks.

[Meililoon]

Re: Overcoming fear?

The rule of thumb is that most balloons wont pop before the neck has started inflating, which usually means that it's blown up past its rated size.
If you're unsure how much more a balloon is supposed to take, stop inflating and measure it. Either place it between two objects and move them so both of them touches the balloon and then measure the distance between the two objects, or use a tape measure to find the circumference and divide it by 3.14. If you find that your 16" balloon is only 14", just think to yourself "this balloon is made to be inflated to at least 16", but it's only 14" now. I should be able to safely make it 2" bigger without risking it popping."

Another thing that might help is to look up videos or photos of the balloon you're about to blow up and see what how big they look when they're fully inflated.

[Katielynn]

Re: Overcoming fear?

Hi there. I was never really afraid, so I'm not sure this will help, but I'm happy to give my opinion anyway.

I think the best way to be able to blow them bigger is simply with practice. Get a bag of balloons in whatever size you feel comfortable with - just be sure they're all the same size so you be confident in how big they get one from the next. Blow one up to whatever size you feel good about and stop. Count how many breaths you put into it as you go. Like Lykr said, you can even measure it to get an idea how close it is to the rated size. Next time, try to put just one more breath into it. You don't have to try and do a btp, just make it one breath bigger. Pretty soon, you'll be more comfortable with how big they get before you have that "it could pop at any second" thought. Once you're able to consistently make them whatever size you want, you'll be golden. You can decide then if you want to keep practicing until you can blow it to the point where it bursts. Make sense?

[Katielynn]

Re: Overcoming fear?

And like Lykr said, most balloons expand beyond the size the package says. In fact, I'll bet you can find pictures on the internet of girls making them considerably bigger than they're rated to go.

Quick story (related) - a friend of mine in high school was an assistant manager for the floral department at the local supermarket where they also sold helium balloons. She hated when her employees sold under inflated balloons and so as part of her training, she would make the girls purposely over inflate at least three balloons until they exploded. She wanted them to see that the balloons would get a lot bigger than most people think, so it's was ok to leave them on the tank just a little longer rather than selling sad little droopy balloons. Hope that helps!

[OverTheTop]

Re: Overcoming fear?

Hi there. I was never really afraid, so I'm not sure this will help, but I'm happy to give my opinion anyway.

I think the best way to be able to blow them bigger is simply with practice. Get a bag of balloons in whatever size you feel comfortable with - just be sure they're all the same size so you be confident in how big they get one from the next. Blow one up to whatever size you feel good about and stop. Count how many breaths you put into it as you go. Like Lykr said, you can even measure it to get an idea how close it is to the rated size. Next time, try to put just one more breath into it. You don't have to try and do a btp, just make it one breath bigger. Pretty soon, you'll be more comfortable with how big they get before you have that "it could pop at any second" thought. Once you're able to consistently make them whatever size you want, you'll be golden. You can decide then if you want to keep practicing until you can blow it to the point where it bursts. Make sense?

Very well said. If it helps, try earplugs the first few pops as well - then once you're comfortable with them with earplugs, try without.

[Airaux]

Re: Overcoming fear?

From an early age, I was wary of the noise of balloons bursting. I set about trying to overcome this. I bought balloons to blow up and burst. I started with low inflation and gradually increased. It was scary, but at about 15 years old, I was able to sit on one without any fear. It then became really exciting, leading me to find my favorite sandwich - an ABC - (ass - or "arse" if you're British/ balloon/ chair). I can't be sure it would be the same for others, but my experience is - getting over the fear opens the door to looning fun!

[LoonlYlonner]

Re: Overcoming fear?

Hi
I know how you feel. I struggled a long time with my phobia. But finally i could overcome my fear. What helped me was to be confronted with ballons. I started with normal 12 inch balloons and in the beginning i inflated them just at normal size. Then i popped them with a needle while they where still in my mouth. I repeated it until i was able to inflate the balloon bigger and repeated the procedure again. Over the time blowing up a ballon to its max became more and more comfortable. I also learned to get along with the loud bang. Today i'm able to perform b2p's with every kind of ballons up to 24 inch. Sometimes i still get a bit nervous but thats what makes me doing it again and again. I hope this will help you as much as it helped me and i hope you will overcome you're as well.
Keep doing man you can make it !

[Nopops4me]

Re: Overcoming fear?

Anonymous, I thought I was reading a description of myself. Just like you I am scared that the balloon is going to burst once I've put 5 or 6 breaths into it, so my balloons are a little small inflated from the rated size. I just can't blow 'till the neck starts to appear, I get all shaky. Can anyone tell us (particularly those who go on to pop their balloon) when the latex doesn't give very much & feels tight & probably about to burst, does it get harder to blow the air into the balloon?

[OverTheTop]

Re: Overcoming fear?

Anonymous, I thought I was reading a description of myself. Just like you I am scared that the balloon is going to burst once I've put 5 or 6 breaths into it, so my balloons are a little small inflated from the rated size. I just can't blow 'till the neck starts to appear, I get all shaky. Can anyone tell us (particularly those who go on to pop their balloon) when the latex doesn't give very much & feels tight & probably about to burst, does it get harder to blow the air into the balloon?

Yep, balloons tend to get harder to inflate as they get closer to popping. I've also noticed they sometimes smell a little different, but it's subtle. You can safely go up to rated size with basically 0 risk of popping unless you're rough with it

[Nopops4me]

Re: Overcoming fear?

Yep, balloons tend to get harder to inflate as they get closer to popping. I've also noticed they sometimes smell a little different, but it's subtle. You can safely go up to rated size with basically 0 risk of popping unless you're rough with it

Thanks, I'll try & put a few more puffs of air in & keep an eye on the measurement

[Nopops4me]

Re: Overcoming fear?

Yep, balloons tend to get harder to inflate as they get closer to popping. I've also noticed they sometimes smell a little different, but it's subtle. You can safely go up to rated size with basically 0 risk of popping unless you're rough with it

Having only found this forum & registered yesterday I'm hoping the posts are to help & encourage folks to try & do things they have not done before with their balloons. Trusting you that a balloon can be blown 'up to the rated size with basically 0 risk of popping' I have just blown up an 11" balloon until the neck started to push against my fingers, stopped & measured it & it was 11" & tight. I've tied it off with half knot & am sitting here at my computer cuddling the balloon. This is what I do with my balloons. No sex, humping, no popping.
But I've found a new treat not experienced before, my chest hair is statically charged to the balloon, WOW

[Alan]

Re: Overcoming fear?

All the advice here is great, so I'll add try to stretch the balloon gently before inflation, and you could also place the balloon under a duvet on the bed while inflating. And at half size (gently squeeze the balloon as this will give the skin even stretch which can prevent her from popping). I'm sure you're using reasonable quality. At the moment I've been inflating these huge thin skinned bad quality balloons which are oversensitive! Good luck

[loonerdude44]

Re: Overcoming fear?

Personally, I've never had a fear of balloons, I've only been afraid of balloons when other people were around. If you're on your own, then it should be fine, they won't burst unless you over inflate them, pierce them, or they have defects. When inflating a balloon, don't let the neck get too big (unless it's a long neck balloon), and check it under the light, if you see abnormalities in the color, thin patches, especially if they get bigger the more you inflate the balloon, then deflate it and get another one. I've always done that, as the balloons I can afford are cheap, crappy chinese ones.

Back to what I said earlier, knowing that other people love to pop balloons, and I've always thought that was cruel and sadistic, probably since when I was really little I had a (red I think) balloon, and it popped and I was so incredibly sad. I've always been uncomfortable when people have balloons, especially when there are games where balloon popping is involved, I've always tried to gtfo to avoid the loud noises of the balloons being popped, it's always scared me. It's not a fear of balloons themselves, they are such innocent and amazing things, and whenever I do have them I show them the love they so deserve but never get, but it's when there are other people involved that I get uncomfortable and anxious, always thinking "when are they going to pop the balloon?!?" and "that poor balloon is going to be brutally murdered".