Ancraophobia is never present at birth. The fear of wind most often arises as a result of a negative experience in the person's past. This experience may or may not be recalled in the conscious mind of the person but this has been imprinted on the subconscious mind. Most often an ancraophobic person experienced a situation where the wind was blowing heavily and they found themseles afraid that the wind might destroy or kill them. This experience becomes linked with the wind, and is known as a "generalized conditioned response". This phobia arises from the combination of external events and an internal predisposition. The external events are things like traumatic events, and the internal predispositions are heredity, or having been transferred from one's blood line. The phobia can often be traced back to negative events that have happened; the most common event is the experience of a traumatic experience at an early age.

No one is born with a fear of the wind. This mental disorder is most commonly the result of psychological trauma caused by a negative experience with wind in the afflicted person's past. The experience may be remembered, or it may be "imprinted" on the subconscious mind of the traumatized person.

People who suffer from this phobia tend to be frightened by changes in the weather, such as storms. They are likely to believe that the wind has the potential to kill and destroy. Additionally, they avoid things that remind them of wind, like ocean waves. Ancraophobia is also related to terms like aeroacrophobia, which is the fear of open high places, and anemophobia which is the fear of air drafts.