Night time fears are common in young children. Children may have trouble calming down at bedtime due to fears like finding a monster under the bed. Although these fears may seem ridiculous to adults, they can be very real to young children.
If your child expresses a fear like this, it’s important to acknowledge the fear by saying something like “I can see that you are really worried about this.” Instead of overreacting and spending a lot of time discussing the monster, find ways to solve the problem:
- Leaving a nightlight on
- Using "monster spray" (pretend bottle or a real one filled with water)
- Checking under the bed
It can also help to discuss the fear with the child a few hours before bedtime. Then when the fear is brought up at bedtime, you can remind the child about what you discussed and how you decided to handle it. You can then calmly do whatever you planned like check under the bed and reassure your child all is well. Hopefully everyone will then have a good night’s sleep!
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