How can I help DS stop having scary thoughts

[iwouldgoouttonight]

He is 5.5 and he's always been quite sensitive and thinks about things a lot. About a week ago he watched an episode of Bottle Top Bill where there was a mummy at a museum, and DS didn't it. Since then every time he goes to bed he gets upset and says he can't stop thinking about it. Its not a nightmare when he's asleep, its before he goes to sleep. We've tried talking it through with him, but he doesn't really want to talk about it. We sit with him and talk about other funny things to try to take his mind of it and we've left a night light on for him and his door open, but he still says he can't get it out of his head.

He seems to be getting progressively more upset each night - last night he kept shouting us and we heard him sobbing to himself in bed. DP went up and DS was virtually begging him to erase the thoughts from his memory and got really upset when DP said he couldn't do that! So he suggested putting his lamp on and reading a book until he was so tired he'd fall asleep. At 10pm I went up to bed and he was still reading his book - he said he couldn't stop because then the scary thoughts would come back into his head

This morning he was really tired because he's obviously not had enough sleep. Any ideas of what we can try. We've now all started to dread bedtimes!

Not sure that there is a magic answer. I wonder if you could give it a bit of context? My 5.5 DS can also get frightened of things and this sometimes works. So maybe explain what mummies (in museums) are? Difficult as you don't want to dwell on dead people but perhaps something along the lines of 'in olden times, sometimes people were wrapped up in bandages. They didn't ever actually walk again [or whatever it is that is scaring him], that's just a story to scare people'. Or perhaps ask if there is something else that he has been thinking a lot about or worrying about? But sounds like you've been doing brilliantly - distraction usually works! It will pass - everything does always seem to!

Maybe a long shot but we do this sometimes with DS (just turned 2, but sensitive and very prone to getting obsessive about slightly scary things he has seen) - we re-enact whatever it was that scared him and then make it funny.

So he would be the boy in the museum and I would wrap some bandages round my head and be a clumsy/stupid/amusing mummy - banging into things, pretending to burp - whatever - to make it seem silly rather than scary.

E.g. DS saw the first 30 mins of Stuart Little with his grandparents and got really upset at the mouse getting chased by the cat (fair enough I suppose!) So I pretended to be the cat, chasing one of his flopsy bunnies but getting it all wrong, banging my head, falling over etc. So now he remembers that version rather than the scary one.

And I must have re-enacted Toby and Whipering bloody Woods about 500 times...sigh...

Would your DS be too old for something like this do you think?

Oh to have an emotionally robust child

My DS can be quite sensitive and over-think things. We had something similar with zombies - did help to put it into context. And to go with it a bit, so being calm and there for them, but treading the fine line between trying not to dwell and moving them on from it. Another helped for us was worry dolls. I had some from when I was young (wonder where he got his sensitivity!). Its just a little box full of little tiny stick people, then he can tell his worries too and then stick them under his pillow and they are meant to take their worries away so that the child can sleep. I guess its the same as mentally putting your worries in a paper bag and blowing them away type of thing. Or maybe putting a few photos right beside his bed showing your family and other things he might like that he can look at to shove the scary thoughts away. We also joked around karate kicking the nasty thoughts away.

This book *www.amazon.co.uk/What-When-You-Worry-Much/dp/1591473144 Here]] is for kids that suffer with worry & anxiety, we bought it for DD a long while back, lots of little self help tips & interactive bits, very good for kids that sort of age & older with over active imaginations & generally little worry worts - as my DD is :)

whoops

Here

Sorry for not getting back sooner - DP has been using the computer a lot. Thanks for all your replies and link to the book - some really helpful ideas for us to try. DP had an idea of buying him a new teddy and saying that its a special teddy that you can talk to about things you're worried about, I suppose thats the same kind of concept as the worry dolls.

I've tried creating a story where silly things happen to the mummy but DS said he can't imagine it unless he sees it - short of making our own television programme we can't actually do this! But acting it out and making it really funny and silly might be a good alternative so we'll try that too.