dark thoughts...

[GreenEyesMama]

I got called to my childs school following a note that was found in class. The note depicted a house break in, finding a kn1fe and ch0pping someones h3ad off. Turns out, my child wrote it.

My child has said it was a moment of anger that shouldnt have been found and was written 4 weeks ago. Another child involved had this note and it somehow was found in class.

My child owned up and apologised to the person it was written about. My child is devastated and I dont think they fully understand how serious this is.

All devices have been removed. No more youtube/roblox etc. I'm at a loss of what to do. Do we seek therapy?

How old is the child? Is this a one-off event? If so I wouldn’t take it too seriously, children can have dark imaginations!

Child is 9. Nothing like this, to my knowledge, has ever happened before.
School are pushing for actions from me and I just dont know what else I can do about the situation

But your child has already apologised, they do seem genuinely sorry. I would just let it blow over now. What does the school expect you to do? As you say it is a one-off event. Just assure them that you have spoken to your child about it, and it won’t happen again.

As a therapist, I say seeking therapy is an overreaction. Give the devices back and move on. Create situations where they can talk about angry feelings with you and be glad they're trying to communicate. It isn't as serious as the grown-ups are making it.

When I was 9 we were very into scary things - Bloody Mary, ghosts, baddies. Kidnapping and home invasion is a big fear at this age, I think, when you're just being given a bit of independence and being told not to talk to strangers, hearing urban myths from other kids, etc. I think discussing it is fine but therapy would be way over the top, unless it was just one symptom of a larger problem.