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Parenting

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Original poster

DD says there are monsters in her head...

14 replies

ManchesterMum · 18/02/2007 21:23

...and is asking me to get rid of them. It doesn't happen all the time and can occur at the most unlikely moments - e.g. in the showers at the swimming pool - but it's clearly causing her concern and my attempts at reassurance don't seem to be helping much. BTW, there's no history of waking with nightmares though she says that they come in her dreams. I feel so helpless but want to be able to do something to make her feel better.

OP posts:

colditz · 18/02/2007 21:26

Ask her all about them, and what they do, and what they look like, and what they say, and it may give you a bit more information about what is going on in her head?

Original poster

ManchesterMum · 18/02/2007 21:43

I have tried but she seems unable, for whatever reason, to tell me anything other than that they are monsters and make her thoughts nasty. Generally she's pretty articulate for her age so I've found such responses unusually vague. Today (at the pool) she said that they were monster robots but that really is as much as I've managed to glean so far.

OP posts:

PaganMum · 22/02/2007 12:27

not meaning to worry you or cause to much concern but this sounds very similar to schizophrenia, my mum has it and has done since she was a teen. it could just be her being to small for her mind, if that makes sense. A Dr would know

theres a lot of stigma with the name and a lot of misconceptions, you wouldn't even know my mum has it and theres loads to help it these days.

at least get it ruled out.

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morningpaper · 22/02/2007 12:29

how old is she

Jessajam · 22/02/2007 12:30

DH insists he heard nasty voices whispering to him as a little boy, telling him to do bad things.

He is "normal" now ...and is past the usual age for schizophrenia to have manifested (teens and early 20's I think....?)

morningpaper · 22/02/2007 12:30

Have you tried agreeing with her and telling them off by shouting through her ear, or similar? What about a routine to scare them off? Could you both chase them away or shut them in your handbag? Put them in your pocket and flush them down the toilet?

MrsGoranVisnjic · 22/02/2007 12:32

agree with MP .. if they're real for your DD then find a way to get rid of them (that she could also do on her own)

when DS was scared of monsters at night he used to shout 'go away monsters go away' and they did (but they were external monsters I think)

morningpaper · 22/02/2007 12:36

my dd knows that monsters are not allowed in the house or garden, only as far as a pavement, because they are VERY SCARED of Mummy's shouty voice

Sugarmagnolia · 22/02/2007 12:55

Our dog keeps the monsters out.

For a couple of weeks DS kept insisting there was a bat in his room. I finally got him to show it to me - it was just the way the streetlight came through the curtains if I hadn't pulled his blind all the way down!

KezzaG · 22/02/2007 12:59

Have she started having them after any event or stress? It reminds me a bit of an episode of House of Tiny Tearaways where a little boy had a naughty fox that came into his head and scared and upset him. It was linked to his father leaving, but Dr TB got him to draw the fox and write a letter telling him to go away, then they put it in a box and buried it in the garden. She also gave him a cuddly nice looking fox which would protect him and keep the bad fox away. She made a big deal out of him going outside to find the new fox who would look after him, and she had hidden it in the garden for him to find.

Hope you find some way to help her, it must be very upsetting for you.

shonaspurtle · 22/02/2007 13:15

I had whispering voices when I was little - 8 or 9 I think? It was horrible at the time and I would talk loudly to try to drown them out. Music might do the same thing.

It wasn't bad enough to tell anyone about and it just went away - can't even remember when, I just remember one day realising it hadn;t happened for ages. There was nothing sinister about it.

MuminBrum · 27/02/2007 21:17

I used to have awful nightmares starring wolves when I was three/four - my mum told me to make the wolves friendly and I distinctly remember decorating their fur with flowers. They drifted away out of my dreams soon after and have never come back. Could your DD make the monsters friendly?

puppydavies · 27/02/2007 21:25

we went the making friends route when dd was having monster dreams. we got her to draw pictures and tell us what she could about them. we worked out what they might like to eat and left food out for them at night (cauliflower iirc ) and made a card asking them to be her friends. in return they left her a copy of monsters inc and it really helped her to make peace with them. she still remembers even though it was maybe a year and a half ago (was 2 then), i think it was an empowering experience for her.

nulnulcat · 27/02/2007 21:49

we have been having a monster nightmare in this house! dd is 3 and was adament we had monsters in the house and at one point she wouldnt even go in her bedroom

we bought her the monsters inc dvd and a huge blue monster that she takes to bed and that will scare all the monsters away, she cuddles it for most of the night but it seems to have done the trick

we also have a ritual of throwing monsters out of doors and windows at bedtime checking under bed on top of wardrobe etc

we just keep reassuring her that we wont let the monsters get her, but its ok to be scared of stuff she knows mummy is scared of spiders so she goes through a spider ritual with me now

at least she is using her imagination i suppose!

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