Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Sleep

Join our Sleep forum for tips on creating a sleep routine for your baby or toddler. Need more advice on your childs development? Sign up to our Ages and Stages newsletter here.

7 year old fearful and too scared to sleep be alone.. need advice pleeeease :)

1 reply

Mindfulbabe · 13/08/2014 18:35

Hi all my 7 year old son has a very active imagination and appears to be struggling to understand fantasy vs reality. He is v.sensitive can't watch many kids movies as he is easily scared and then whatever he sees stays in his head for a long time. He hasn't been great going to sleep in recent months on and off is scared to be upstairs alone,scared of burglars being kidnapped then scared in daytime to go upstairs alone.
I have been trying gently to reassure him and try and show am understanding he scared but at same time trying to teach him he can settle himself to sleep. The last two weeks he has got much more scared and can't get a book character about a friendly werewolf he had at school out of his head.he won't go upstairs to loo on own and every night is clinging to me saying he is too scared and if i try and go back downstairs after bedtime routine he shouts out constantly and seems really scared so I am staying upstairs but after giving him reassurance going to my bedroom. He is also becoming more fearful in daytime .
Has anyone else had this or got any advice how i help him ..I just feel bit useless like I can't get through to him and hate to see him scared ..its also quite exhausting reassuring and then the pattern just repeats "I am too scared mummy"
Really grateful for anyone's advice :)

OP posts:
LittleRedRobin10 · 15/08/2014 13:40

Oh poor little man! He sounds like he has a very lively imagination. I was just like this when I was wee and found sleeping alone really tough. Things that helped me were: night light, reading or listening to relaxing stories before bed or as I went to sleep (nice audio books or poems even), sleeping in the same room as my brother sometimes (for a treat as it drove him bonkers!), talking over my worries or fears with my mum and dad, drawing and writing, later in life a bit of gentle CBT. It must be so hard, as a mum, to see your DS so fretful but it really just is that sensitive imagination working overtime. Is he a creative little boy? I ask as I'm now a writer and sometimes think there must be a connection between the two.

Here's a helpful article that a friend read for her little worrier - www.huffingtonpost.com/renee-jain/9-things-every-parent-with-an-anxious-child-should-try_b_5651006.html

Good luck!

New posts on this thread. Refresh page