Contents:
- Medical Video: 25 Strange Phobias You May Not Know You Have
- Why are many children afraid of the dark?
- Various ways to overcome children who are afraid of the dark
- 1. Face the child calmly
- 2. Responding to children's fears naturally
- 3. Calm the child and divert his fear
- 4. Ask for help from a doctor or psychologist
Medical Video: 25 Strange Phobias You May Not Know You Have
Fear can be felt by anyone and is normal. However, fear of children almost happens all the time, especially at night. Yes, many children are afraid to sleep at night because the atmosphere is dark and silent. Then how to deal with children who are afraid of the dark? Come on, find out the answer in the following review.
Why are many children afraid of the dark?
The cause of fear of children in the dark is not known with certainty. However, Jean Berman, Ph.D., a family therapist in Beverly Hills explained to WebMD that a child's fear arises because of his developing imagination.
The development of a child's imagination occurs around the age of 2 to 3 years. At that age, children can imagine about various things but have not been able to distinguish; which ones are fantasy and which are real.
Besides imagination, another factor that causes children to be afraid of the dark is television (TV). TV can present images and sounds that can stimulate a child's brain. Unfortunately, many parents do not realize the adverse effects of television and do not limit the time children watch. In fact, not all TV shows are suitable to be seen by children such as scenes of fighting, violence, or things that are scary and not seen by children.
Books that are considered as useful learning media, can also stimulate the imagination and cause fear in children. Starting from images of monsters, witches, or wild animals can haunt children when he is alone and in the dark. In fact, parents themselves can also instill fear in children by scaring them to obey and obey.
Various ways to overcome children who are afraid of the dark
Actually fear is important because it can make us alert. Usually this feeling will arise when someone tries or experiences something that is unknown and has never been experienced. However, fear of darkness that occurs in children you must face.
Why? These fears can disrupt a child's sleep, even though sleep is a time for the child's body to rest. The following are various ways parents can deal with children's fears in the dark.
1. Face the child calmly
Fear can make a child become anxious. So, the best way to deal with it is to show a calm attitude and provide security for children. Ask what makes children afraid. Then, explain to the child to deal with his fear with the choice of words that are not exaggerated so that his fear does not turn out.
2. Responding to children's fears naturally
Usually something that is feared by children is something that is not real. For example, children are afraid of monsters that appear from below under the bed at night. Well, you don't need to worry and worry too much about it. His fear will slowly disappear over time.
However, that does not mean you underestimate the things that are feared by children and just let it go. To teach courage to children, you should prove that what the child is afraid of does not exist. Invite the child to check under the bed and tell the child that there is nothing under the bed. Tell your brother or sister not to tease or scare your child.
3. Calm the child and divert his fear
To overcome the fear of children in the dark, do it gradually. Do not let fear make him not sleep well and interfere with sleeping sister or your own sister. Maybe the child will ask to be accompanied by sleep or ask for the room lights to be lit. Well, this should not become a habit. You can persuade your child to dare to sleep alone by giving your favorite doll to accompany your child's sleep.
In addition, reduce children's time to watch TV, especially at night and also reduce reading horror books that are frightening for children. Instead, choose light books that can make a child's mood cheerful.
4. Ask for help from a doctor or psychologist
In most children, the fear of darkness will be overcome in a few weeks. However, if the child does not experience change even though you have tried to overcome it, do not hesitate to ask for help from a doctor or psychologist.
Avoid children from stress, such as losing a pet or the death of the closest person or family problem that can trigger anxiety and make the fear worse.
