Search Results for: blog help your child triumph over irrational fears

When Nightmares Attack

I’ve always had rather vivid dreams — or at least been very good at remembering my dreams. Sometimes, this is a good thing. A dream inspired my first published piece of fiction. Sometimes, this is a bad thing… like when I have a nightmare that makes me turn on all the lights, afraid to go back to sleep. According to the National Library of Medicine, nightmares are more common in childhood than in adulthood. (So are night terrors!) However, as much as fifty percent of adults (mainly women) still experience occasional nightmares. Tips to help prevent nightmares: Make a bedtime … Continue reading →

Easing Fear

Fear can be stressful — whether you’re afraid of losing your job or afraid of spiders. Fear and anxiety can be even more stressful for children, who don’t necessarily know how to deal with these big emotions. When I was little, I developed an irrational fear of AIDS. I remember hearing about it on TV but not really knowing what it was — and was very afraid that I would somehow catch this terrible disease. There were some nights that I was afraid to go to sleep (my mom spent a lot of nights on the floor in my room … Continue reading →

When Your Child is Exposed to Something Scary

Many parents work hard to keep their child from being exposed to television shows, movies and stories that are inappropriate for their age and this often means things that are just too scary. No matter how much we try to protect and monitor, however, our young children may be exposed to something scary—a friend or relative tells a scary story, they see something accidentally on television or are witness to an accident, injury or other traumatic event. As parents, what can we do after the fact when our child has been frightened? What you do will depend on the age … Continue reading →

Can we Make Our Children be More Rational?

I admit that I have been accused of being overly rational; of course, I also know that I can be as moody and irrational as the next person, but overall rationality tends to be my guide. As a parent, however, I have learned that there is little sense in my clinging to rationality or expecting my children to be rational. I used to think that if I just exposed them to a more rational way of looking at things they would see things my way. Instead, I learned to enter the land of irrationality more often… I think that we … Continue reading →

What is “Real” to You and What is “Real” to Your Child May Differ

“There’s a monster under my bed!” Or “I saw a fairy today!” Fantasies and imaginations run wild with small children. Even the young toddler may start to tell grand “tales” and have nightmares and fantasies. Our first inclination as parents may be to reprimand our child and try to get him to understand that his fantasies and imaginings are not “real”—but what is real and obvious to us may not be the same “real” that our child is experiencing. Common advice for a parent who is dealing with a three-year-old who has developed a fear of “imaginary” ghosts is to … Continue reading →

The 3-4-year Old and Irrational Fears

It can come as a big surprise to parents of gregarious babies and toddlers when they suddenly develop intense, unpredictable and seemingly irrational fears. Usually, somewhere around the age of three or so, many children start to get fearful of things they hadn’t noticed before and for a parent, it can seem to come out of nowhere. They might suddenly be afraid of taking a bath for fear of going down the drain, they might start having nightmares of being afraid of ghosts, or something might happen in their every-day life that gets magnified into a big fear. What can … Continue reading →

Are They Really “Unreasonable” Fears?

Somewhere around two years old or so, many children seem to suddenly develop what we parents think are “unreasonable” fears. A happy-go-lucky child will suddenly cry every time mom or dad leaves his sight, a favored stuffed animal or toy will become scary, or other strange and unnamed fears will pop up. As parents, we may vacillate between concern and frustration—what on earth is going on?! In truth, all sorts of developmental things are going on that contribute to these very real fears. Our children start to develop an imagination and have enough life experience to contribute to imagining and … Continue reading →

Working Through the Fear Response

Although I would LOVE to learn how to live a life void of fear, I have been working on ways to work through those habitual and seemingly in-grained initial fear responses. Whether it is a new work idea, something that comes up with my kids, or other typical life event, sometimes my first response is to feel nervous and fearful. As single parents, we can learn how to push past those initial fear responses that might be holding us back from making significant changes. I was recently asked to submit a full propose for a substantial freelance job in a … Continue reading →

A Quick Clue as to the Intensity Value on a Disney Ride

I must confess that when it comes to fairground rides, I’m a complete wimp. I have no idea why people seem to think it’s fun to go spinning upside down in some gravity defying position whilst being held “safe” with a few bits of plastic. Nor do I understand the need to get off, throw up, and then get back on to go around again. I do however appreciate that many people get a lot of joy from this kind of activity. It was therefore with some trepidation that I first approached the Disney rides, even the ones that had … Continue reading →

Now Hear This: What is Auditory Dysfunction?

One of Kyle’s first symptoms of autism was his failure to respond to his name being called. He would sit amongst his toys, engrossed in whatever he was doing, and not turn his head when I shouted to him. Once in a while he would look, but frequently he didn’t. His lack of response was so strange that we had his hearing tested. But functionally, Kyle had normal hearing. Even so, hearing is more than just the process of an ear manufacturing sounds–it’s also the brain’s ability to interpret the sounds and respond appropriately. Often kids on the autism spectrum … Continue reading →